WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:09.779 Well, as I mentioned, if you've been with us, we've been going through this creation story, and hopefully as we've looked at each day, you've recognized a pattern that is recurring here. 00:00:10.519 --> 00:00:29.100 Each day, God creates, and then at the end of that day, he's giving a benediction, a good word. He's saying, what I've created is good. And so the dry land is created, he calls it good. The sea is created, it's good. Vegetation, dry land created, it's good. Sun, moon, and stars, good. Livestock, wild animals, good. 00:00:29.100 --> 00:00:40.120 Man, good. And then we get to this passage in chapter 2, and we see what might be a shocking pronouncement, because God looks at man, and he says, that's not good. 00:00:41.539 --> 00:00:51.740 And so how can that be? Because this is before sin has actually entered into the world. But God is looking at his creation, saying something's not good here, and it's really a remarkable admission. 00:00:51.740 --> 00:01:02.719 Because God has created us with this innate need for a vertical relationship with God, but he's also pointing out that he's created us for a horizontal relationship with one another. 00:01:03.859 --> 00:01:09.099 And so that's the focus of what I want us to think about today, that we were created for community. 00:01:09.099 --> 00:01:12.719 And in doing so, I really want us to focus on three things. 00:01:13.780 --> 00:01:18.119 Our design, our desire, and our destiny. 00:01:18.699 --> 00:01:21.140 Our design, our desire, and our destiny. 00:01:21.299 --> 00:01:23.939 So let's first consider our design. 00:01:24.780 --> 00:01:29.399 We remember from the last chapter, when God created man, he created man in his own image. 00:01:30.060 --> 00:01:32.859 In the image of God, he created them male and female. 00:01:33.500 --> 00:01:34.419 He created them. 00:01:34.420 --> 00:01:39.700 And so we recognize that we are image bearers of God, that we are set apart from the rest of creation. 00:01:40.240 --> 00:01:44.920 But yet, while we share the sameness, male and female, there's key distinction between us. 00:01:45.960 --> 00:01:53.079 And so I want us to consider, just for a moment, the distinctions between male, that God shows us in this creation story, and that also of the female. 00:01:54.299 --> 00:01:58.480 In verse 7, if we go back, it says that the Lord formed man from the dust of the ground. 00:01:58.879 --> 00:02:01.799 He breathed air into his nostrils, he became this living being. 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:06.379 So this word Adam, it comes from that Hebrew word, for dust of the ground. 00:02:07.200 --> 00:02:09.819 And he takes him, he places him in the garden with his instruction. 00:02:10.180 --> 00:02:11.879 To work it and to care for it. 00:02:12.960 --> 00:02:16.099 And so this aligns with the instruction that we see from chapter 1. 00:02:16.479 --> 00:02:20.000 That he gives to man, to fill the earth, to subdue it, and to rule over it. 00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:24.620 And so while we think about being image bearers, this is who we are. 00:02:24.620 --> 00:02:27.319 This is a reality, but it's also a calling and a command. 00:02:28.259 --> 00:02:30.939 And we see this play out in the life of Adam. 00:02:30.939 --> 00:02:32.460 He's given these two roles. 00:02:33.240 --> 00:02:35.859 A kingly role, and really a priestly role. 00:02:37.060 --> 00:02:41.300 In this kingly role, it's this dynastic command that he's given to be fruitful and multiply. 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:49.139 To create this royal race, a family, a legacy, a heritage that should continue and fill the earth. 00:02:49.800 --> 00:02:52.900 But he's also given this command to have dominion over the earth. 00:02:52.939 --> 00:02:55.079 The same way a king would rule over his land. 00:02:55.520 --> 00:02:59.500 That Adam, that man, would be ruler over all the occupants of the earth. 00:02:59.500 --> 00:03:03.159 And secondly, we see this priestly command. 00:03:03.259 --> 00:03:05.560 It's a command to work the garden and to care for it. 00:03:05.780 --> 00:03:11.000 This is the same language and instruction that we'd see later in the Old Testament that's given to priests. 