A caveat: A marriage or family relationship should never take priority over ones relationship and duty toward God. Don’t ruin or harm your relationship with God to preserve or please your spouse, children or parents (or significant other). When God gave us His Ten Commandments the first three had to do with our relationship with and responsibility to Him: “You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy.” Then and only then did God enumerate our duties toward spouse, parents, children and neighbors.
But Jesus said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many guests; and at the dinner hour he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is ready now.’ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have purchased a piece of land and I have to go out and see it; please consider me excused.’ Another one said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have recently married a wife, and for that reason I am unable to come.’
No Excuses
Jesus words, like all of God’s Word, still stand. In the Parable of the Great Banquet, many were invited. One person’s excuse was, “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.” The Master’s verdict to his and others’ excuses: “None of those who were invited shall taste My banquet.” (Luke 14:12-24) And again, Jesus said, “Whoever loves father or mother, son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.” (Matthew 10:37)
The Unchangeable Word of God
God has given Christians a Constitution. And there are no provisions for amendments to adapt to our opinions or feelings, a changing culture, future legislation, or rulings of the Supreme Court. This is the unchangeable, infallible, inerrant Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come and follow Me believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his life in this world will eventually lose it through death, and whoever loses his life in this world for My sake will find it that is, life with Me for all eternity.”
Well Done Good & Faithful Servant
May God forgive us for any time past or present where we did not follow God’s design and instructions in His marriage owner’s manual, and going forward may we choose to follow Him and trust Him for whatever the results will be and be confident that ultimately we will hear from Him: “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of Your Master.” Amen.
