Day 3 – The Garden

Please note: today’s passages and notes focus on the topic of marriage.

• God’s plan for marriage is the primary focus of today’s readings, which you might have found surprising, if you assumed the readings would continue to focus on the topic of creation. The words of Genesis 2, like those of the previous chapter, are so wonderfully full of theology and discussion topics that these notes could hardly begin to consider them all, and so the reading plan today picks up specifically on the topic of marriage. You can, of course, make notes or think about anything else that today’s passages bring to mind.
• Before we turn to marriage, what did God do on the seventh day? Do you think God needed to do that? If not, what purpose did it serve? Do you and your family treat the Sabbath in a special way? If not, do you think it might be helpful?
• Genesis 2 retells some of the story of Genesis 1 with more detail about the creation of man. How did God make Adam? What sort of things did God set for Adam to do? How did God make Eve, and why?
• What was Adam forbidden from doing? Why do you think God warned Adam about this? What does this show us about God?
• Genesis 2:18 has been much discussed, prompting suggestions that as “helpers”, and made second, the value and worth of women compared to men might be lower. This is untrue. What sort of passages in scripture (those we have already read together, as well as those you might know from the rest of the bible) can we refer to, to show that women are equal to men in the eyes of God? Is it helpful to remember that Adam needed Eve has his helper?
• Today’s New Testament passages reinforce how we can understand Genesis 2. How does the image of marriage between a husband and his wife picture marriage of Jesus Christ and the church? This is a question that’s worth thinking about carefully. Today’s third passage will help. In fact, cast your eyes a little earlier in Ephesians 5, to verses 22-27, if you want more context. How do you feel about your potential future roles in marriage (depending on whether you’re male or female)? Are you already submitting to Christ, in the knowledge that He has already given himself up for you?
• How would you answer someone who tried to argue that Ephesians 5:22-33 shows that Christian marriage is sexist? How are different roles separate from equal worth and dignity? How does Christ’s relationship with His Father picture this?
• The bible often uses the word “mystery” to describe something that isn’t clear, but that has been made known through the coming of Jesus. How was this particular subject – marriage – a “mystery”, and what v32 tell us about this mystery?
• Remember, again, that this is before the fall – the moment when humanity turned away from God. Work – which Adam was given to do in today’s passage – and marriage were both part of God’s perfect plan before sin came into the world!

In Genesis 2 we see so many amazing things. We see God create man and woman in His image – something that sets us apart from the animals. We see that our life is utterly by God’s grace – just like we had no part to play in our own physical birth, Adam and Eve’s existence was purely by God’s design and foreknowledge. Not only that – he gave mankind a purpose (v7) and food (v16), and because He loves His creation, He gave Adam and Eve (and yes, us too!) rules to keep the relationship good (v17), and graciously warns them of the consequences if they were to disobey. God gives them intimacy with Himself – they could talk to God at any time – and provides a woman for the man (and a man for the woman!) so that they have human intimacy and connection too. All this by His perfect grace.

God created marriage – described as a man and a woman leaving their parents and being united together. Like all things God created before the fall, it is a good thing. It provides a platform for mutually exclusive stability between a man and a woman, the right place for sexual union and the best framework for bringing up children. Note that the bible only ever describes marriage as being between a man and a woman – there is no concept of “same sex marriage” in the scriptures.

Getting married is not our sole purpose though. Many people never marry – indeed the apostle Paul (who never married) talked about those who remain unmarried in positive tones in 1 Corinthians 7. It is OK if you don’t marry. We know too, sadly, that marriages can have problems like many things in our fallen world, because they consist of two humans, and all humans are sinful and have frailties. Because marriage is good and we understand and feel love (after all – we’re made in the image of God and God is Love – 1 John 4:8), it can hurt very much when marriages have difficulties.

Ultimately (whether you get married or not) marriage exists to point us – as the words of Ephesians in today’s third passage points out – to the glory of Christ (the bridegroom) and His church (us, His bride). Only in Christ will we ever see full and perfect love and faithfulness – our own marriages, if we have them, are only ever mere shadows of this greatest marriage to come. I recommend that you flick to the back of your bibles and have a gander at Revelation 19 if you want to see how things will gloriously end up (and when we’ll have no more need for human marriage (Matthew 22:30)).

Jonah and Harry – we’ll talk more about this when we meet up for the first time (and I’m sure you will too, Annabel).