00:03:11.219 --> 00:03:15.400 In the book of Exodus and Leviticus, of how they are supposed to care for the temple. 00:03:16.420 --> 00:03:19.199 And so the garden really should be seen as a temple. 00:03:19.939 --> 00:03:23.580 It's a kind of sanctuary where God's presence is with his people. 00:03:23.879 --> 00:03:26.120 It's a place of worship and a place of fellowship. 00:03:26.120 --> 00:03:35.580 And so Adam, as he's living in this priestly location, he's given this priestly vocation to guard and care for and protect the temple. 00:03:36.900 --> 00:03:38.980 And so we see this played out in our passage here. 00:03:39.060 --> 00:03:44.759 God acknowledges that it's not good for Adam to be alone, but he doesn't immediately then give him a companion. 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:49.259 He gives him the task of looking at all the animals and naming these animals. 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:55.099 And you wonder, maybe he did this so that Adam himself could recognize his own need. 00:03:55.139 --> 00:03:57.859 That he sees all these inferior animals around him. 00:03:58.579 --> 00:04:04.340 All of these animals that find a mate and then go populate the earth and he's left alone wondering, where's my companion? 00:04:04.340 --> 00:04:15.080 And so we see that while Adam is created with great authority and great responsibility, there's this level of incompleteness in his isolation. 00:04:16.740 --> 00:04:19.139 And so that then leads us to consider the role of woman. 00:04:20.040 --> 00:04:25.180 Now there's much that's been said in error or just in jest about the role of woman because they were created second. 00:04:25.300 --> 00:04:26.780 This thought of, oh, they're inferior. 00:04:27.040 --> 00:04:28.280 Oh, they're not as important. 00:04:28.360 --> 00:04:29.600 They're subordinate in some way. 00:04:29.600 --> 00:04:33.860 But I think when we look at this creation story, it paints a very different picture. 00:04:35.180 --> 00:04:41.820 Because the timing and manner in which woman is created holds great significance that I think points to the exact opposite. 00:04:43.500 --> 00:04:48.560 Recognize that God could have made man and woman at the exact same time in the exact same way. 00:04:48.640 --> 00:04:49.780 But he chooses not to. 00:04:51.560 --> 00:04:56.439 Instead, out of all that is created, woman is created last. 00:04:56.439 --> 00:05:03.160 We see this kind of this building until we reach this crescendo, this climax at the creation of woman. 00:05:03.259 --> 00:05:06.379 She's the crowning achievement of that creation week. 00:05:07.800 --> 00:05:11.139 She stands as the glory symbol of creation. 00:05:12.360 --> 00:05:14.040 Paul even says this in 1 Corinthians. 00:05:14.199 --> 00:05:16.399 He says that woman is the glory of man. 00:05:17.699 --> 00:05:25.300 And so again, we see how she uses this role, how she is glorified through her fulfillment and completion that she brings. 00:05:25.300 --> 00:05:27.800 Think about this pattern again of the days of creation. 00:05:27.980 --> 00:05:29.579 They coordinate with one another. 00:05:30.579 --> 00:05:33.340 Day 1, light is created. 00:05:33.460 --> 00:05:36.860 And then we see at day 4, it's the sun, moon, and stars are created. 00:05:37.020 --> 00:05:38.960 Day and night are separated. 00:05:39.920 --> 00:05:42.160 Day 2, the skies and the waters are created. 00:05:42.220 --> 00:05:43.060 What happens on day 5? 00:05:43.120 --> 00:05:45.780 They're filled with fish and with birds. 00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:49.120 Day 3, land, dry land and vegetation. 00:05:49.340 --> 00:05:53.199 It's day 6 that we see them filled with livestock and wild animals. 00:05:53.199 --> 00:05:57.879 And so in the same way, man is created and yet is incomplete. 00:05:58.839 --> 00:06:03.639 The fullness and completion of his being comes with the creation of woman. 00:06:04.819 --> 00:06:07.959 And so Adam doesn't get any sort of glory just from being first. 00:06:08.060 --> 00:06:11.980 In fact, it's the woman who has glory because she completes the picture. 00:06:11.980 --> 00:06:19.720 While Adam represents the creation, we should think of Eve as representing recreation. 00:06:20.980 --> 00:06:24.100 Because she is a part of God's answer to death. 00:06:24.980 --> 00:06:28.620 It is through the woman that life is given. 