A Marriage Mini-Series
You’re reading Part 1 in a several-part blog mini-series on marriage. I’m developing these posts from my book, Gospel-Centered Marriage Counseling: An Equipping Guide for Pastors and Counselors.
Where Do You Start?
Ephesians 5:21-33 has to be the most often explored passage by couples, by pastors, and by marriage counselors. That is true in my ministry.
Yet, it dawned on me one day that Paul does not start Ephesians in chapter 5! Perhaps the more startling revelation was that I should not start marriage counseling or my understanding of marriage in Ephesians 5, but instead in Ephesians 1:1 and following.
When we start where Paul starts, our core understanding of marriage changes. This is vital, because:
The first calling of a biblical marriage counselor is to help couples define or redefine marital reality.
When we build our marriages and our marriage counseling on all of Ephesians (and all of the Bible), we find at least four foundations for marriage.
Marriage Foundation #1: Glorifying God—Ephesians 1:1-23
Apart from Scripture, our marital reality contains a self-centered focus.
“Marriage is about meeting my needs. Marriage is about making me happy.”
Paul’s marital narrative teaches that marriage is all about glorifying
To continue...read the full-length post originally published on this site.
