God’s Standard in Marriage - Creation Moments

Genesis 2:22-24
“And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

For many people, the whole issue of marriage has become very complicated in recent years. For millennia (about six millennia, in fact), nations have knowingly or unknowingly followed biblical precedent in their marriage laws. Marriage was between one man and one woman. In the last ten years or so, however, many countries have altered their laws on this matter. The US law was seemingly changed de facto by the Obergefell Supreme Court decision in 2015. Other countries changed their law by parliamentary vote (e.g. United Kingdom) or by majority vote in referendums (Republic of Ireland).

These new positions enabled couples who were of the same sex to marry, according to the laws of those countries. I remember thinking at the time of Obergefell that by the “logic” which the Supreme Court judges adopted, one had to ask why marriage should be between just two people. So it was no surprise to me to find a New York Times article in the summer of 2020 headlined “The Challenges of Polyamorous Parenting”, featuring a “married” so-called “thruple”. The article opines: “Policymakers in the United States are just beginning to expand their definitions of what makes a family.”

The issue which all these laws, courts and articles have failed to address is this: Who defines marriage and family? God defined marriage at the very beginning of the Bible. No human institution has the right to define marriage, any more than they have the right to define the colors of a tiger’s stripes.

Prayer: We pray, Heavenly Father, that all those who have been led astray by human definitions will turn to You in repentance and faith, leaving their lives of sin behind. Amen.

Author: Paul F. Taylor

Ref: Ham, K. (2020), “Polyamorous Parenting”: Who Defines the Family?, < https://answersingenesis.org/culture/polyamorous-parenting-who-defines-family/ >, accessed 9/2/2020. Image: Shutterstock royalty free image, licensed to author.