00:06:29.780 --> 00:06:35.420 If we think of the very next chapter, the first proclamation of the gospel includes the seed of the woman. 00:06:35.420 --> 00:06:42.720 And so if we think about the Garden of Eden, this is not a wholly perfect place. 00:06:43.759 --> 00:06:47.920 Because there's a potential for sin and we see that potential becomes a reality. 00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:51.920 But this woman stands as a sign that perfection will come. 00:06:52.900 --> 00:06:55.680 She is glorious because death becomes our enemy. 00:06:55.680 --> 00:07:03.240 And so in the same way that Adam serves as a priest, Eve really serves as a temple. 00:07:04.259 --> 00:07:06.240 She's the object of the priesthood. 00:07:06.319 --> 00:07:09.079 She's the one who's supposed to be protected and cared for. 00:07:09.400 --> 00:07:14.220 And so it's really interesting to note the different words that are used for the creation of man and the creation of woman. 00:07:15.199 --> 00:07:21.120 In the Hebrew, when it talks about the creation of man, it's this word that means to be formed or fashioned in some way. 00:07:21.120 --> 00:07:26.860 But the Hebrew word for the creation of woman is this word that means to be built or established. 00:07:28.019 --> 00:07:31.780 And so it's the same language that was used for the building of the temple. 00:07:33.060 --> 00:07:38.480 And so just as Adam is formed from the dust, we see that Eve is built upon the dust. 00:07:38.920 --> 00:07:45.000 She is this glorious edifice that serves as a sign of the coming fulfillment of God's covenant. 00:07:46.439 --> 00:07:51.100 And so we think, what was the purpose of the Old Testament temple that the people of God built? 00:07:51.220 --> 00:07:52.899 It was to house God's presence. 00:07:53.240 --> 00:07:56.439 It was to point forward to when God would come to dwell with his people. 00:07:57.420 --> 00:08:03.340 And so this language of building in the Hebrew, it's not only the thought of building a building, but also building a family. 00:08:04.360 --> 00:08:11.120 And so we see this word used that Abraham builds a family and Jacob builds a family and Ruth builds a family. 00:08:12.120 --> 00:08:14.600 From whom would come the Messiah? 00:08:14.600 --> 00:08:21.700 And so the created order should reveal to us the glory and the excellence of the woman. 00:08:21.699 --> 00:08:31.099 But not only that, because I think beyond just the order, I think it's worth noting how God describes the need that man has here in verse 18. 00:08:31.939 --> 00:08:34.200 A helper who is suitable for him. 00:08:34.279 --> 00:08:35.100 That is his need. 00:08:35.799 --> 00:08:43.080 And again, we think of helper and we may think, okay, this is kind of a second class citizens, kind of a derogatory term, maybe subservient creature. 00:08:43.080 --> 00:08:46.100 But again, this language in the Hebrew is quite different. 00:08:46.879 --> 00:08:49.680 This word suitable, it means someone who is opposite. 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:52.040 Someone who is your counterpart. 00:08:53.740 --> 00:08:57.300 And so there exists this sameness between the two. 00:08:57.379 --> 00:09:01.020 They're both image bearers of God, but there's functional differences here. 00:09:02.500 --> 00:09:02.980 Think about it. 00:09:02.980 --> 00:09:06.720 If God could have looked at Adam's loneliness and thought, you know what, I'll just make another one of him. 00:09:07.639 --> 00:09:09.960 If one is good, then two is better, right? 00:09:11.700 --> 00:09:17.379 But if we think about that, what if we had a second person ourselves? 00:09:18.560 --> 00:09:22.420 Maybe we're prideful enough or arrogant to think that we'd get some work done here. 00:09:22.539 --> 00:09:25.840 But I think others around us would think rather otherwise. 00:09:25.840 --> 00:09:29.159 I know my wife probably thanks the Lord every day that there's not two of me. 00:09:29.159 --> 00:09:30.579 Right? 00:09:30.639 --> 00:09:33.500 Because that would only expose my weaknesses. 00:09:34.379 --> 00:09:37.559 It would only make greater the need that I have. 00:09:38.459 --> 00:09:39.980 What we don't need is sameness. 00:09:40.159 --> 00:09:41.179 We need a counterpart. 00:09:41.539 --> 00:09:44.839 We need someone who complements us, who accounts for our weaknesses. 