Marriage, Intimacy
A marriage unified in Christ enjoys true Biblical intimacy. Moses wrote, “…The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” (Genesis 2:25)
A Biblical marriage destroys thoughts of self-consciousness, they defeat shame, there is no fear of ridicule, no hang-ups, they can choose to avoid embarrassments and with Christ leading the marriage they miss the emotional hurts from abuse or poor choices.
Biblical intimacy avoids the world’s view which is sex driven to being victorious living through shared discussion, shared silence, shared history, yes, shared trials and heartaches, as well as shared joys.
The marriage couple who builds on the Biblical essentials has a husband who knows his “responsibility is to love his Lord so deeply and accept his [God given call] so completely that he gives himself to his wife without conditions. A marriage surrendered to the Lordship of Christ has a wife who knows her “responsibility to respect her husband so much that she gives herself to her husband without hesitations [every part of her life].” (Marriage, From Surviving to Thriving, Swindoll)
God’s call for marriage is intimacy, not familiarity. Gordon Lester wrote, “Familiarity and intimacy are not the same. Each has a value in life, certainly in married life, but one is no substitute for the other. If one is confused for the other, we have the basis for major human and marital unrest. In marriage, familiarity is inescapable. It happens almost imperceptibly. Intimacy is usually hard to come by. It must be deliberately sought and opened up and responded to. Familiarity brings a degree of ease and comfort. Intimacy excitingly searches for deep understanding and personal appreciation.”
Make it a point to avoid sin that destroys intimacy and surrender to God’s will for marriage so intimacy may be experienced often and enjoyed.
