A Happy And Successful Marriage; Part 1 Series

A Happy and Successful Marriage

Part 1

(1 Peter 3:1-6)

Today we will begin a series on “God’s Design for a Happy and Successful Marriage.” I hope that you can be here next Sunday Morning for the conclusion to this message.

We will begin today by looking at when the Lord created man. God saw that man could not be all that he should be, alone. Therefore God created someone to be man’s helper and companion – He created woman. This was God’s design for the home, one man + one woman = forever.

However when a couple gets married, the mere saying of the wedding vows does not guarantee that the couple will live happily ever after. Nor does the addition of children into a family complete the home and make it successful. Really that is the furthers thing from the truth.

Today we see in our country; the disintegration of many marriages, even among “Christian couples”. According to Barna Research, “Overall, 33% of all born again individuals who have been married have gone through a divorce, which is statistically identical to the 34% incidence among non-born again adults. ” Homes with children are falling apart, and we wonder why they are miserable, unhappy and failing to make a success in whatever they do.

It makes you wonder if there is a cure for the breakdown of the home in America. Is there a guarantee for successful and happy marriages? Yes there is!

God’s word gives us a blueprint for such a marriage, a marriage that will be successful, happy and complete. The blue print is very simple: (1) The wife is to be a Christian helper, (2) the husband is to be a Christian lover and (3) both are to unite in Christian service to promote the kingdom of God. But for your marriage to be complete, successful and happy – ALL 3 of these requirements must be met. Without all 3 being met your marriage will only be 1/3 or 2/3 of what God has designed it to be.

In this section of scripture, Peter is giving exhortations and instructions on living a life that is becoming to the Christian name. After instructing them on their relation to their citizenship and servants to masters – he comes to deal with some problems in the home. Chiefly, the relation of Christian wives toward their Christian husbands and Christian husband toward their Christian wives.

Also in these verses, Peter deals with a very prevalent problem of that day, a problem that is even evident in the year 2005. Many Christian wives were married to unbelievers. We assume that these wives were converted AFTER their marriage and not before. NO CHRISTAIN HAS ANY BIBLICAL RIGHT TO MARRY A NON-CHRISTIAN!

The Old Testament is very plain in this regard and Paul puts it even planer in 2 Corinthians 6:14-15, “Stop forming inappropriate relationships with unbelievers. Can right and wrong be partners? Can light have anything in common with darkness? Can Christ agree with the devil? Can a believer share life with an unbeliever?” (GWT).

This is a sermon all its own. I will only say that there are a many miserable homes today, because God’s Word was not obeyed right here. A Christian woman married a non-Christian man or visa-versa. A lot of the time we think we can change them, more than likely you will not. Instead of you influencing them, they will influence you. Instead of you getting them involved in the church and the things of God, they will get you uninvolved in the Lord’s work.

The first thing you should do when dating someone is ask if they are a Christian. Then see if they follow that up by the way they live their lives. If they don’t – YOU DON’T MARRY THEM! You, as a Christian, should break it off right then and there. Once again Paul said (NLT), “Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can goodness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the Devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever?”

Let’s move on to our topic for today, The Christian Wife.

I. The Christian wife is to be a Helper.

A. This was God’s purpose for woman from the very beginning.

1. “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.’” (Genesis 2:18 NRSV)

2. Man was not made for woman, but woman for man.

B. The wife is to help her husband by being diligent in her home making.

1. She is to keep everything in decent order and operating efficiently in the home.

a) She is NOT to waste her time in idleness.