The lighthouse, what a beautiful truth that portrays, amen. Take your Bibles if you would, turn to the book of Hebrews chapter number 13. Hebrews chapter 13. Tonight I wanna preach on a very important topic and really kind of just share some things that I think it is important for us to go over from time to time. Hebrews chapter 13, I'm just going to give you here one verse. And that is found in verse number four. The Bible says in Hebrews chapter 13, verse number four, marriage is honorable in all and the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. Let me read that again here. Marriage is honorable in all and the bed undefiled. but whoremongers and adulterers, God will judge. Tonight, I just want to share in this subject, marriage is honorable. Marriage is honorable. Let's pray together. Father, thank you for this evening. Thank you for your blessed truth, the word of God. You've not left us in the dark, but you've given us the light of the word of God to shine in the path that we walk. We live in a dark world and we live in a time that is very There's so much confusion. But for the Christian who has the Bible, we're given the way to walk. And we're shown the truth. And Lord, help us to understand tonight what you have for us in Jesus' name. Amen. I don't think I have to rehearse with this group too much what has transpired in the last even 25, 30 years in our country with regards to the subject of marriage. It has been pretty amazing that our government, whether it be national government, local government, state governments, has tried to step in and define what marriage is all about. In fact, they have come through many times and tried to reverse what has been really the law of the land for a number of years. 1996, there was the Defense of Marriage Act that was passed. But sadly, just a couple years ago, there were some things that were done by the U.S. Supreme Court that declared that all state bans on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. And I've been pretty amazed, even as a young man myself, just looking at the lay of the land and seeing what is happening out there and seeing how there is such a push to change what we know the Bible says. And when I think about marriage. And I think about. This country that we live in. I'm. I'm just amazed at how people think that they can go ahead and change what God has instituted really from day one. You know, marriage is something that has been established by God. It's not been established by the state of Florida. It's not been established by the United States of America or any other country. Marriage has been simply established by God and therefore it's established by God. It is to God who we look to for the definition of marriage. We don't look to the state for how they define it. And also I think about this in my introduction tonight is that when the state, that is our country, begins to encroach upon God's standards and start messing around with what God says about marriage, it is time for Christians to go ahead and stand up and not be silent. In 2008, we had here in the state of Florida on the ballot to go ahead and Change the wording in the Constitution with regards to how marriage was to be defined. And thankfully at that time that the people of Florida had enough sense to go ahead and vote that change down and to uphold the standard of what marriage is as defined in the Bible. But you and I are not to be silent as Christians. The Bible says we're to be salt of the earth were to be the light of the world. You and I have a moral obligation to stand up for righteousness. You say, well, look, the government, they decide what they're going to do and the church is to stay into what it's supposed to do. Well, may I say this, that when the government begins to encroach upon the Bible and what the Bible says, that's when it's time for Christians to stand up. And that's when it's time for you and I to go ahead and promote what the Bible says about marriage. This verse that I read for you, verse number four, gives to me really three considerations about marriage. And I just want to briefly give those to you tonight. I know the word brief is just a word that I threw out there. I thought I'd just kind of tickle your ears a little bit. But anyways, I'll briefly share a couple of things with you about marriage. Number one, there must be a proper consideration of marriage. There must be a proper consideration of marriage. In other words, what I want to convey in this point is marriage, there must be a conviction about what marriage is. The Bible has in these first three words here, marriage is honorable. Marriage is honorable. Marriage is really one of those institutions that's been in our society that's really been a given. I mean, when I was little, five years old, six years old, on through my childhood, never thought anything with regards to any other type of marriage than the way that the Bible defines it. There was just a general conviction. So when a person thinks of marriage, it involves a man and a woman, possibly having children, Developing a family, becoming the basic building block of society. You actually didn't have to for years. You didn't have to define marriage. It was a self evident truth. But this self evident truth has been attacked in the last 30 years plus. And it is a been under attack to go ahead and be altered. And you and I as believers are to ward off those attacks. Because God has defined what marriage is all about. I won't take you to the passages here, but I'll make reference to them. I'll read these. Genesis chapter one marriage was established by God in Genesis one. In that chapter there, the very first chapter in the Bible, verses 26 and 27, God said, let us make man in our image. After our likeness, let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the fowl of the air, over the cattle, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image. In the image of God created him. Male and female created he them. Then in the next chapter, Genesis 2, 24, therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave