I remember the old marriage vows because when I was a child watching tv shows in many of the wedding scenes these vows were repeated.
If it was a sitcom, there would usually be some type of funny scene, where the bride would object to saying "love, honor, and obey...."; the world's view of marriage was changing, and the media was used to direct us all to the 'new normal'.

The marriage vows have actually evolved over time, and the reasons for why these vows were said have also changed. In the beginning of the christian church, people were aware that marriage was a picture of the relationship between Jesus Christ and His church, we who are called, The Bride of Christ. Marriage vows and ceremonies were considered sacred because the relationship between a man and woman was to be an example of the sweet and close union between Jesus Christ and His followers.

Ephesians Ch 5 21-33



Instructions for Christian Households



Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.



Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.



Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church — for we are members of his body. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery — but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

The Oldest Traditional Marriage Vows:

Groom: I,____, take thee,_____, to be my wedded Wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I plight thee my troth.



Bride: I,_____, take thee,_____, to be my wedded Husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love, cherish, and to obey, till death us do part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I give thee my troth.

The scriptures state that when christians marry, the man and the woman enter into a loving covenant with each other, which is binding until death. It is also a picture of the Blood Covenant between Jesus Christ and His Church, but this covenant goes beyond death, in fact it is a covenant that is everlasting! Jesus loved us so much that he was willing to give His life and His Blood to atone for our sins, and the only thing that He requires from us is to believe in Him, to Love, Honor, and Obey Him.......

It is truly an honor to know that the wedding covenant between a man and a woman points to the type of relationship that Jesus Christ has with His church; the wedding covenant is a way for God to show His children what type of relationship that He expects with us. It has been said that marriage is more helpful than harmful, to have a spouse, someone who has pledged to love you and cherish you, and to support you in your times of need. The Lord understood how hard life was going to be for us, and the wedding bond is an expression of sacrificial and selfless love.

It is sad to know that many marriages fall apart, and that christian marriages do not fare any better than secular ones. The Body of Christ has forgotten the wedding covenant is a sacred representation of Christ's love for us. When we become serious about this issue, when we are aware that this is something that God has ordained, and that it is a binding contract meant to last for a lifetime, then leaving when times are tough is out of the question, and we become willing to love each other with God's love.

Not only has the church forgotten how sacred and important marriage is to God, but they are unaware how they are to love each other in their marriage relationship. A man and a woman falls in love with each other, and they believe they are meant to be with each other, so the man proposes to the woman, and she accepts his ring and his proposal. They marry, and they believe that they have everything that they need to succeed in their marriage and in their lives together. It goes well for awhile, and then the issues of life pour in, and they begin to forget why they fell in love with each other in the first place, and not long after that, something major happens; they give up and divorce each other. What remains is anger, pain, and confusion because they don't know what went wrong.

The world does not have the best solution for a failed or failing marriage; God has always wanted His children to look to Him for all of their needs. He ordained marriage, but He also knew how hard it would be for a man and woman to keep that sacred bond if they do not allow Him to live in their hearts. Husband and wives should pray for each other, and encourage each other with the love of the Lord. They must allow the Holy Spirit to transform their hearts and minds, so that tenderness, compassion, and understanding becomes natural. What is missing in christian marriages is a surrender to the will, guidance, and love of God; we must go daily to Him for our daily bread, and for the strength to love ourselves and each other.

The Husband in the marriage vow represents Jesus Christ, that is why he is encouraged to love his wife with all of this heart, protect her and nuture her with selfless love, as a memorial to Christ's love for us. Jesus was willing to sacrifice everything, His heart and Blood to save us all, and that is the way a husband should feel toward His wife. The wife in the marriage represents the church, the Body of Christ, and she must love her husband with all of her heart, honor and respect him, and obey him. Obey means to be guided by him as God has made him the spiritual leader of the family and their household; we are not talking about obeying some tyrant dictator whom she must obey even has he uses and abuses her. This is leadership in love, as expressed by the word of God and as the Holy Spirit moves in the husband's heart.



Marriage was always to be considered a partnership between the man and the woman, just as there is a loving and perfect partnership and relationship between God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. It is an equal partnership, but God is the head of this trinity, and Jesus and the Holy Spirit allow themselves to be led by Him. It does not diminish their power or authority to be led by Father God, and the Father would never assert His authority selfishly over them, because He loves them with all of His heart and soul.
That is how everyone should lead in whatever situation that they find themselves in, with love, compassion, and wisdom!

How can you know for sure that You are married to the cross and to the Lamb of God? With faith, recite these words:

"Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen."

from the true world of God Blog
https://learningtoliveandloveinthewordofgod.blogspot.com/