REVIVE
Marriage Series
Gospel-Centered Marriage
May 16, 2021 • Chan Mitchell
The word gospel simply means “good news.” The gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news that sinful people can be made right with God by repenting of their sin and calling upon Jesus as Savior and Lord. To be gospelcentered is to be focused on the life-changing good news of God in Christ. We often speak of ministries, books, songs or programs as being “gospel-centered.” However, what does it mean to have a gospel-centered marriage? A gospel-centered marriage is a marriage made up of one man and one woman who have been declared righteous through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, and whose marriage reflects His atoning work on the cross. In a gospel-centered marriage, the relationship between a husband and a wife reflects the relationship between Christ and His church for the glory of God.
Covenant Marriage
May 9, 2021 • Chan Mitchell
“For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish...” We’ve all heard these words repeated in many wedding ceremonies. If you are married, you have likely repeated them yourself! What does it mean to be in a covenant marriage, and how does it enrich our lives and reflect God’s plan? Throughout history, there have been different cultural definitions of what constitutes a marriage. However, at the heart of biblical marriage is a covenant before God to cherish one another and continue to grow as one. At the heart of a covenant marriage is a desire to not just ‘get through’ life together but to thrive together. It means to love, encourage, and cherish one another while constantly seeking Christ in our relationship.
God’s Design for Marriage
May 2, 2021 • Chan Mitchell
From the beginning, God had a specific design for marriage. In Genesis 2, we witness the very first marriage ceremony in all creation: Adam being united to Eve, his bride. When asked about divorce and remarriage, Jesus points back to the foundation of marriage by describing God's design for human sexuality at creation. The union between a husband and wife is the most important picture in the Bible of how intimate our relationship with God can be. God is portrayed as the Husband who loves us, and we are the wife, who responds back to Him. In the New Testament, Christ is pictured as the groom and the Church is His bride. In honoring God’s design for marriage, we uphold the union of one man and one woman, united for life, with loving intimacy that reflects Christ. Most importantly, every marriage - even those not consciously aimed at God's glory - reflects the greater covenant between Christ, the redeemer-husband, and the Church, His bride.