Articles
Applying Biblical Principles to Marriage
Have you seen husbands and wives take digs at each other in public? On the other hand, have you observed couples who treat each other with utmost courtesy, respect, and mutual affection?
Of course, how they treat each other when no one else is around counts for a whole lot too!
A concept that would revolutionize many a marriage is this: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. . . . husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
“For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church. . .” (Ephesians 5:25, 28-29).
Another marriage-enhancing principle is the Golden Rule: “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12). Why shouldn’t this apply as well to marriage as anywhere else?
The Second Commandment says much the same thing: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). My wife is my closest neighbor. Shouldn’t I love her as myself?
The paradox is that selfishness not only hurts one’s mate, but oneself as well. Why would a right-thinking husband want to hurt his wife—physically or emotionally? What could he possibly gain by that? We must work at our marriages if our marriages are to work.
The more consistently we practice these principles, the happier our marriages will be. It just makes sense. The same God who gave us marriage also teaches us how to treat one another.
Are we willing to give His way a try?
