Marriage: A Labor Of Love

2. I have to admit… Don and Donna have their 50th anniversary celebration today

a. I want to watch all of the UK-UofL football game

b. There’s also something else I want to do

--there’s a TV show that I really like that I missed every episode last season. They’re playing all

24 episodes in a row starting today

c. Guess where I’m going to be?

--Using the VCR to tape what I want to watch and helping the Peeds celebrate their anniversary

3. As much as I like the other things, I know that Don and Donna’s anniversary and what it says to our

culture is much more important than a television show and a football game

B. Avoid sexual immorality

1. Our scripture passage this morning highlights the damage that sexual immorality brings to the

honor of marriage

--it says that the marriage bed should be kept pure and that God will judge the adulterer and all the

sexually immoral

2. Our society is full of sexual immorality

a. Pornography is rampant in print, on film, on television, and on our computers

b. Even as a preacher, I have to be careful

--Pornographers try to send stuff by email to anyone they can. They’re slick. Even if you’ve

never accessed a pornography website, they will get your email address and try to trick you into

opening something you shouldn’t be looking at. That’s why I never open e-mail from

someone I don’t know. I just delete it.

3. Sexual immorality destroys the strength and sanctity of marriages.

a. Yes, I know that forgiveness is possible and I know of marriages that have weathered the storms

of immorality and infidelity.

b. Several years back, polls showed that while many Americans were tolerant of a political leader

that had a sexual affair, they were not so tolerant if their own spouse was involved in one

4. Briefly, let me also say that living together is a horrible way of getting ready for marriage

a. Statistics show that people who live together before they get married are more likely to get

divorced and suffer higher percentages of other marital problems than those who do not live

together.

b. Studies also show that people who are sexually active before marriage face a higher risk of

contracting physical diseases, they’re also more likely to experience a variety of emotional

problems as opposed to those who save sex for marriage

c. Keeping the marriage bed pure is certainly a way to show honor to marriage

C. Commit yourself to making and keeping your marriage a strong marriage

1. If you’re married, the best way you can honor marriage is by building and maintaining a solid

relationship with your spouse

2. It’s not easy because it takes sacrifice, commitment, submission, and a lot of work

a. The Bible describes the ultimate love this way in 1 Cor. 13:4-8a – “Love is patient, love is kind. It

does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily

angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It

always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails…”