00:09:46.259 --> 00:09:48.059 And so this is the help that the woman offers. 00:09:48.219 --> 00:09:51.360 Help that the man cannot help himself. 00:09:52.839 --> 00:09:55.720 And so we see then that this help, then, it's not just a bit of assistance. 00:09:55.860 --> 00:09:57.980 It's not kind of just a push in the right direction. 00:09:57.980 --> 00:10:04.019 This is the same word of help that God often speaks of, the help that he provides to his people Israel. 00:10:05.279 --> 00:10:07.200 And so Deuteronomy 33, it says this, 00:10:07.240 --> 00:10:10.399 Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord? 00:10:11.100 --> 00:10:12.740 He is your shield and your helper. 00:10:14.100 --> 00:10:15.320 Think of Psalms 121. 00:10:15.460 --> 00:10:16.980 I lift up my eyes to the hills. 00:10:17.620 --> 00:10:18.840 Where does my help come from? 00:10:19.460 --> 00:10:23.440 My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. 00:10:23.440 --> 00:10:32.480 And so the woman is the provision of this divine help so that mankind can achieve this cultural mandate. 00:10:32.600 --> 00:10:34.280 Excuse me, this creation mandate. 00:10:34.700 --> 00:10:38.860 Fill and subdue and to rule and to care for creation. 00:10:38.860 --> 00:10:44.960 It's only together that male and female can take dominion over the earth. 00:10:45.019 --> 00:10:48.720 It's only together that male and female can be fruitful and multiply. 00:10:48.720 --> 00:10:56.139 And so in this creation story, we should not be seeing a story of subordination between the sexes. 00:10:57.100 --> 00:11:03.080 There's this equality here, but there's complementary differences, both in biology and in roles. 00:11:03.080 --> 00:11:14.460 And so we see it's only through this union of the two that we really can see the complexity and the beauty and the fullness of God's image. 00:11:16.060 --> 00:11:21.660 But unfortunately, this truth is rejected by many in our day and age. 00:11:21.720 --> 00:11:25.700 Because people want to think that equality means sameness. 00:11:26.460 --> 00:11:31.700 And they want to reject the notion that there could be value and dignity in distinct roles. 00:11:33.080 --> 00:11:39.620 But as believers, we need to recognize and acknowledge and even model these distinct roles. 00:11:40.320 --> 00:11:41.940 And be sure not to exploit them. 00:11:43.480 --> 00:11:46.060 Think of the men in this church, a question that we ask. 00:11:46.160 --> 00:11:49.560 Do we value the women that God has placed in our lives? 00:11:52.160 --> 00:11:57.580 Do we rightly acknowledge their importance not only in our families, but also in the church? 00:11:57.580 --> 00:12:04.900 If we turn to Proverbs 31, there's this beautiful recounting of the value and virtue of woman. 00:12:05.940 --> 00:12:15.220 That she is good and productive and resourceful and hardworking and compassionate, clothed with dignity and strength. 00:12:15.360 --> 00:12:18.020 She is wise and a blessing to others. 00:12:18.019 --> 00:12:27.360 And so while we have this instruction, especially what we see Paul talks about in the New Testament, that man is created to be overseers of the church, 00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:31.199 we need to be careful that as we lead, we do not belittle. 00:12:32.779 --> 00:12:38.639 If the church is to grow, if our families are to prosper, if this creation mandate is to be met, 00:12:38.639 --> 00:12:43.939 it requires the wisdom and care and effort of woman. 00:12:43.940 --> 00:12:49.260 And so we need should, we should really marvel at this design. 00:12:50.280 --> 00:12:56.440 To recognize God's wisdom and kindness and creativity, how he has made man and woman equal but distinct. 00:12:58.280 --> 00:13:01.780 That leads us to our second point then, our desire. 00:13:03.440 --> 00:13:08.120 There's a popular children's book that I've read to my children a number of times, 00:13:08.200 --> 00:13:10.900 and you may be familiar with it yourself, The Velveteen Rabbit. 00:13:10.899 --> 00:13:19.600 And it's the story of this stuffed rabbit who lives with this boy's room, and she just desires to become real. 00:13:20.439 --> 00:13:23.860 And so he asks the rocking horse one day, what does it mean to become real? 00:13:23.919 --> 00:13:25.100 How can I become real? 00:13:25.759 --> 00:13:31.000 And the horse responds, when a child loves you for a long, long time, then you become real. 00:13:31.000 --> 00:13:39.580 And this stuffed rabbit is loved by the boy, and over years his fur becomes rather tattered and torn. 00:13:39.700 --> 00:13:44.399 His seams are loosened, his eyes and his nose lose its new glossiness. 