The Ordinance Of Marriage Series

Genesis (Pt. 7) (The Ordinance of Marriage)

Text: Genesis 2:18-25

By: Ken McKinley

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Now last week we looked at the first covenant between God and man, we saw that God had told Adam to do certain things, and that he would be rewarded for those things. We also saw that God forbid Adam from doing something, and if Adam disobeyed; he would be punished. And of course we all know that Adam did fail to obey the Lord and sin entered into creation as a result.

This morning I want us to look at the last of the ordinances given to us in the creation account. And that’s the ordinance of marriage; we’ve already looked at the ordinances of labor/work and of the Sabbath, so now we come to the ordinance of marriage. Now when you look at Genesis chapter 2 you see God heaping blessings upon Adam. He puts him in a literal paradise on earth, He provides for him by giving him everything he will need; food, water. And culminating blessing that God gives to Adam is Eve. It’s marriage. Let’s look at some of those blessings and some of the things that God did for Adam. In verse 9 we’re told that God made all kinds of trees, and they were pleasing to the eye. What this is telling us is that God shared with Adam, His divine capacity of appreciation. You see; God not only made trees that were functional – they provided a source of food, but they were also just a beautiful sight to behold. God not only made things that were necessary for survival, but He made them beautiful in the process. And man has been gifted with the ability to appreciate those things. We appreciate beauty. Animals can’t do that.

In verse 19 we see God bringing the animals before Adam and Adam gives them names. Now this is Adam doing what God has told him to do, he is exercising dominion over the animals. They are brought before Adam – this show’s God’s approval for Adam’s dominion, and then Adam names them, which is the actual act of having dominion. And the implied idea here is that Adam gives each of these animals appropriate names. In-other-words, he names them perfectly. Now that’s an intellectual feat of incredible proportions. We can’t even begin to imagine how powerful the intellect of Adam was. Man’s intellect didn’t increase by our fall into sin, it decreased. In-fact; the early Christians had a saying that went; “Aristotle was but the rubbish of fallen Adam.” But there was another reason for bringing the animals before Adam. No man is an island. We have a need for companionship, we have a need for intimacy, and we have a need for relationship. We have a need for peers, those who are like us, comparable to us. We have a need to share our hopes and dreams and desires.

You know the saying, “Birds of a feather flock together…” The reason birds of a feather flock together is because they are birds of a feather. My friend Beau Hague… the guy I was hoping that would come speak to you all while I was gone; has started a cowboy church in Woodward. The reason he did that is because Beau is a cowboy… you know what would happen if I tried to start a cowboy church? It would flop faster than a fish out of water. On the other hand; I couldn’t start a biker church or a yuppie church either. So I guess ya’ll are stuck with me.

The point is, no animal was suitable for Adam, and so God caused a deep sleep to come over him.

And what God does while Adam is asleep, is the crowning blessing to man in His original creation. And let me just say this really quickly; it’s because of that… it’s because this is the crowning blessing, it’s also precisely the area that Satan attacks, and it’s still the main area that the devil attacks. I’m talking about the relationship between husband and wife in marriage.

So let’s look at this a little closer. God had created everything, and He said it was good, but then He says, “It’s NOT GOOD that man should be alone.” And if you remember, when God says, “It is very good.” It’s not until after the woman was created. Now there’s one really important point I want to show you from this.

Adam had fellowship with God, but it was solitary fellowship, and this was not the plan for mankind. What that tell us is that those people who say that they can worship God on their own, without a family of believers, are fooling themselves. God’s plan is for man to have companionship in their worship and fellowship with Him. And this was the original plan of God all along.