When God gave Israel her final instructions before they entered the Promised Land He said something about marriage. Marriage and the family are strategic in any society.
In Deuteronomy 20:13-30 Moses affirms the sacredness of marriage. Maintaining virginity till marriage is emphasized. Faithfulness in marriage is required. Sexual intimacy was to be experienced only in marriage. There were severe consequences when unfaithfulness was discovered and clear protections and rewards for faithfulness. These matters became public by virtue of how they were to be handled. This was important because they had an impact on society.
In our day we often compromise in these matters to the point where the only concerns people have anymore is how their sexual and romantic involvements affect themselves. We are self-centered to the point where we have little concern for a violated mate, children in the family, extended family and society around us. The scars on lives are staggering and the devastating effect on subsequent generations beyond calculation.
God’s instructions on sex are not designed to rob us, but rather to protect us and provide those elements for love to be expressed and experienced in the most satisfying and rewarding way. Any society that disregards what God says about the intimate relationship between a man and woman is asking for dire consequences, the unraveling of the fabric that holds a society together.
May God help us follow His wisdom in the matter of marriage and the family.