unto his wife and they shall be one flesh. So here we see that God set a pattern. In Genesis 1, verses 21 to 22, God had told all the creatures to go ahead and be fruitful and multiply. And God noted with all the creatures that all of them had a partner. Mr. and Mrs. Turtle were together. Mr. and Mrs. Hippopotamus kind of roamed off the scene and went together. And all these other animals that God had created had partners, but as God looked down and saw man, he realized that man needed someone that he could have partnership with, and out of man, God created woman. Marriage was the first institution that God had created. That institution was established before the church ever came along. The institution of marriage was established before government was established. Marriage is the institution from which children come to life. So God had established marriage all the way back in the beginning. But then it's interesting to know that marriage is reestablished by the Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew chapter 19 verses 4 through 6, Jesus repeats the words that I read a little bit earlier from Genesis 2 verse 24. And he reestablishes God's intent for marriage. Listen to this. Have you not read, these are Jesus's words, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female? and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, shall cleave to his wife, they twain shall be one flesh. Wherefore, they are no more twain but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. Jesus also said this in Mark 10, 6-8, But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh. So then they are no more twain, but one flesh. These two passages here given in Matthew and in Mark These passages given by Jesus on marriage gave it a very clear idea of what Jesus thought about marriage. First of all, Jesus had this idea. Marriage was instituted by God at the beginning. Marriage was designed for those created, male and female. Marriage is for one man and one wife who become one flesh and they produce offspring and marriage is a union that God joins. Not the state state may recognize it. Government may recognize marriage and that's all well and good, but it is God that joins people together. I want you to notice these words here given in verse number four. Actually, this word marriage is Honorable. Honorable. The word honorable means precious. Marriage is honorable by God because I want you to think about this thought for just a minute. God honored marriage by establishing it. Jesus Christ honored marriage by performing his first miracle, the first recorded miracle at a wedding. The Holy Spirit honored marriage by using marriage as a picture of the church in the New Testament. And therefore I think of this, that if the Trinity of the Godhead honors marriage, then no person ought to disparage marriage as God defines it. Now marriage is honorable or the word honorable is the same Greek word which is translated the word precious or dear. That same Greek word is used in these verses. Let me just give you these for a minute. The word precious, dear, honorable. The Greek word is used here. Acts 20, 24, Paul spoke of his imprisonments and afflictions that he had been through, yet he did not count his life dear. That's the same word as honorable. 2 Peter 1 verse 4 says that you and I have been given precious promises. That's the same word as honorable. 1 Peter 1 verse 19 tells us that those who are born again have been bought with the, can you guess the word? Precious blood of Jesus Christ. Now if you and I as human beings consider our lives precious to the point that we're not going to endanger our bodies, unlike Paul did in his missionary journeys. And if the promises of God for the Christian are precious, whereby we can bank our very life on those promises, and if the blood of Jesus Christ is precious because it is the very payment for our sin, it's the only way that I can go to heaven, then you and I ought to consider marriage as that Type of institution that is so honorable before God. It is precious. It is dear. How dare people step in and begin to redefine what God has already defined marriage to be? How important it is that we proclaim? What God says about marriage? What Jesus has reinstituted about marriage and so therefore number one marriage is honorable before God. Marriage is honorable. There ought to be this proper consideration. But number two, there ought to be a proper consideration of the physical relationship. Now I'm going to be just a little careful here tonight in my wording on some things. There ought to be a proper consideration of the physical relationship. Notice in verse number four where it says marriage is honorable in all and the bed undefiled. In other words, the physical relationship within marriage, it is God's way and when it's done God's way and it's done by his methods, it is pure. Everything outside of the bounds of marriage is a perversion. The bed undefiled. Within the proper bounds of marriage, sex and the physical relationship is beautiful, it's fulfilling, it's creative. Outside of the bounds of marriage, it's ugly, destructive, and damning. And how important it is for us to understand that. God said in Genesis 2.18, it is not good for man to be alone. And in most cases, really that companion there is a spouse. I understand sometimes that men often like to get together for certain endeavors. Men like to get together for fishing, for hunting. Men like to get together and go golfing. Men like to get together and play sports. Sometimes there's a companionship there. Ladies, they like to get together and go to the bathroom together, you know? It's funny how they go in a pack over to the restroom. They go shopping together. Uh, they, they, uh, they do certain activities, whatever ladies do. I don't, I don't know, but, uh, sometimes there's that companionship with those that are of the same gender. But may I say that, uh, there can be some companionship that is there, but that's on a, on a limited basis. God has created us with