Loved by God.

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* It's good to suffer loss, for it draws me to the Cross where God's loss is more than what anyone ever lost. * We cannot hear what the stories of the Bible are saying until we hear them as stories about ourselves. * Let go of control. * Trust God. Thank God. Think about God. Talk to God. Talk about God.

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

A Happy Marriage Requires Fighting (Ephesians 6:10-20)

Ephesians 6:10-20
  1. Strength for the conflict. In the Lord (Eph 6:10-11).
  2. Source of the conflict. Not flesh and blood (Eph 6:12).
  3. Strategy for the conquest. Full armor of God (Eph 6:13-20).
    • Truth (Eph 6:14a)
    • Righteousness (Eph 6:14b)
    • Gospel of peace (Eph 6:15)
    • Faith (Eph 6:16)
    • Salvation (Eph 6:17a)
    • Word of God (Eph 6:17b): Read the Bible together. Pray together.
Absolute truths regarding marriage
  1. God brought you together (Mt 19:6; Mk 10:9; Gen 2:24).
  2. Marriage is forever.
  3. God intends for you to be gentle and humble in heart (Mt 11:29; Rom 8:29).
"Conformed to the image of his Son" (Rom 8:29) is what God intends for you through marriage (and all of life).

What a happy marriage always needs (Rom 8:32)
  1. Love that is unconditional
  2. Forgiveness that is endless
  3. Grace that is ever present
Marriage is meant to mirror our relationship with God (between Christ and the church -- us)
  1. For richer or poorer
  2. In sickness or in health
  3. For better or worse
  4. (Whether cuter or less cute, more handsome or more ugly, fatter or thinner!)
  5. ...till death do us part.

"...be content [satisfied] with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake [abandon] you'" (Heb 13:5; Dt 31:6).

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