★ MY SERMON NOTES
@ Family Worship Centre (FWC)
Wuye, Abuja
28th October, 2016
COUPLE'S RETREAT
(Day One: 1st Session)
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| Rev. Ejibe Eme Picture Credit: FWC Media |
☆ SERMON
* Speaker: Rev. Ejibe Eme
* Topic: Rediscovering the Good in the Marriage Institution
* Text: Genesis 2:7-25
* Rediscovery is a process of seeking out what the original plan of a thing is
☆ Discovery arises when there is:
1. Confusion
→ Today, there is much confusion about marriage institution
→ Civilization has worsened the confusion
→ Many perversions have been introduced to undermine the sanctity of marriage
2. Damage
→ To repair a damage, you need to refer back to the original manual of the product
→ The manual for marriage is the Bible
☆ Points to note:
* 1. At the institution of marriage at Eden, everything was provided (material wealth was is abundance)
→ NOTE: The presence or absence of material wealth is not enough to determine the good or structure of marriage
→ There is something about marriage that money cannot provide
2. God is the sole initiator of marriage
→ The design of marriage precedes civilization and human knowledge
→ Man cannot have a superior design more than God
→ God's design predates your village tradition & customs
☆ The Principles that can bring out the good in Marriage:
→ For anything to be good, it must follow the right principles and specifications (as predetermined by the initiator or manufacturer)
1. The God Factor and the Divine Agenda (Genesis 2:21)
→ "God made"
→ "God caused deep sleep"
→ "God brought her to Adam"
* NOTE: God is deliberately involved in your marriage
→ He has an agenda for your marriage
→ He has an interest in your interest
→ He is a major stakeholder/shareholder in your family affairs
* God always works behind the scenes to establish and sustain marriage
★ Malachi 2:14 →"Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant."
* NOTE: The consciousness that God is a constant witness in your marriage should cause you to be mindful of how you treat your spouse
★ Malachi 2:15 →"And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.''
* A seed is a deposit that will produce more harvest
→ when God is looking for bountiful harvest, he plants seeds in godly families!
* God always searches for a man and woman whom He can trust and entrust them with His godly seed
* NOTE: Examples of the 'seeds' God planted in godly families:
(a) Moses (see: Exodus 2:1-2)
(b) Samson (see: Judges 13:2)
(b) John the Baptist (see: Luke 1:5)
(c) Jesus Christ (see: Matthew 1:18)
* Question: Where are the families that God can trust today?
* Satan is always targeting the structure of marriages to bring it down
→ he aims at destroying the psyche of our children (eg, by planting them in homes with homosexual 'parents'. They will not be able to appreciate the sanctity of marriage as they grow up)
★ Psalm 11:3 →"When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (ISV)
→ Your children are a gift from the Lord and you must protect them from the perversions of the world
* God has a divine arrangement for a woman to bring joy to the man
→ A woman carries destiny and births it!
⇒ Women play important roles in the godly upbringing of children
→ A man a woman are meant to compliment each other
2. The Covenant Factor in the Union
→ Marriage is not a business contract (that may be terminated when the conditions are not favorable)
→ Marriage breaks the covenant of birth (leave father and Mother)
→ It is not a social arrangement between two people to co-exist
* Marriage is not about compatibility (it is virtually impossible for two different people to be totally compatible)
→ That is why it is a mystery
→ Two different personalities becoming one
* What the world cannot understand, they try to develop a new theory
3. The Mystery of Oneness
→ In marriage, the two different personalities have collapsed into one!
→ This is what the world does not understand
* God's plan is for the couples to be ONE in everything
→ If your wife does not know something about you, then you are not one!
* A sane person would never maltreat or insult himself
* Whenever there is anything wrong with your marriage, somebody or something is intruding
* Your marriage is your life!
→ You should do all that is possible to preserve, protect and nourish it
* When there is oneness, you will always feel the pain of your spouse
* NOTE: You must keep an eye on the devil
→ Question: What is the devil sponsoring to undermine your marriage covenant?
* You must understand the tricks of the devil and guard against them
☆ Questions for Personal Reflection:
→ Can God brag about your marriage?
→ If God is looking for a family that He will use as a model to convince unbelievers that His principles of marriage are timeless and enduring, can He send them your way?
→ SINGLES: If God is about to send a seed into the world, can He trust you with it?
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