Why Do Some Christians End Up With Bad Marriages?
Dr. J. Gerald Harris
Proverbs 5:18-21
God intended for there to be an intimate relationship between the husband and the wife. God gave us this marriage relationship so that we can be "ravished" by the love of our mate. It is a beautiful expression of oneness and unity.
But today there are even good Christian people who seem to have bad marriages.
When I was at Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, I pastored a church in Raleigh. And I never shall forget an older couple who attended church regularly. They sat on the second row. And I was greatly impressed by how harmonious and how much in love they seemed to be. They always held hands all through the service. And one day after church, I couldn't resist going up to them to express my admiration for their relationship. And I said, "Warren, Clara, I find it inspirational to see how deeply in love you are even after all these years, holding hands like that."
And Clara looked up sharply at me and said, "It's not love, pastor. I'm just keeping him from cracking his knuckles."
Well, they were in church every Sunday, and yet their marriage apparently was not nearly as good as I thought it was.
And so today we're going to do some investigation, and we're going to try to determine why some very good Christians end up with very bad marriages. Now, obviously my list is not exhaustive, but I want to submit to you seven reason why very good Christians often end up with very bad marriages.
I. SOCIETY'S PRESSURES
Sometimes I think we have probably failed to realize how much our modern society influences us. I read about a market research interviewer who was stopping people in the grocery store after they picked up their bread. One fellow picked up a loaf of Wonder Bread. And the man asked him, "Sir, would you be willing to answer a couple of questions about your choice of bread?"
The man responded, "Yes, I'd be happy to."
The man said ...
Dr. J. Gerald Harris
Proverbs 5:18-21
God intended for there to be an intimate relationship between the husband and the wife. God gave us this marriage relationship so that we can be "ravished" by the love of our mate. It is a beautiful expression of oneness and unity.
But today there are even good Christian people who seem to have bad marriages.
When I was at Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, I pastored a church in Raleigh. And I never shall forget an older couple who attended church regularly. They sat on the second row. And I was greatly impressed by how harmonious and how much in love they seemed to be. They always held hands all through the service. And one day after church, I couldn't resist going up to them to express my admiration for their relationship. And I said, "Warren, Clara, I find it inspirational to see how deeply in love you are even after all these years, holding hands like that."
And Clara looked up sharply at me and said, "It's not love, pastor. I'm just keeping him from cracking his knuckles."
Well, they were in church every Sunday, and yet their marriage apparently was not nearly as good as I thought it was.
And so today we're going to do some investigation, and we're going to try to determine why some very good Christians end up with very bad marriages. Now, obviously my list is not exhaustive, but I want to submit to you seven reason why very good Christians often end up with very bad marriages.
I. SOCIETY'S PRESSURES
Sometimes I think we have probably failed to realize how much our modern society influences us. I read about a market research interviewer who was stopping people in the grocery store after they picked up their bread. One fellow picked up a loaf of Wonder Bread. And the man asked him, "Sir, would you be willing to answer a couple of questions about your choice of bread?"
The man responded, "Yes, I'd be happy to."
The man said ...
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