Surprisingly, not much. When it comes to marriage, we have far fewer recorded words of Jesus on the topic than I desire. He didn’t ignore the topic. I often quote his words in wedding ceremonies–“male and female,” “one flesh,” “God joined together,” and “let no man separate.”
Yet he doesn’t get more specific. Outside of talks about divorce and the temporary nature of marriage–we won’t be married in heaven–Jesus doesn’t say anything explicitly about how to make a marriage work. He validates its importance, but doesn’t give his viewpoint of how to navigate the struggles of normal couples.
A Sermon About Marriage
Six years ago, I began my first long preaching series through the Sermon on the Mount. Each week, we looked at a verse or a few verses in hopes of understanding the ethics of Jesus and His Kingdom. As the sermon started, so our series began with the Beatitudes. For the first six weeks, I never thought about marriage, but in preparation for week seven I decided to look at the beatitude of the week–blessed are the peacemakers–through the lens of marriage. While peacemaking is difficult in every circumstance, it might be most difficult at home. The sermon easily connected.
Later that night in a small group, I made the statement that I wish I would’ve done all the Beatitudes through the lens of marriage. One by one, we walked through how each one applied to all relationships, but especially marriage.
By no means is the Sermon on the Mount primarily about the relationship between husband and wife, but it doesn’t take much to see how his words relate to home. As a Christian, I believe marriage was instituted by God. He designed it and he is best positioned to tell us how it works. Equally, the Sermon on the Mount isn’t simply telling us the ethic of what is to come. Jesus taught us his way so that we could begin to live by his principles now.
If the words of Jesus teach us how best to live and marriage is a part of his design, it only makes sense that the Sermon on the Mount is also a sermon about marriage. It’s a secondary application, but an important one nonetheless.
#HappilyBook
In just a few weeks, Happily: 8 Commitments of Couples who Laugh, Love & Last will release. The book’s foundation is the nine sermons I preached six years ago from the Beatitudes. Its intention is to subtly introduce the teachings of Jesus to an audience that may have never considered his way, especially in terms of marriage. The book is not a collection of sermons. It’s not preachy. It’s not until the very last chapter that I even reveal where the ideas originated. While some may never listen to the teachings of Jesus, they might read a marriage book and be intrigued by the contrarian way in which He claims life is meant to be lived.
The book was intentionally written as a sequel to my first marriage book, Friends, Partners & Lovers: What It Takes to Make Marriage Work. In the first book, I look at God’s original design in marriage. While many things have been modified, the basic concepts of who a spouse is supposed to be have not changed. FPL shows us what to do, Happily will show us how to do it.
Will You Help?
Next week, we will begin spreading the word about Happily. In addition to the book, I’ve written a 31-day marriage devotional, produced a 90-minute video from an FPL marriage conference, and have prepared the original 9 sermons that form the foundation of the book. Those who pre-order books will have the opportunity to receive some or all of these products for free.
Would you help us spread the word? While the first 200 spots on our Launch Team have been filled (and they will be receiving a free book), we still need people who are passionate about the teachings of Jesus and marriage. We need them to tell friends, post on social media, write a review, lead a small group through a study, or encourage their pastor to host a marriage conference. We need more people promoting stronger marriages. This is your chance.
If you are interested in joining us over the next month, we’ve created a private Facebook group. I’ll post behind the scenes footage of video shoots, update you on my travel schedule, and keep you informed of everything going on with the book. I would love for you to join me. It’s free and it will be fun. If you want to join me, CLICK HERE.
