Are We Confusing the Benefits of Marriage with the Purpose of or Reason for Marriage?

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Supernatural Oneness of Marriage & Counterfeit Relationships (Part 7 - Study of Genesis Chapter 2 and Its Implications for Relationships)

Adam Spoke Factually & Prophetically

Genesis 2:23-24

And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh:  she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of the Man.

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife:  and they shall be one flesh.

Adam spoke of the reality of Eve (where she came from & her name “Woman”).  Then Adam spoke prophetically (by God’s enabling power) of what this meant for humanity…”Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife:  and they shall be one flesh.”  He spoke of things and circumstances that did not even yet exist…an earthly father and mother.
(Some Bible versions denote this statement as not in quotes.  It is felt by some that the statement was made by the writer of Genesis...Moses...instead of Adam.  Whether the statement is made by Moses or Adam, the source remains the same-- divine knowlege from God.)

The fullness of this prophecy or statement is difficult for me to grasp.  God’s spoken word through Adam set into motion the events of our lives for all time.  Though the prophecy may have been made concerning mankind and how he would intimately relate to woman before sin entered into the world, the effect of the prophecy on our lives even with the burden of sin attached is very real.  However, because of the distorting and destructive effects of sin, the numerous distorted versions of this intimate relationship are astounding. 

The number of counterfeit versions of this intimate relationship include the girlfriend-boyfriend relationship; cohabitation relationships; common-law relationship; friends-with-benefits; one-night stand; adulterous relationships; same-sex relationships; pedophilic relationship; incestuous relationships; swinging relationship; arranged marriages; polygamy, and more.

God allowed Adam to understand what His Perfect Plan was for Man & Woman—to be one as the Godhead is One (Genesis 1:26  Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…).

This oneness for Man & Woman does not fully exist outside of an intimate relationship by each individual with God.  In God’s order, He was first alone with each individual before He ordained that their human-to-human relationship would create a state of oneness.  God did not send them out to hunt or search for each other. (Genesis 2, Genesis 24) 

However, because of the power of God’s word spoken by Adam, there is still a state of oneness created when a man and woman join together even in unholy union. The intimate physical and emotional union of a man and a woman was designed by God to occur within the state of holy matrimony. (1 Corinthians 6:16  What?  Know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body?  For two, saith he, shall be one flesh.)  This unholy union has been the snare of millions of souls.  This unholy union has destroyed billions of lives.

The true toll of casualties in the battle for the human soul through sabotage of relationships is a mixture of the total number of self-centered marriages, divorces, suicides, pre- or extramarital sexual encounters, unwed pregnancies, abortions, cohabitations, kids abandoned by parents, intimate violence events, uninvolved fathers & husbands, uninvolved mothers & wives, abandoned families, even addictions.

God’s remedy for mankind is found in Him.  The hope for relationships is here in our midst.  It is found in a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  Then and only then can we experience the close proximity to that which is not only the center of life, but that which is Life itself.  (John 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life…)

The term “close proximity” is not descriptive or close enough.  The relationship between redeemed man & redeemed woman designed for man has to be crucified with Christ, have the blood of Christ flowing through it, be housed within the Body of Christ, be indwelled by the Holy Spirit, be grafted into the Vine, and be filled with the Holy Ghost…What a tall order!  Only God is able to orchestrate this reality.  Will we let Him?

God is Amazing!!

Major Updates to November 9th - Purpose of the Husband:Wife Relationship

Please take a look at the November 9th Post regarding the Purpose of the Husband:Wife Relationship.

In an effort to clearly present perspectives from Scripture on the answer to the first question, some additional information has been added.

The husband:wife relationship has been, and is under spiritual attack.  If we do not agree with God about His purpose for this relationship (and others), the chaos will continue to escalate in and outside the Body of Christ.

Man & Woman Equal? Yes and No! Genesis Chapter 2 and Its Implications for Relationships Part 6

Men & Women, Are We Equal?  Yes and No!

Genesis 2:21-22   ...and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; and the rib, which the LORD God had taken from the man, made he a woman...

The piece of Adam that Eve contained made her a completer of the man.  God did not replace the piece that he took from the man, but left man without this piece.

As Adam states later, Eve was truly flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone.  She was formed by God using a piece of him.  The woman contained what the man now lacked.

As I read through one of the commentaries on this chapter by Adam Clarke, he made the point that the woman had "equal, power, faculty and rights" as the man.  I immediately disagreed with his point while not considering the full context of his point, nor the time period in which he lived (1830's). 

In an effort to clearly not side with the argument made by some that men & women are equal, I did not look at the spiritual perspective.  In a spiritual sense, men and women are both equal souls--important to God.  The woman complimented the man accordiing to God's specifications.  She was not in the same category as the animals, she was similar to man, yet different from him. 

This point of equality probably had a different meaning in the 1830's, a time where women may have been seen and treated as inferior.

Today, in our post-feminist era, women are applauded from many different angles.  They are told they are equal to man, but not so much from a soul's worth perspective, moreso from a competitive "I'm better than you perspective."  This has led to much discord and confusion on the part of men and women. 

God is definitely able to create identical, but He did not do that in the creation of man & woman. 
One the one hand: We look different anatomically and emotionally.  We are not identical. 
On the other hand:  Men and women are a special creation of God.  Our souls are equally important to God.  So yes, from that perspective, we are equal spiritually.

All this may sound like an unrelated discussion, however, what we understand about God's perspective on men and women affects how we relate to each other.  If this is a competitive race, we treat each other differently.  If we consider that both male and female are precious souls in God's eyes, it changes they way we think and act toward each other.

Adam Clarke's commentary on Genesis Chapter 2:
http://www.studylight.org/com/acc/view.cgi?book=ge&chapter=2&verse=15#Ge2_15