Confessing Traditional Marriage

On June 26th, the United States Supreme Court made a ruling that legalized same-sex marriage in our county.  As a result of this ruling, advertently and inadvertently the definition of marriage within Western Civilization has been redefined.  Indeed, marriage has been redefined from a comprehensive union of will and body—inherently ordered to the procreation of children and the formation of the family—to an emotional union that is enhanced by whatever sexual activities the partners find agreeable.  

Tragically, this new revisionist definition of marriage stands in irreconcilable tension with the historical and traditional-biblical definition of marriage.  Because the revisionist definition of marriage is now the law of the land, congregations, chaplains, Christian Universities, and our daily lives run the risk of various litigations for upholding the biblical view of marriage.

What shall the response of the church be?  

As the Lord sustains us, we as Christians must not be silent, but rather we must lovingly reject the redefinition of marriage that upholds same-sex unions, while simultaneously confessing with integrity and compassion that marriage is a sacred union of one man and one woman in heart, body, and mind..  That’s right, we must confess with truthfulness and kindness that marriage was intended by the Lord for man and woman to find delight in each other, and for the procreation of children; children who are to be brought up within a family where the husband and wife share lifelong fidelity.  We must confess the good-ness of traditional marriage, the sacredness of the family, and the blessing of children created through the joining of husband and wife.  

As you confess and affirm the sanctity of biblical marriage, you must also realize that you are not alone.  Even though the media is saturated with the same-sex mantra, there are literally millions across America and worldwide that stand with you.  In fact, we all stand with the historical church for the last two-millenniums. 

Finally, as frightening as these changes may be for us, we must not panic.  Even though the Supreme Court ruling successfully redefined marriage, their ruling "does not set aside the biblical definition of marriage any more than the notorious 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision changed the biblical definition of life."[1]  Undeniably, it is not the first time that sin has been legalized in our nation and it won’t be the last.  We must not panic though, but we must be faithful to our biblical confession and the biblical definition of marriage.  Christ Jesus is our Lord and God.  He has overcome the world, and He lives and reigns to all eternity, promising the same to all who trust in Him.

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[1] Doxology Facebook Page "Doxology Response to the SCOTUS Ruling on Homosexual Marriage," https://www.facebook.com/pages/Doxology/33195341594?fref=ts.


The previous article was originally printed in The Sargent County Teller by Pastor Matt Richard (August 7, 2015).

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