In these days of "alternative lifestyles" and "sexual preference," many are questioning the relevance of the traditional marriage. Within our framework of freedom, is the marriage of male and female still valid today? Some people even declare that they find no evidence of a wedding ceremony in Eden, and if Adam didn't get married, why should we?
On the other hand, there are others who believe that there must have been a wedding for the world's first couple, but they cannot find the proof. The big question is: What really happened in the beautiful Garden of Eden? As we examine the record, we will discover that there are two divine institutions which commenced at the gate of Eden and will continue to the gate of heaven. The first of these is marriage.
Creation
It was the birthday of the world. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1). Day after day of creation week, God spoke the miracle words, "Let there be," and things came into being! Suddenly the earth broke forth with laughter-bubbling brook and rumbling river, singing birds and swimming fish, rolling hills and peaceful plains, bouncing beasts and crawling creatures, graceful grass and fragrant flowers, shining moon and starlit sky-all creation joined the glorious anthem of praise. Then came Friday, the first Friday in Eden, and God was ready to perform the crowning act of His Creation. No longer did He say, "Let there be..." Instead He said, "Let us make man in our image" (Genesis 1:26). The word "us" infers that more than one Person participated in this creative act. The first chapter of John sheds light on the first chapter of Genesis. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made" (John 1:1-3). Who was this "Word" this Cocreator? John 1:14 tells us that "the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." That Word is Jesus. So, God the Son, was Cocreator with God the Father. Nothing was ever made without Him. And God, the Holy Spirit, was also present. "The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters" (Genesis 1:2). Therefore, in the creation of humankind, the Godhead consulted and cooperated. The Father was conversing with the Son in the company of the Holy Spirit.
The First Couple
How did they proceed with this unique masterpiece of creation? Genesis 2:7 tells us that God shaped Adam's body from "the dust of the ground."Carefully He formed every organ, every bone every muscle, every nerve, every blood vessel Then, bending lovingly over that lifeless form, the Creator "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being" Suddenly, the creature stood before his Creator -tall, handsome, intelligent, majestic!
But as Adam executed his first assignment-the naming of the animals (Genesis 2:19, 20)-he observed that while to every male there was a female, he had no mate. Deep within him was a longing for another human being with whom he could communicate. And when Adam felt the desire, God supplied his need.
Putting him to sleep, the Lord performed surgery. He removed a rib from Adam's side and made a new creation. Lovingly He formed her body, mind, emotions, and will. Tenderly He breathed upon her, and as she stood in all her perfect symmetry and beauty, Adam awoke. They faced each other and inexpressible joy sparkled in their eyes. Fathomless love flooded their hearts and they fell into the arms of one another. They were in love!
The Wedding
And God said: This is the moment for the marriage. It was a beautiful garden wedding. Adam, the groom, stood beside Eve, the bride, while God conducted the ceremony. A choir of angels sang a song, while all nature peeped in excitement and all heavens watched in wonder.
How can we know there was a wedding? Because the Bible records both the vow of the bridegroom and the pronouncement of the minister. Here is the record of Adam's marriage vow. The man said, This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called wwoman," for she was taken out of man'" (Genesis 2:23). He made her a promise and he gave her a name. Now let us listen to the statement of God, the Minister: "For this reason a man willeave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh" (verse 24).
The careful student will ask this question: How can we be sure that the words of verse 24 are the words of God, and not the words of Adam? The speaker in verse 23 is identified: The man said," but the speaker in verse 24 is not identified. How can we be certain? If we can find evidence that the words recorded in Genesis 2:24 were spoken by God, we can be sure of a wedding in Eden.
The Evidence
Four thousand years later, thee Pharisees were questioning Jesus on the subject of marriage and divorce. Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh?"(Matthew 19:4, 5). Fantastic! Those are the very words of Genesis 2:24!
Jesus said that God created the first couple, and Christ declared that it was God who made that statement recorded in Genesis 2:24. Christ said so, and He ought to know, for He was present at the world's first wedding. He saw it, He heard it, and He reported it!
