Building A Marriage Culture - Renewal in the Ruins

Building a Marriage Culture - Renewal in the Ruins by Owen Strachan, Grant Castleberry and Greg Gibson from CBMW Press (cbmw.org)

It is no secret that biblical marriage is under attack today. Over the past couple of decades, culture has fought to redefine marriage as something besides one woman and one man. Recently, the Supreme Court has done just that—redefining marriage to include same-sex marriage.

It is more pressing than ever that Christians—and local churches—stand firm on marriage.

At Council on Biblical Manhood and womanhood (CBMW), we stand on the conviction of God’s authoritative Word. We believe the Bible. We believe it is without error. We believe God’s Word is the foundation of all meaning, direction, and joy in our lives. Furthermore, we believe God created the institution of marriage (Gen. 2:18-25). He placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden to enjoy one another to the fullest. There was no brokenness, corruption, adultery, abandonment, immorality, money problems, in-law drama, or all the other effects of sin that creep into a marriage. And there were no attempts at a new definition of marriage either.

The results of sin on our world are vast. Within the framework of marriage, sin abounds. The Lord Jesus Christ ultimately redeems marriage by redeeming broken people. Dave Harvey says it best, “Until sin be bitter, marriage will not be sweet.” [1] Within culture, there is no moral compass guiding marriage. Much like everything in our atheological and postmodern culture, marriage has lost objective meaning, being redefined in the eyes of the definer—who, as it seems, is anyone and everyone.

The Bible defines marriage as a reflection of Christ and His Bride—a mystery that points to the sacrificial relationship between Jesus and the Church (Eph. 5). It is to be between one man and one woman. We are going to stand firm on that truth, because logically, if you redefine marriage, you begin to redefine the gospel.

With all that said, in a world where same-sex marriage is now legal in all 50 states, how should men, women, and churches continue to stand firm on marriage?  We stand firm by pursuing our God-given spouse, endlessly loving our children in a biblical way, and by rebuilding a marriage culture—Nehemiah style—that glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ and is in turn used for our great good.

It is that simple.

Marriage is good. It is beautiful. It is holy. Let us recommit to it, and rebuild in the ruins.
We will stand firm on marriage no matter the cost.  It is our hope that this book will equip you to stand faithfully for marriage—in Christ alone—against the cultural tide of this new definition. We believe this book will not only equip you to stand strong, but it will equip you to stand strong with a joy unstoppable, because God’s design for marriage is that good.

READ THE BOOK!

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[1]Dave Harvey, When Sinners Say “I Do,” (Wapwallopen, PA: Shepherd Press, 2010).