After spending quite a bit of time thinking and writing about marriage in preparation for my ordination process, I was excited to preach the first sermon in our new series on marriage to start 2015. Arizona, of course, legalized same-sex marriage a few months ago. That fact along with a need in our own congregation to strengthen marriages led us to address the topic. My goal in this first sermon was to help us grasp the overall purpose of marriage as seen in God’s design in Genesis 1-2, so that we might rejoice in and worship Him. Hopefully the rest of the series will build on this foundation to God’s glory in Christ!

[Note: I realized after preaching this sermon that I was a bit unclear at one point…In commenting on sex outside of marriage, I said something along the lines that extramarital sex does not bring two people into a “one-flesh” union. To be more specific, extramarital sex does not bring two people into a marriage union. 1 Corinthians 6:16 tells us that sexual activity does bring two people into a “one body” union in some sense, whether they realize it or not. Even sex with a prostitute does this, which is the most casual sexual exchange possible. But the physical union in sex outside of marriage is not sanctioned by God, nor does it by default constitute a covenantal union in the same way marriage does. Marriage goes beyond a merely physical (sexual) union because God Himself joins a man and woman together in a way that only He can (Matthew 19:6), forming a comprehensive “one-flesh” union that should result in one fully shared life. That’s the reason that a man and a woman in the covenant of marriage should not hold back anything from one another. I hope that clears things up!]