00:13:45.419 --> 00:13:52.000 But it's precisely because of this relationship that the rabbit actually becomes real by the end of the story. 00:13:52.000 --> 00:14:00.259 And I think we see in this passage, Adam, he senses this relationship, he sees this relationship, 00:14:00.419 --> 00:14:06.419 and he experiences this realness or this fullness for the first time when he lays his eyes on his wife Eve. 00:14:06.500 --> 00:14:08.720 This emptiness has now been full. 00:14:08.820 --> 00:14:10.120 He's truly alive. 00:14:10.220 --> 00:14:11.840 His heart has been awoken. 00:14:11.840 --> 00:14:21.620 And so it's really neat then that the very first words recorded in the Bible of man speaking is this, of Adam's elation. 00:14:21.759 --> 00:14:24.519 This is now bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. 00:14:26.240 --> 00:14:30.820 Finally, at last, here is one of my own kind. 00:14:30.879 --> 00:14:31.540 That is for me. 00:14:33.160 --> 00:14:37.600 And so we see this beautiful God-given desire that man has for a wife. 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:42.720 And then what's described for us in the very next verse, in verse 24, is what this covenant relationship should look like. 00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:48.259 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife and they become one flesh. 00:14:48.480 --> 00:14:51.720 It's really this threefold action that we see in this covenant relationship. 00:14:51.879 --> 00:14:53.200 We see this leaving. 00:14:54.340 --> 00:14:58.040 And that's talking about this new primary loyalty that we have in marriage. 00:14:58.200 --> 00:15:02.420 It's this new pledge that supersedes all other commitments that we have to other people. 00:15:02.419 --> 00:15:07.559 It speaks of this union, this cleaving, this clinging. 00:15:07.719 --> 00:15:12.079 It means that this relationship is supposed to be exclusive and permanent in nature. 00:15:13.379 --> 00:15:15.360 And it talks about being one flesh. 00:15:16.219 --> 00:15:23.479 It's this physical and spiritual and emotional union creating this covenant oneness between man and woman. 00:15:23.480 --> 00:15:33.759 And so this is the foundation by which God introduces to his people the importance and the centrality of marriage and family. 00:15:34.759 --> 00:15:38.980 It's the design purpose of marriage that makes male and female who we are. 00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:40.580 The union of marriage. 00:15:41.240 --> 00:15:43.060 Both as image bearers of God. 00:15:43.200 --> 00:15:49.220 This is, we can, again, accomplish our creation mandate to rule and to fill the earth. 00:15:49.220 --> 00:15:56.820 And so man is constituted both body and soul for the purpose of being a husband and a father. 00:15:56.960 --> 00:16:01.800 The woman is constituted both body and soul that she may be a wife and a mother. 00:16:03.759 --> 00:16:08.560 And so it's this desire then is not only meant to be some flash in the pan. 00:16:09.320 --> 00:16:14.620 We think about this initial emotion that we may see that in this phase of infatuation when we get to know someone. 00:16:15.420 --> 00:16:16.960 But we see something very different here. 00:16:16.960 --> 00:16:21.740 This desire, as God speaks of it, is something that should grow and deepen over time. 00:16:22.879 --> 00:16:24.980 And this is what we read in Ephesians 5 earlier. 00:16:26.080 --> 00:16:31.379 That the husband is to love his wife and to care for her as Christ loves the church. 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:38.680 And the woman is to respect and submit to her husband as the church submits to Christ. 00:16:38.679 --> 00:16:43.879 And so this ongoing desire, it's one of commitment. 00:16:44.819 --> 00:16:46.319 Commitment to the good of the other. 00:16:48.299 --> 00:16:52.559 And so while we see that these desires are good, we see in our day and age how they've become distorted. 