The Marriage We Were Made For

"Mawwaige. Mawwaige is what bwings us togedder today..."

Okay, no, this really has nothing to do with The Princess Bride. But today a visiting pastor at my church gave a message about marriage, and it got me thinking about something I'll let you in on in just a minute. The pastor's sermon was geared toward the kind of marriage you'd typically think of right off the bat when hearing the word: the kind involving rings and a formal ceremony, leading to a family, etc. But he made a comment early on in his preaching that sent my mind down a completely different track. Don't get me wrong, I still paid attention to the rest of the sermon, but here's what I was thinking about in the back of my mind and afterward. The comment I'm referring to was that, for the vast majority, marriage is inevitable. The pastor did make mention that there are some called to lifelong singleness (celibacy), but the main thrust of his message was, as I've already said, about marriage. So here's the "rabbit trail" of sorts my mind went off on:

I'm not married, but I'm married. Confusing enough? Okay, let me explain... No, I have no wedding ring; I'm not married in that sense. But at the same time, in a spiritual sense, I am married. I am in a covenant relationship with Jesus Christ, and am part of the Bride of Christ--His Church (see Ephesians). Even as I wrote that sentence, I was struck by the fact that my relationship with Jesus is more than just a marriage, but for now I'll stick to the topic I started with.
There's a reason the Bible refers to the Church as the Bride of Christ, and to Christ as our Bridegroom. Marriage itself is meant to be a picture of Jesus' relationship with His Church. I could go on for pages to try to explain that, and I'll likely get more in-depth with it in future posts, but as for short, sweet, and to the point--this is the marriage we are all called to, and the most important marriage of all. This is the relationship that affects all others. And this is the only relationship which can truly fulfill us and make our lives truly count.