Doubting If I Should Have Gotten Married

Of late my mind has begun to contemplate if I should have gotten married.

First, marriage is an example, shadow, a kind of display of the true Marriage between Jesus and his Church.

Second, I am a Christian. I am a part of that relationship. Maybe I should not have gotten married. Was marriage just an Old Testament example of what Jesus would be with his people?

I began to wonder about this when I read that the Sabbath does not apply to Christians today as it did to those of the Old Testament because Jesus fulfilled the Law and now our relationship with him is the true Sabbath rest. Therefore, it was argued, the one day in seven is no longer necessary. Jesus said,

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Matthew 11:28

If Jesus is the true Sabbath rest for our soul and thus there is no need for a weekly Sabbath does that not imply that since Jesus is the Groom of the true marriage that human marriage is now obsolete?

I am guessing right now you are scratching your head…maybe…and rightfully so. To be clear, I have not had second thoughts about my marriage. As for marriage in general it seems pretty ridiculous to doubt its validity for the Christian. Yet what I wish to address is that not only is human marriage on earth yet valid even with Christ as the true Groom…but that a weekly Sabbath is still God’s will for his people even while Christ is also the true Sabbath rest.

Genesis 2

When we step into the Garden in Eden to observe how God arranges the details of the created order we find two important parts that impact all of life: The first Sabbath and mention of a weekly structure (Exo. 20:11) and the foundation stone of society: marriage.

“And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man.”

Genesis 2:22

Jesus (Mark 10:7-8) and Paul (Eph. 5:31) both affirm this moment as the first marriage. As God is establishing order and function of the creation he has just established marriage is designed for and designated to humanity. It is not merely for God’s people, but as given to the first man and it is for all mankind for all of time…and amen for that…glad to be married.

Yet before marriage is given we read of the first Sabbath:

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

Genesis 2:1-3

In the Ten Commandments from Exodus 20 we are taught that this passage in Genesis 2 is speaking of the first Sabbath rest:

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God…For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Exodus 20:8-9, 11

From the very command that gives a clear word regarding how our week is to be structured we find a direct tie to Genesis 2. As God is explaining the balance of work and rest to his people at Mt. Sinai he uses himself as the example. Where does that example arise? It arises from creation. God is not merely using his activity as a moral example but instead specifically calls the seventh day “the Sabbath day.”

Just as Marriage was designed and designated for humanity from the early moments of creation, so also was the Sabbath.

“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”

Jesus (Mark 2:27)

In light of this we will have difficulty saying and believing that the Sabbath was merely a sign for Israel under the Old Covenant, thus we need not observe it.

Further Clarity

We need to consider a few things before closing:

1. Nothing in the Ten Commandments was new. Joel Beeke in his Reformed Systematic Theology goes to great lengths to argue that each commandment has roots in creation. That is to say that each moral concept begins to be revealed at creation yet is clarified by the Ten Commandments. This idea matches the general progression of the Bible. Every doctrine of the Christian faith has root in the first three chapters of the Bible, yet the other 1,186 chapters serve to clarify and further those truths.
2. The Sabbath was a sign to Israel of their covenant relationship with God. But the Sabbath is more than that. Not only was it a part of the created order from the beginning but it also is spoken of as a moral command, that is eternal command, throughout the Torah (a.k.a. –Pentateuch; i.e. — Lev. 19:3; 23:3). Yet, there are places where it is also spoken of as a ritual for Israel (i.e. — Exo. 23:12; 31:12-18; 34:21). So which was it? Well, we can reasonably and rightly say that it is both. One thing can logically be used for different purposes. Yet, we say rightly due to its root in the created order and no where in scripture is it overturned. The way we determine how we observe the Sabbath differently than Israel did is to note the context of the given reference we are looking to. Some Old Testament references, such as the Ten Commandments, speak of it as an eternal moral law, while other places speak of it among other statutes that were specific to the civic function of Israel. The civic functions which were for Israel no longer bear weight, though we have principles to learn from them. It is the moral aspect of it which was conceived at creation and clarified in the Command that bears weight on us today.
3. Christ is indeed our true and everlasting Sabbath rest. But we cannot say that the weekly Sabbath is out because we have a true and eternal Sabbath with Jesus. We can have both. Just as marriage was created and enjoyed, and is enjoyed even though Jesus is the true Groom, so also we can enjoy a holy rest once a week. The Sabbath today is a far greater joy than in was prior to Jesus. For in this we cease our weekly routine not only to reflect on his work of creation but also his work of new creation…redemption.

Final Thoughts

Why are we so quick to shun the Sabbath? How much of it is biblical reasoning and how much of it is a twisted view of it as a burden. I would argue that if we are not saddened by the possibility of loosing the Sabbath in the New Covenant that something in our hearts needs to be addressed.

The scripture speaks of it as a blessing.

• Genesis 2:3 — “So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy.”
• Isaiah 56:2, 6-7 — “Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil…And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer…”
• Mark 2:27 — “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”

I think this needs to be said because it is odd at best and unnatural at worst for the people of God today to zealously push against the idea of observing the Sabbath. It is as if it were legalism or a burden that Israel had to deal with under the law but we who are under grace need not be bothered.

Where in the Bible do you see the Sabbath as a burden? If you believe that the Sabbath has no weight today, does it sadden you that we do not have the blessing that Israel enjoyed. Biblically it was a blessing…it is a blessing for us today.

If you see the Sabbath as now only having meaning in ones relationship to Christ I would encourage you to consider its creation origins.

If you think of the Sabbath as only being for Israel, do you also see it as a blessing Israel enjoyed and that we have lost. The Bible speaks of the Sabbath as God’s kindness to mankind.

Finally, to all my brethren who have read this. I hope you have a blessed Sunday this week with the Household of God in worship through prayer, song, Word, and ordinance. Have a blessed weekend.