00:16:53.699 --> 00:16:59.639 Because we see that before sin, our desires always fit our duty. 00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:06.339 God gave us the duty as man and woman, this calling to rule over and fill the earth. 00:17:06.500 --> 00:17:10.420 And it was our desire to do that, to enter into marriage, to accomplish that task. 00:17:11.660 --> 00:17:17.160 However, since the fall, that design remains, that duty remains, but the desire has now changed. 00:17:17.160 --> 00:17:21.660 Because we've now been distorted by sin. 00:17:22.680 --> 00:17:30.580 Now there is no one who has been untouched by some sexual or relational desires that have not been misdirected or corrupted in some way. 00:17:32.480 --> 00:17:39.600 And so consider just how predominantly featured that the sexual sin is throughout the Old Testament. 00:17:39.700 --> 00:17:42.860 We only have to go to Genesis 4 until we see it begin with polygamy. 00:17:42.859 --> 00:17:53.419 And we see it continue with adultery and incest and prostitution, sexual violence, lust, homosexuality. 00:17:55.019 --> 00:18:03.859 And I think the central characteristic of all these distorted desires that we see in the Bible and even throughout our own lives is desire for sexual pleasure outside of marriage. 00:18:05.500 --> 00:18:10.719 We look at marriage and we recognize this leaving and cleaving that's required. 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:14.640 It's this focused, sacrificial, unconditional love. 00:18:15.440 --> 00:18:17.860 Marriage by its very nature requires commitment. 00:18:19.839 --> 00:18:21.980 But oftentimes we push against that. 00:18:23.380 --> 00:18:29.740 When I was in uni, way back in the day, in the States, I was a part of a ministry called Reformed University Fellowship. 00:18:29.839 --> 00:18:36.360 And we had a campus minister who I remember going through a series on dating and relationships and marriage. 00:18:36.359 --> 00:18:42.500 And he was talking about how often students would come to him with time and they were in a dating relationship and ask the question, 00:18:42.619 --> 00:18:44.759 how do I know if this is the person I should marry? 00:18:44.819 --> 00:18:46.919 How do I know that I'm ready to marry? 00:18:47.919 --> 00:18:52.299 And his response is something that really stuck with me because at the time I was dating my future wife, Rachel. 00:18:53.219 --> 00:18:58.799 And he said this, you know you should marry when your deepest desire is to serve that person. 00:18:58.799 --> 00:19:06.139 You see, marriage should not be viewed as a means of getting what we want. 00:19:07.659 --> 00:19:13.279 It shouldn't be viewed as a means of seeing how we can benefit from this relationship, what we can get out of it. 00:19:13.319 --> 00:19:15.419 How can I be happy and satisfied? 00:19:15.599 --> 00:19:21.159 No, it's grounded in this desire to sacrificially love and serve another. 00:19:22.460 --> 00:19:24.639 To seek their good above our own. 00:19:24.640 --> 00:19:29.080 And it's that desire that is linked with this sexual desire. 00:19:30.460 --> 00:19:32.900 But the distortion comes is when we seek shortcuts. 00:19:33.980 --> 00:19:38.700 We desire instant sexual gratification without any effort and without any commitment. 00:19:39.680 --> 00:19:47.320 And so we see this played out all over our society with the prominence of pornography and homosexuality and casual sex and affairs 00:19:47.319 --> 00:19:55.879 and all these things selfishly searching for wholeness with no level of commitment, with no level of effort. 00:19:57.879 --> 00:20:06.439 But what we come to find out is that as we pursue this sexual freedom, it only really leads to our own captivity. 00:20:06.440 --> 00:20:12.200 Because we become enslaved to these idols that we so desperately want. 00:20:13.799 --> 00:20:18.320 And we turn from what is good and are deprived ultimately of God's blessing. 00:20:20.380 --> 00:20:23.059 For those of us who have children, you probably know this. 00:20:23.140 --> 00:20:25.759 When the children come home from school and they're hungry, what do they do? 00:20:25.840 --> 00:20:30.519 They may go directly to the cupboard and they look for the bag of crisps or the biscuits or the sweeties. 00:20:30.580 --> 00:20:33.539 When you have a fridge full of fruits and veggies and other things. 00:20:33.539 --> 00:20:37.720 And maybe we blame it on children, we do this too, right? 