Monday musings
Let's hear it for traditional love and marriage. With marriage in this society being redefined to include same-sex marriage, those advocating lifetime marriage between a man and a woman are lonely voices crying in the wilderness.
"Drink water from your own cistern And fresh water from your own well. Should your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets? Let them be yours alone And not for strangers with you." (Proverbs 5:15-17)
It's not really about wells and water, but romantic passion within the bonds of marriage between husband and wife (see verses 18-19). Having just admonished his young son to avoid the dangers of immorality (verses 1-14), the writer of the Proverbs extols the virtue of passion within the marriage relationship. Misdirected passion leads to ruin, but marital passion is a God-given blessing.
The language and ideals expressed may sound hopelessly outdated in this era of casual sex and multiple marriages. Few pass through adolescence into adulthood without misdirected passion, and many are no longer quenching their thirst from the original well. If the Proverbs are the standard, is there hope for for those who have failed?
God is a God of holiness, but He is also a God of grace. Our past can be forgiven, freeing us to live for Him in the present. His priority is to empower us right now to direct and re-direct our passion in ways that please Him.
Singleness of heart in romantic passion is a model for the singleness of heart that our Father desires us to have for Him. Faithfulness to one spouse is a daily reminder of faithfulness to One God.
The writer of Proverbs spoke of an ideal he had failed to live up to. Solomon drank from multiple wells and cisterns; perhaps far more than any other man. The record of his words to his son - and us - are a legacy of grace and forgiveness.
Spiritual passion and romantic passion are both powerful streams. There is potential for destruction and loss when they overflow their banks, but they are a source of blessing when properly directed.
We serve a God who has blessed us with the gift of passion. Whether in marriage or in devotion to Him, He entrusts us with directing that passion so as to honor and glorify Him.
©Steve Taylor, 2013
Be sure to also visit http://thetruthrevolution.wordpress.com/
"Drink water from your own cistern And fresh water from your own well. Should your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets? Let them be yours alone And not for strangers with you." (Proverbs 5:15-17)
It's not really about wells and water, but romantic passion within the bonds of marriage between husband and wife (see verses 18-19). Having just admonished his young son to avoid the dangers of immorality (verses 1-14), the writer of the Proverbs extols the virtue of passion within the marriage relationship. Misdirected passion leads to ruin, but marital passion is a God-given blessing.
The language and ideals expressed may sound hopelessly outdated in this era of casual sex and multiple marriages. Few pass through adolescence into adulthood without misdirected passion, and many are no longer quenching their thirst from the original well. If the Proverbs are the standard, is there hope for for those who have failed?
God is a God of holiness, but He is also a God of grace. Our past can be forgiven, freeing us to live for Him in the present. His priority is to empower us right now to direct and re-direct our passion in ways that please Him.
Singleness of heart in romantic passion is a model for the singleness of heart that our Father desires us to have for Him. Faithfulness to one spouse is a daily reminder of faithfulness to One God.
The writer of Proverbs spoke of an ideal he had failed to live up to. Solomon drank from multiple wells and cisterns; perhaps far more than any other man. The record of his words to his son - and us - are a legacy of grace and forgiveness.
Spiritual passion and romantic passion are both powerful streams. There is potential for destruction and loss when they overflow their banks, but they are a source of blessing when properly directed.
We serve a God who has blessed us with the gift of passion. Whether in marriage or in devotion to Him, He entrusts us with directing that passion so as to honor and glorify Him.
©Steve Taylor, 2013
Be sure to also visit http://thetruthrevolution.wordpress.com/
posted by steve @ 8:44 AM
1 Comments:
At 4:55 PM,
Anonymous said…
If I had heard these words in my younger years I would have laughed with contempt. But, hearing them now I regret that I had not truely heard them in my youth. The true bond between me and my wife is a blessing. Every day I feel blessed to be married. Marriage is good, in the biblical sense. Peace.
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