I Think I Married The Wrong Person Series

OPENING

SENTENCE: Some years ago there was a popular movie whose message was that somewhere in the world is a perfect soul mate made just for you in heaven- you just have to find him/her.

INTRODUCTION: The movie, called “Made in Heaven” tells the story of two people who had a few chance encounters on earth and had an immediate sense of some deep connection. It is clear that they were made for each other before they were ever born and until they connect with each other they will never feel complete or fulfilled. The plot is that that these encounters did not bring them together due to interference and heaven must intervene.

TRANSITION

SENTENCE: This popular notion of a “soul mate” which suggests that God has a person out there for you to simply discover has no basis in reality.

TRANSITION: Yet, many single people are looking for their perfect “soul mate” who will complete and satisfy their most basic longings- and many married people fear they missed connecting with them.

The belief originated with Plato, an ancient Greek philosopher, who taught that men and women were made in one body, but separated by the gods as a curse. Each man and woman scour the earth for that undiscovered spouse so the two can again become one. The problem is that this view makes us half persons. If each woman constantly searches for the man who will "complete" her, she can never be complete. Worse, she cannot live for Christ. I believe this misplaced search for a soul mate is counterproductive to the real work of building healthy lasting marriages. Why? because it leads to disillusionment when we find that marriage, by nature, is two self-absorbed people who are bound primarily by a covenant. In that light, it is better to seek out someone with a common faith, character, and values- and even then there can be tension. When you discover you are left with an unsatisfactory partner then that is when the real work of building a relationship begins.

SAY WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO SAY: This morning I want us to see that the bond of marriage is grounded in the covenant we made- not in discovering the ideal soul-mate. In that light, I want us to ask the question, “What do you do if you think you have married the wrong person?

TEXT: To answer this question I want us to return to the book of Hosea- a book we looked at some weeks ago when we looked at how to handle betrayal in marriage. If you recall from that sermon we learned that the book opens saying, “When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.” 3 So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.”

In these verses, God gives an astounding command to Hosea to go and marry a prostitute- not a person we would consider ideal marriage material, And, if there was ever a wrong person to marry, this would be it. We later learn that Hosea’s marriage illustrates how Gods people, Israel, have betrayed Him and prostituted themselves with other gods. God wants us to have a clear picture of what Israel is doing to Him and what better way than to use the covenant of marriage. The book can be broken down into two main sections, Hosea’s wayward wife, and God’s wayward people. So let’s again ask the question:

What do you do if you think you have married the wrong person?

I. Understand that the ideal marriage is not about the person but the covenant. (Hosea 1-3)

This notion that there is an ideal person out there for you has led to more disillusionment among couples than just about anything else. This book should help dispel that notion. The first three chapters of the book tell about how Hosea handled his wayward wife. At the same time that she enjoyed Hosea’s love and generosity, she was running from man to man causing disgrace to him. She abandoned her children and scorned her faithful husband. The book is not flattering to her in any way. In these chapters, we notice thing things.

A. Hosea was commanded by God to marry a prostitute. It assures that Hosea will face disappointment, betrayal, and unfaithfulness. But, this does not diminish the permanence of the marriage covenant. We are reminded again, just as we have throughout this series that marriage is to be modeled after the covenant that Jesus has with His church, or, as in this case, God, and Israel. The book reveals several things.

• The hero in this book is God. He is faithful even though Israel prostituted herself by worship false gods Yahweh but he shows unfailing in His love toward her. He honored the covenant He had made with her even when she did not.