00:20:38.339 --> 00:20:41.240 You want a quick fix, you want something to grab. 00:20:41.319 --> 00:20:44.200 But oftentimes what we grab is something that's not actually nourishing, 00:20:44.299 --> 00:20:48.859 that's only going to leave us in a same state of hunger only a short time later. 00:20:50.339 --> 00:20:54.180 And so I think the same thing occurs when we consider our sexual desires. 00:20:55.519 --> 00:20:58.519 Rather than reaching for the nourishment of marriage, 00:20:58.519 --> 00:21:07.579 so often we run to cheap forms of sex that only lead to loneliness and shame and depression and anxiety. 00:21:09.500 --> 00:21:14.420 Our society is suffering from the consequences of sexual malnourishment. 00:21:15.379 --> 00:21:16.700 We see it all around us. 00:21:16.779 --> 00:21:23.000 High rates of divorce, fewer people getting married, gender dysphoria, pornography addiction. 00:21:23.000 --> 00:21:31.019 And so as image bearers, we need to crave the good food of our creator. 00:21:33.079 --> 00:21:35.000 Practically speaking, what does this look like? 00:21:36.359 --> 00:21:40.119 Well, as those of us who are married, we need to make sure that we are protecting our marriages. 00:21:41.420 --> 00:21:43.220 Do we truly value our spouse? 00:21:43.339 --> 00:21:44.380 Do we go on dates? 00:21:44.500 --> 00:21:45.420 Do we give gifts? 00:21:45.539 --> 00:21:47.180 Do we spend quality time? 00:21:47.279 --> 00:21:48.240 Do we pray together? 00:21:48.359 --> 00:21:49.920 Do we not neglect the marriage bed? 00:21:49.920 --> 00:21:54.580 It says in the problems, rejoice in the wife of your youth. 00:21:54.779 --> 00:21:57.460 Let her love alone fill you with delight. 00:21:59.500 --> 00:22:04.360 And so do we express gratitude for the spouse that God has given us? 00:22:05.180 --> 00:22:06.560 One theologian, he puts it this way. 00:22:07.320 --> 00:22:14.940 He says, how believers behave toward their spouse is nothing less than a test of their faith in Jesus Christ. 00:22:17.080 --> 00:22:18.519 What about those who are single? 00:22:19.920 --> 00:22:27.420 How in an age of isolation can we get off of our phones and actually interact face to face with one another? 00:22:29.100 --> 00:22:31.860 Think about the students among us. 00:22:33.019 --> 00:22:34.400 What is the challenge here? 00:22:34.480 --> 00:22:36.440 So often we hide in group settings. 00:22:37.480 --> 00:22:39.019 We just hang out with our friends. 00:22:39.120 --> 00:22:42.140 What if we had, there was a bravery enough to ask a girl out? 00:22:42.140 --> 00:22:47.640 Women, what if you had the bravery enough to accept this invitation? 00:22:48.580 --> 00:22:51.900 Knowing that every encounter isn't going to necessarily lead to marriage. 00:22:52.200 --> 00:22:58.420 But in building these relationships, we're building and developing these skills of knowing how to love and serve the opposite sex. 00:22:58.420 --> 00:23:08.600 Are you as singles pursuing purity, both spiritually and sexually, that you are preparing yourself for your future spouse? 00:23:08.599 --> 00:23:12.759 And what about us as a church as a whole? 00:23:14.000 --> 00:23:18.359 So often sex is a taboo topic that we just try to generally avoid altogether. 00:23:18.359 --> 00:23:26.719 But what if we regularly met as men and women to openly acknowledge the temptation and the struggle that we face? 00:23:27.719 --> 00:23:32.039 What if we held each other accountable as we pursued personal holiness? 00:23:32.039 --> 00:23:37.899 What if we did a better job of encouraging and supporting those who are single in our church? 00:23:39.200 --> 00:23:43.299 What if we modeled healthy relationships to the young people around us? 00:23:44.899 --> 00:23:51.839 What if we displayed the joy and fulfillment that comes by being God's image bearers to an unbelieving world? 00:23:54.220 --> 00:24:01.000 I think we're going to drastically change our perception of relationship and our understanding of gender. 00:24:02.039 --> 00:24:06.720 And this ultimately leads us to our final point, our destiny. 00:24:08.420 --> 00:24:17.099 Have you ever been around maybe a couple of newlyweds and you just see kind of their puppy love and it kind of just makes you sick a little bit? 00:24:18.440 --> 00:24:20.920 You kind of just roll your eyes and think, okay, just give them some time. 00:24:21.119 --> 00:24:21.859 Give them some time. 00:24:21.940 --> 00:24:22.519 This will pass. 00:24:24.159 --> 00:24:26.180 Rachel is back in the States right now. 00:24:26.240 --> 00:24:30.079 She's helping her mom kind of pack up and clean out her house as she's about to put it on the market. 