THE MARRIAGE BUILDER - God's Blueprint

When it comes to relationships, we are all in pursuit of the same goal: A deep experience of personal intimacy through relationship with a person of the opposite sex. Why? Because only within the context of relationship can the deepest needs of human personality be met. Our need for relationship is real, and it is there by God's design. As dependent personal beings, we cannot function fully without close relationships. Building a successful Christian relationship requires that we use God's blueprint. Trying to build a successful relationship without God's blueprint is like trying to build a house without plans.

Next, we discussed the need to build our relationships on the Solid Foundation. In Matthew 7:21-25, Jesus tells the Parable of the Wise and the Foolish Builders. One built his house on the Rock; the other build his house on sand.

The ultimate foundation of all relationships is oneness--oneness with other believers and oneness with God through the Holy Spirit. In His last day on Earth, Jesus walked with his disciples and prayed to the Father:

"I pray...that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one." John 17:21-22

As the single person contemplates marriage, he/she should know that the best way to prepare for marriage is to grow in oneness with God. It is in oneness with God that we are able to fulfill what Jesus called the greatest commandment:

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself." Matthew 22:37-39

It is also in oneness with God that we are able to fulfill our purpose in marriage the way God designed it--God's blueprint. The following video should encourage singles:

Next week we will continue exploring God's blueprint for relationships as we look at oneness in spirit, soul, and body. The lesson slides for today's lesson are below: