The Covenant of Marriage” 

In a Peanuts comic strip, Linus compliments Charlie Brown on a new sweater he is wearing.  Charlie Brown begins to thank Linus for the compliment, but when he reaches into the pocket of his new sweater, he feels what appears to be a note secretly slipped in there. He thinks, “Someone put a note in my pocket!  I’ll bet it was that little red-haired girl!  I was sitting next to her in the sand box at the playground.  I’ll bet she slipped a note into my pocket.” 

A big smile creases Charlie Brown’s face as he imagines the possibilities.  He thinks, “I’ll bet she knows how much I admire her and how much I’ve always wanted to meet her.  And, I’ll bet she’s written me a note telling me something.  I’ll bet that’s it!  I can hardly wait to read it.  Just think… a note… a real note!”  Charlie Brown reaches into his sweater pocket and pulls out the note.  Linus turns toward him and says, “What does it say?”  Charlie Brown gets that familiar “Good Grief” look on his face as he hands Linus the note which says, “This garment has been inspected by Operator 23.”

Charlie Brown is no different than any of the rest of us.  Everybody desires intimacy.  Everybody wants to know and to be known.  It doesn’t matter who you are.  It’s something we all want.  It’s something we all need, and God has shown us His design for satisfying those needs, which the Bible defines as the covenant of marriage.  And this is why we should never change the definition of marriage to suit our own whims or the whims of the prevailing culture, because only in the complementary life-long bond between a man and a woman do we find anything even close to expressing the enduring life-giving commitment God has made to us.  A God who promises to “cleave” to us in total faithfulness, as He commands us to “cleave” faithfully to each other as husbands and wives.

This Sunday, July 23, I will continue my summer sermon series, “Red Hot Topics,” with the fourth of these highly emotional and controversial topics, -- the issue of Marriage, Sexuality, and Same-Sex Marriage.  Please come and join us in the sanctuary for our one and only worship service at 10:00 am.  The 10:00 am service will also broadcast on Zoom, Facebook Live, and YouTube.

Quote of the Week

“In Christian marriage, love is not an option.  It is a duty.”  R. C. Sproul