The disciples were the 12 mean who followed after Christ hearing and witnessing his ministry and then after his death they took that ministry into the world in order to help save other men. The key area of interest for today's blog is that they FOLLOWED after him.
Marriage is truly a sacred institution as it is the snapshot picture of Christ becoming one with the Church. Men are to love as Christ loved the church, women are to submitt as we believers submitt to Christ. All of these things are divine and absolute, this is the way God ordained it to be. However, because this is a sacred institution it has to be entered upon the correct way. This relationship before taking vows must be a discipled relationship. As dating couples both of you individually must decide to take back your life and follow Christ. In the first 3 parts I simply provided understanding for dating, the role of the man and the role of the women, so now part 4 deals with the finished result. I submitt to all of you believer and unbeliever that dating today is tough, the world influences so much that we find ourselves as believers wanting to do after the world. Having sex, living foolishly, not valuing each other, cheating, and experiencing consequences such as std's, pre-marital pregnancy's. The thing is though God makes it clear these things we must not desire after the world. Romans 12:2 "2And do not (A)be conformed to (B)this world, but be transformed by the (C)renewing of your mind, so that you may (D)prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." What happens when we don't have discipled relationships is we lose respect for one another. Through vehicles like sex (mostly) it is so easy to lose respect and value for the person you are with. The relationship becomes about that, and as you give in to lust more and more you find yourself desiring those things all the more. When you lose respect for a person, you look at them differently and you then begin to search for a way out, or you begin not to care any more. If you truly believe however that this is someone you want to spend the rest of your life with and convinced God has given you this person, then if your not living this way I urge you to stop now. Turning back to Christ is better than falling deeper into that pit. The funny fact about this is that turning back can be the thing that brings the two of you closer together in Christ. Be careful though not to use God as a tool to beat up the other person, rather come to God together and grow together in his name. However, for some this could be the breaking factor, if one person has decided they do not want to give up certain things and the other person is giving it up for Christ than it is best you go your separate ways. The purging process is not an easy one but it is truly and blessed one because God guides you ever step of the way. If you are a relationship that is still running for God, than keep on running. Deny that flesh constantly, see each other through Christ eyes constantly. For all relationships, learn to see each other through God's eyes. Don't wait for the pastor or the church to fix this problem, when you have the power to fix it yourself. Communicate the goal to each other, and walk together. Again, my brother and his wife exemplified this as they walked hand in hand together in Christ right into a beautiful marriage. The laboring is worth the reward. Following after Christ is the key Matthew 16:24 "Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and (AH)take up his cross and follow Me." Pray. Persist. Perservere. If he/she is truly a gift from God then its worth working hard for, praying for, persisting with, and persevering with. God wants the best for BOTH OF YOU. He forgiven you., and look he loves to have his succesful marriage rate continually go up. But it has to be done right before the marriage. Don't wait to get married to change, change now to make the marriage better. Focus even not on the marriage, but on growing in Christ, and you'll see that marriage naturally comes. If its a heart issue ask God to turn your heart back to him, if its a belief issue accept Christ. This is not a lost cause, Christians can date and live for and value God's teachings. I need Christ even now while I am typing this...because the thing is if we allow ourselves to slip into sin continually with this person we will do more than just those acts, we are compromising our witness, our walk, and HIS way. Your salvation is never worth it. Its important to not let your fear of losing this person get in the way of of God because you should fear losing Christ more. So to the men and women walking it out, LOVE each other, live for Christ, and KEEP GOD FIRST. Remember Matthew 6:33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and (A)all these things will be added to you." I put the bold on the word first because that needs to be the first move you make above all things. Worry not about what other relationships are doing but concern yourself with how God wants you to live in this one. Its not scarry, its not something to be afraid to talk about with each other, its something to share and care enough about each other to not hide. God bless each eye that reads this, I hope this has been a blessing to you all. Thank you to all of you who took the time to read this series as we learn to Eliminate the fiction, Understand the Facts, and Know the Difference. Thank you again...
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