So there was a marriage in the beautiful Garden of Eden and God Himself was the Minister. The Bible says, "God blessed them" (Genesis 1:28). Adam didn't take Eve and run away with her; he married her. He didn't snatch the woman to have sex with her; he was wedded to her. Adam didn't practice concubinage; he practiced marriage. Adam didn't "live in" he had a wedding.
God's Plan
God's plan for the earth's first couple that day is the same as His plan for every couple today. He has ordained that sex be experienced exclusively within the bond of marriage. His command is clear: "You shall not commit adultery" (Exodus 20:14). His desire is that sexual relationships be reserved for the bed of the married couple. "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge" (Hebrews 13:4, NKJV). So heaven's invitation to every couple loving and living together, but not yet married, is to get married. It is important to note that in this model marriage, the partners were not Eva and Eve but Adam and Eve. Nor were they Adam and Steve, but Adam and Eve! Sexual intimacy between persons of the same sex is strictly forbidden in Scripture. In the Old Testament, God said, "If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death" (Leviticus 20:13). The New Testament bears the same message. "Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men,...Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death" (Romans 1:27, 32).
But while God dislikes the sin, He loves the sinner. More than that, He makes His limitless power available that if we are willing, we can gain the victory. In Isaiah 50:2, NKJV, He asks the intriguing question, "Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?" In Isaiah 59:1, NKJV, the emphatic answer is given: "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear." The good news is that deliverance is possible.
The beauty of the world's first wedding is beyond our description. That gorgeous garden becamea chorus of praise. The twitter of chirping birds and the splendor of fragrant flowers- roses and lilies, violets and marigolds, orchids and daffodils-all joined the choir of joy. Rolling hills, verdant plains, and singing trees are united in the anthem of gladness. In this pageant of beauty, while the laughter of earth kissed the smile of heaven, marriage was born.
In the Garden
So, on that first Friday in Eden, there was a celebration of love-the love of a man for a woman. The next day was another celebration of love- the love of man and woman for God. The Bible says, "And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work ot creating that he had done" (Genesis 2:3). Marriage received His benedic- tion and the Sabbath received blessing. Marriage, born in Eden on the sixth day, was a celebration of love n the garden of peace. The Sabbath, instituted in Eden on the seventh day, was another celebration of love n the same garden of peace.
Some call it a Jewish Sabbath. But how many people were in Eden? Just two-Adam and Eve. Where they Jews? Of course not! There was neither Jew or Gentile. The Sabbath was not given first to Moses; it was given to Adam 2,500 years before Moses! It did not start at Sinai; it started in Eden. Since it was given to Adam, father of us all, it was made for the whole human race. That was at Jesus said, The Sabbath was man or white man, rich man or poor made for man" Mark 2:27). Black man, the Sabbath was made for ever maa child of Adam. Just as marriage was made for all humanity, so the Sabbath was created for the whole human family.
Far from being Jewish, the Sabbath is Christian. Since marriage was made by Creator Christ, it is originally a Christian institution. Since the Sabbath was made by Christ, it is universally a Christian institution. That is why Jesus called Himself, "Lord of the Sabbath" (verse 28).
More than that, the Sabbath is a day for the family of God. Since Adam and Eve were made and married on Friday, which was the first night that they slept in the arms of each other? Sabbath eve! And which was the first tull day that they enjoyed the thrill or God's love together? The Sabbath day! What a day that must have been! What ecstasy in experiencing the love of each other and exploring the love of God! Unspeakable! Unforgettable! Eternally memorable! Yes, the Sabbath is a day for the family of God.
Prescription for peace
Not only was it made in a place of peace, it is a day of peace. In fact, the word "Sabbath" means "rest." It
pictures peace. Day after day we are caught up in the rush and hurry of everyday life, its problems and per plexities, its strains and stresses. They drive some people crazy! God's design is that each seventh day we should take a holiday. Many cannot afford extensive vacations, but God's plan is that each Sabbath be a mini-vacation. For a full 24- hour day, from sunset to sunset (Genesis 1:5; Leviticus 23:32; Mark 1:32), we may leave the regular ac- tivities of work, and school, and business, not working on them, not speaking of them, not even thinking of them. It is a time to give the minda holiday, exchanging the burdens of earth for the beauties of heaven. It is a time to turn the thoughts from the machines of men to the mysteries of God. It is time for worship, the celebration of God's great act of creation. It is a time of renewal as we encounter God's recreating power in our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual experience. The Sabbath is God's plan for human sanity. It is a divine antidote for the epidemic of stress. It is heaven's prescription for peace of mind. Each new week we can descend from its mountain retreat to face life's battles in the valley and be victorious.
