Why is Marriage so Important?

Intimacy

Marriage is much more than a civil contract with legal benefits. Marriage is an essential part of God’s plan. Marriage is a contract between husband, wife, and God. Marriage involves every aspect of intimacy, from our needs to spiritual, emotional, and physical closeness. In the Old Testament, we are taught, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). Married couples are meant to be unified in every possible way.

He expects us to dedicate ourselves to the relationship. This is the one thing we are not allowed to give up on. We don’t just have a responsibility to our spouse and to God but we are under a contract with God to fulfill our marital duties. I know that sounds very overwhelming and challenging but God gave us an entire how-to book for life. So how do we fulfill our marital duties? Well, first we need to try some patience. Marriage can require hard work. But remembering that it’s founded on love gives us direction. “Above all things have fervent charity among yourselves,” counsels Peter in the New Testament, “for charity shall cover the multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). None of us are perfect. Both you and your spouse will make mistakes, but a marriage won’t survive long without patience and forgiveness. Be considerate of each other and take on the hard times together. “with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:2–3).

Companionship

Companionship is the first purpose of marriage. In Genesis 2:18, the Lord said it wasn’t good for man to be alone. God designed marriage so that man and woman could have a close relationship. He knew from the beginning of time that for us to be alone is not healthy. We saw just how true that was with all the covid lockdowns. We are social people and we need one another. This relationship is based on love, trust, and communication and provides a picture of our relationship with the Lord. Marriage is where husband and wife can come together to share their lives and experiences. A healthy marriage should be a refuge from the world where couples can find comfort and support. If you aren’t finding refuge and support from your spouse, you will find it somewhere else, and that’s a very dangerous place to be.

Selflessness

Jesus taught us, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Married couples can learn a powerful lesson from this teaching. As a spouse, you are expected to essentially lay down your old life and sacrifice many of your personal desires for your closest friend—your husband. You have been joined together as one flesh, you are no longer two separate people. When you are able to keep your priorities in the right order, by putting God first, your husband next, and your family after that. Everything else will fall into place. Where we get ourselves into trouble is when our children take a higher priority than our spouse, or when our husband becomes our god. Remember you are here to do God’s will and if he called you into a life a being a wife, then he called you to love selflessly.