Understanding what marriage is and is not.

1. Understanding what marriage is and is not. During this lesson you will learn where marriage came from, what God created it for and what it will not do for you.

2. Genesis 2:4-25 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.5 When no bush of the field I] was yet in the land] and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, 6 and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— 7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 8 And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.10 A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. 11 The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. 14 And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat] of it you shall surely die.”18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit form] him.” 19 Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam] there was not found a helper fit for him. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said," This at last is bone of my bones
andflesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman,because she was taken out of Man.”[q]24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not

3. The creation From the beginning of time and creation marriage has been at the root of all things. The Creation of Marriage Marriage was created so that both man and wife could be part of one unit, Walking side by side through life helping each other So ultimately if we are created to both glorify God and to support one another through marriage, God has created marriage as a way to glorify Him.

4. Questions • Why do you think marriage was created? • How would you define marriage as seen today? • Why did God create Women?

5. Worldview of M Do not think that Marriage can fill the hole that only God can repair himself. The Worlds conception of marriage is that you can find someone to spend the rest of your life with that is going to make you happy. That is the biggest and most dangerous misconception of marriage. Worldview ofMarriage “The state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law.”

6. What is the biggest misconception of marriage?

7. God’s View on In a Christian marriage you do not love each other with the love you possess, rather you love each other with the love of Christ that is in you. The gospel is the guide by which we should establish our relationships on Gods view on Marriage Satan is against marriage because at the very root of a Christian marriage is a representation of the Gospel.

8. What are the biggest differences between the worlds view and Gods view on marriage? How would you define marriage through the eyes of the gospel? Write a definition of marriage through the eyes of the gospel?

9. we must consider others more important then ourselves and when both people are doing so what is created is a beautiful friendship creating a loving marriage Marriage and Marriage and Friendship the most important quality in a marriage is your friendship Since the key to a healthy marriage is friendship we should be learning how to be a good friend ourselves

10. What does is mean to be a friend to you? If you want friendship in a relationship what is the first thing you must do? How can you be a better friend?

11. The first step to handling the sin in a relationship is recognizing it In every relationship sin will come between you, if you allow Jesus to cover that sin it is no longer the sin between you but it is Jesus The Sin Issue The Sin Issue If you never take out the trash things will start to get really gross

12. What are two kind of sin that are in a relationship? What are the three steps in handling sin? Is there sin in your relationship that you need to repent of/forgive?

13. Finding Mr/Mr Finding Mr/Mrs Right Are you ready for love? The primary sign of being ready for love is if you are healthy Face your Past. What do you want? What are you expecting? Take it to God.

14. What are some steps that you need to take so you are ready for love? What do you want out of a relationship/marriage? What are the boundaries that you have in your relationships? What are the four steps that you should take to see if you are ready for love?

15. Keep you heart with all vigilance, your heart is one of the most precious gifts that God has given us What do you re What do you really want? Instead of making a list of requirements for your future spouse try making a list for yourself What are your expectations? Actually set your boundaries. Talk about it. No more compromising.

16. What kind of spouse does your future husband or wife deserve? What expectations do you have for your future spouse? What are your boundaries?

17. The problem is that in the process of finding the “love of your life” you will so often loose yourself. Don’t give your Don’t give your love away Since we have the God of our universe on our side planning everything out for us why do we try so hard to find a love on our own? Every time we enter into a relationship and give away our love to another person we are giving that person access to our heart

18. What are we intended to do with the love that God has given to us? What is the most precious gift that God gives us? What does Jeremiah 29:11 say God has for us?

19. God is a god who loves us and wants to give you every good a perfect gift He makes us n He makes us new If you are one of those people who have so readily given away your love and find yourself broken there are some things that you can do to have your gift restored. Repent Accept His Redemption

20. What does God do with the broken gifts that we bring to him? Read Romans 6:1-14, what does it have to say about grace? What must you do once you have repented of your mistakes? What is the first thing you need to do when you want your gift restored?

21. Instead of burying our heart we need to train our heart how to operate through the lens of the Gospel What to do with What to do with a new heart Do not let any other person have control over who you are except for Jesus A marriage of two people that are seeking God and have their identity in Him alone is a marriage that will stand strong

22. What should we do with our new heart? Who is the person that should define our relationships?

23. Before, during, and after marriage we need to have Jesus as the center of every single relationship in our lives Achieving perf Achieving perfection in marriage The best way to give over your marriage to God is to give over your single life to God Take advantage of every opportunity. Become a Servant. Have an accountability partner.

24. What is the best way to give over your marriage to God? How do we achieve perfection in marriage? List the three ways to use your time during your single days. How are you doing this currently and what could you do better? What is something that you can begin doing now that will benefit your current life as well as prepare you for your future?