Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. Hebrews 13:4
Staff in the nursing home were touched by the old man who faithfully came in every day to have supper with his wife. His faithful attendance was remarkable, given that his wife’s dementia was so advanced that she appeared not to know who he was. She usually ignored him, and sometimes struck out at him. But he continued to bring her flowers, paid her compliments, and held her hand if she would let him. He fussed about her, making sure her hair was combed nicely and her clothing was properly arranged. And he never rushed to leave her, often staying into the evening, sometimes until nearly bedtime. One day, a staff member complimented him on how well he attended to her. She asked him why he continue to come every day, adding, ‘She doesn’t even know who you are.’ ‘That’s true,’ he replied, ‘but I know who she is’. Stories like that capture our attention, not only because they are touching, but also because they are rare. The faithful old man’s attitude is one that is rapidly vanishing in the atmosphere of what has been called a new morality, which is actually just the old immorality that has become the norm in our evil day.
Most of us who are married can recall – no matter how long ago it was – giving assent to the words ‘as long as you both shall live’. And most of us recognize that those words were not just window dressing or a nice idea at the time, but they were a solemn vow. But they are a vow that is quickly shed these days by couples who run away when the difficulties in their marriage crop up. This was never what God intended, just as it was never God’s intention to have husbands who neglect and abuse their wives, or wives who refuse to submit to the headship of their husband. Marriage is the very foundation of our society, and as our text declares is honourable. But what we are seeing in these days is honour being given to that which is not marriage. And that falls into the latter half of our text.
Many, possibly most, couples are today either ignoring marriage altogether or are cohabitating for months, or even years, before they marry. For them, marriage is just a ceremony that carries nothing of the absolute lifetime commitment that God intended. The term ‘the bed’ as used in our text belongs within marriage, and only within marriage. Those who violate this are adulterers who God will surely judge for their sin. He will also judge those who call marriage the union between couples of the same sex. The Word of God defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Anything else is not marriage, regardless of how the laws of the land are changed or how the civil rights activists force everyone to submit. You cannot call honourable that which the Word of God defines as an abomination without coming under the judgment of God.
Society has radically changed its views on marriage from what most of us were taught from the Scriptures. But the Scriptures have not changed, and neither should we. Or God will judge us. – Jim MacIntosh