But if we're encouraged to look to marriage as our primary goal, we're going to miss out.
Boundless is an online magazine for Christians on dating, relationships and marriage, run by Focus on the Family. I have grown increasingly frustrated with it. It is so marriage-minded that I think they're starting to miss the point. Their panels feature people in their 30s who constantly complain about online dating and how they're not married yet. They feature people who call their singleness spiritual darkness, but now they're married and life is good.
Perhaps without even trying to, they are raising up a generation of the churched to seek a spouse instead of the Savior, to find contentment in marriage instead of Christ, and to love the image of the gospel more than the gospel itself. I think there's a word for that last point; oh yeah, idolatry, you know, one of those commandments written on those stone tablets by God.
And then they wonder why church attendance is low and why marriages are failing and why it's so hard for couples to serve The Lord.
How different would this message be if they said, "Single? Choose today to love Jesus" I think it's great to hang out with kids and to serve in ministry and to be wise with your money and learn skills around the house. But if you do this at the cost of Jesus as your first love, then have you really gained anything?
In Revelation 2, the church of Ephesus is called out by Jesus through John. He sees what they're doing, he praises them for their works, but then what does he do? He tells them that they have lost their love they had for him. If things don't change, their future looks pretty bleak.
This goes to say that I think there are ways single people can prepare for marriage, but if we are not actively pursuing intimacy with Christ as our first love, it would seem that we will have gained the world only to lose our souls.
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