We hope you have enjoyed studying God’s Word with us and we’d love to hear from you. Whether married and going through the course together with your spouse, or even alone we would love to hear from you. Maybe you’ve gone through the course in preparation for marriage or are single but wanted to learn more about the mystery of the gospel and how it reflects Christ and the church. Either way we would love to hear from you so we can make this course even better.
We wanted to leave you with a reminder of why this course was written. Let us share our final thoughts with you about the powerful marital union and how it reflects Christ and the church. Thank you so much for allowing us to minister to you “how the cross united us as one.”
Dear friends, you remember from our earlier lessons that God created Adam and Eve but before Eve was created, there was not a suitable helper for Adam in all creation. So a special creation was made by God for him..
God put Adam into a deep sleep and while he was sleeping took a rib from Adam’s side and handcrafted Eve from it. When Adam rose from his deep sleep God brought Eve to him and she became his wife.
“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” Genesis 2:24
Matthew Henry wrote, “The woman was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be loved.”
And as you recall the New Testament emphasizes the meaning of marriage with this quote from the book of Genesis, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:31-32).
MARRIAGE, A PROFOUND MYSTERY (only revealed in Jesus Christ)
Jesus loved the church (so much) that He gave Himself up for her (He purchased her while on the cross), that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by washing her with His blood. Jesus rose from the dead on the third day and will one day present the church to Himself (as his bride) in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In Christ we have a greater marital union than that of Adam and Eve! Yes, God lived with Adam and Eve, but through Jesus’ death and resurrection God lives in you and your spouse!