Identification
Sometimes people ask, "Can we choose any day to be our day of rest?" Let us illustrate. When the Joneses had their first baby, they carried the concern that their child should not live a life of poverty as they had done. So they took the infant to the home of a millionaire and asked him to perform the service of blessing! Ridiculous! If they wanted their child to be blessed, they should have taken their offspring to a church and have the clergy man perform that sacred rite. Why? Because only God can bless! Only God can bless a person, a place, or a day. And He has already chosen the seventh day, and placed His special blessing upon it (Genesis 2:1-3).
But how can one be sure which day today is God's seventh day? The Crucifixion story answers this question clearly. Three memorable events marked that weekend: Christ's crucifixion, His burial, and His glorious resurrection. The day He was crucified we call Good Friday, the day He rested in the tomb we call Saturday, and the day He was resurrected we call Easter Sunday. Now what names does the Bible give to these three days? The day of crucifixion is called "preparation day" (Luke 23:54). The next day is called "the Sabbath" (Luke 23:54, 56). Resurrection day is called "the first day of the week" (Luke 24:1). So Friday is the Bible's "preparation day" Saturday is the Bible "Sabbath," and Sunday is the Bible's "first day of the week." To state it differently, the day that comes between Christ's crucifixion on the sixth day and Christ's resurrection on the first day is God's Sabbath day.
Prince of Peace
Six hundred years before Christ's birth in Bethlehem, Isaiah told the Christmas story. "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given." Then he called some of His names: "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6).
Wherever He went during His earthly life, Jesus brought peace. To demon possessed men wild and ravening, He spoke peace. To profligate women tired of sinning, He whispered peace. To tempestuous waves raging and howling, He said "Peace be still." And where did this Prince of Peace go on His day of peace? Luke 4:16 gives us the answer: "On the Sabbath day, he went into the ynagogue, as was his custom." S0 the habit of Jesus was to worship or the Sabbath day.
It is good to remember that there were hypocrites in that church angry hypocrites, scheming hypocrites, modela derous hypocrites (Luke 4:28, 29). same. He sang and prayed with the hypocrites. He even preached to them. We must never let the hypocrites keep us from church on Christ's Sabbath.
One awesome day, He walkedd up a cruel hill called Calvary, and there they crucified Him. Hanging, crying, bleeding, dying, He suffered for you and for me. And whenever someone kneels at the foot of the Cross and says, "Tm in love with Je- sus, and I'm giving my life to Him," Christ pardons the sin, rolls away the guilt, and gives inner joy and peace. Then the Savior says: Since you have experienced My salvation inside, I invite you to wear My sign outside. And what is that sign? "Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God" (Ezekiel 20:20). Glorious thought! The Sabbath is a sign of our salvation.
Two Symbols
So, in the beautiful garden of Eden, God gave to the human family two symbols of love, two emblems of peace. Marriage was instituted on the sixth day, and the Sabbath was celebrated on the seventh day. Both were given to the first family of God yesterday, both belong to the family of God today, and both will remain with the family of God tomorrow.
Marriage is a symbol of the love affair between a man and a woman. It is the sign of belonging to a new human family. The Sabbath is the symbol of a love affair between a man or a woman and God. It is a sign of belonging to a new spiritual family-God's family.
Marriage is a covenant of human love. It is an act of commitment where one says to one's earthly lover, "Tlove you, and I'm giving my life to you forever." The Sabbath is also a covenant of love-divine love. It is an act of commitment when someone says to the heavenly Lover, "I love You, and I'm giving my life to You forever." Can we make such a loving commitment today?
Let's have a coffee
Hari
Blessings...