00:24:30.079 --> 00:24:36.339 And she's been sending me photos these last couple of days of love letters that we wrote to one another almost 20 years ago. 00:24:37.359 --> 00:24:42.899 And besides being just really sappy, they're embarrassing in just how naive we really were. 00:24:44.319 --> 00:24:52.439 Because we never would have imagined 17 years later, four children later, living in three different countries, two different states, now a job change. 00:24:52.440 --> 00:24:54.820 The struggles that we have gone through. 00:24:55.759 --> 00:25:00.360 And as much as we love one another, our marriage has been far from perfect. 00:25:02.640 --> 00:25:04.259 And we have let each other down. 00:25:05.380 --> 00:25:07.980 And it's guaranteed that we're going to let each other down again. 00:25:07.980 --> 00:25:15.740 And what we see is that our marriage will never ultimately bring us fulfillment because it's just a union of two sinners. 00:25:18.140 --> 00:25:20.819 Certainly, I'm sure we've all felt this tension as well. 00:25:21.200 --> 00:25:26.599 Whether we're married or not, we see God's ideal for relationship and for gender and we struggle. 00:25:27.140 --> 00:25:34.319 And we are discouraged by broken relationship or strained relationship or lack of relationship at all. 00:25:34.319 --> 00:25:41.139 And so what we need to remember is that marriage is not an ultimate in and of itself. 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:47.879 Even from the very beginning, what we see in this passage, it's meant to be a picture of something far greater. 00:25:49.099 --> 00:25:55.619 A picture of our loving God's desiring to be in covenant relationship with his people. 00:25:57.419 --> 00:26:04.159 So again, thinking of Ephesians 5, it speaks of the union of marriage as being this profound mystery. 00:26:04.319 --> 00:26:08.359 Because it depicts the relationship between Christ and the church. 00:26:10.139 --> 00:26:15.039 So even the most wonderful marriages are only for this life. 00:26:16.480 --> 00:26:23.000 And so this is hope for those who are discouraged and broken and sorrowful. 00:26:23.000 --> 00:26:28.680 That we look beyond the hardship of this life to the eternal life to come. 00:26:28.759 --> 00:26:34.960 Because just as the Bible begins with this message, this message of a marriage, it also ends with a marriage. 00:26:36.299 --> 00:26:39.980 If we turn to Revelation 19, we read this glorious gathering in heaven. 00:26:40.099 --> 00:26:40.940 This day of worship. 00:26:41.380 --> 00:26:45.880 This day of wonder in which the voices of this great multitude fill the entire earth. 00:26:45.880 --> 00:27:14.100 The wonderful reality of this passage is that those of us who have received God's grace through faith, we are the bride of Christ. 00:27:14.099 --> 00:27:17.939 And we have been made ready for that wedding day. 00:27:18.319 --> 00:27:22.099 Through the blood of Jesus who demonstrated his unconditional love to us. 00:27:22.199 --> 00:27:28.959 Through his sacrificial love on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. 00:27:30.579 --> 00:27:33.779 And so this is what all marriage points to. 00:27:33.779 --> 00:27:39.660 So may this be a great comfort to us in the midst of our brokenness. 00:27:39.920 --> 00:27:41.559 In the midst of our distortion. 00:27:42.460 --> 00:27:46.000 That we have a great God who loves us. 00:27:47.160 --> 00:27:50.480 And so whatever status you find yourself in in this life. 00:27:50.579 --> 00:27:53.779 We can take delight in knowing that there is a true bridegroom. 00:27:54.920 --> 00:27:57.559 The risen Christ who has promised to love you. 00:27:57.960 --> 00:28:01.299 Promised to come again and take you home to be with him forever. 00:28:01.299 --> 00:28:06.680 To live in perfect communion in a new Eden. 00:28:07.359 --> 00:28:08.940 That is even greater than the first. 00:28:10.480 --> 00:28:11.779 Let's cling to that promise. 00:28:11.779 --> 00:28:12.220 Let's go. 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:12.220 00:28:12.220 --> 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