that desire for those of the opposite gender. In fact, the Lord knew what he was doing when he made Eve. He made Eve, and as often been said, he made Eve and not Steve as Adam's marriage partner. Men and women are biologically complementary. Our differences enable us to be able to produce children and to find healthy pleasure in that physical relationship. Those in the Adam and Steve relationships won't produce offspring. and are very frustrating in those partnerships and how sad it is when men and women begin to go off and begin to twist and warp God's whole design. The Bible says that the bed is undefiled. Many Christians who are unfamiliar with the Bible often think different things about this whole relationship. But God has designed this physical relationship as a beautiful thing. And the marriage bid is for certainly undefiled. But the third thing that I'd like to give to you tonight with regards to consideration is there must be a proper consideration of who God is a proper consideration of who God is. In other words, If you and I are going to help keep marriage intact and define what marriage is and establish what marriage is all about, we must have a reverence for God because look at the end of verse four. The Bible says, but, so a change in tone here, but whoremongers and adulterers, God will judge. How sad it is when you can go to people that are just in this world. They're unsaved and they're so consumed by the pleasures of this world and they have such a wrong view of what God has designed for us. But you and I must understand that God is going to judge sinful activity and how imperative it is That you and I understand that within the context of marriage, that physical relationship is beautiful. God calls that physical relationship a one flesh union. Two people becoming one. It's a holy union. But anything outside of that is not a holy union. The devil wants us to go ahead and have physical relationships wherever we can. He wants us to be impure and just go ahead and pleasure, consume ourselves in pleasure. He wants to break our conscience down. He wants to wear out our God consciousness to the point that we don't even know the difference between right or wrong. And that's why God uses men like this to write these verses where it says marriage is honorable and all in the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. fornication, sexual contact, adultery, physical contact with those that are outside of the bounds of marriage. And God has said that these things are forbidden. Galatians 5.19, now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness. Ephesians 5, 3, but fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not be once named among you as become its saints. 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 3, for this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication. Now may I say today that in a day when we're, this day that we live in that people are so consumed in the physical and they're so consumed with everything about these relationships that have nothing even to do with marriage, may I say it is imperative that we as believers live for God and keep our lives pure. Whether you're a teenager or an adult who is married or an adult who's not married, be pure before God and be pure before others. That way that our lives will count before Him. May I say that the push today is so hard against traditional Bible-based definition of marriage. You say, pastor, well, it's happening all over. And yes, it is. It's being pushed in our public schools. You say, I know they're talking about in colleges. Now you can go to various places around our country and you can find curriculum that has been printed and that is being used as low as the kindergarten level to promote homosexuality. You say, is that happening in America? It's happening. That type of stuff is being promoted, and the whole definition of family is being altered. And I'll tell you what, if they are able to get and influence that young generation, think about what's gonna happen when that generation grows old. Why do you think it's imperative that we have a vacation Bible school to help share the gospel of Jesus Christ? Why do you think it's imperative? And I appreciate Julius and Tammy Versilla every Sunday morning running out and taking that van and picking up some boys and girls. And this morning, three boys and girls came on that bus who wouldn't have come otherwise. And praise God they came and they heard a Sunday school lesson and a junior church lesson and they had people that loved on them. I saw the little girl as we were shaking hands, I saw this little girl Riley and I shook her hand and I said, I want you to know something, God loves you and I love you too. Man, you know, kids, they need that. But how much they're being influenced by the things of this world and the push to change and alter the definition of marriage is in the public school setting. It's taking place and being discussed amongst our local and national political figures. And may I say it's important for you and I as believers to come back to, thus saith the Lord. God has defined marriage. And when people begin to want to change that, it is important for us to be the salt of the Earth, the light of the world. And to be able to say this is what God says. This is what I'm for. This is where we stand. I know there's many of you today that are being. Pushed around even within your families. I've met in the last few years now more Christians. Who are having family members? Grandchildren. Who are marrying people of the same gender? May I say no matter what happens around you? Don't lose your convictions. Stand for what's truth. Just because something changes amongst some family members and they do something different doesn't mean that you can go ahead and accommodate and begin to give in. May I say that if the Bible was true when it was written a couple of thousand years ago, it is still true today. Amen. It is still true today. So may we stand strong as a church. I guarantee in these next few years, 10 years, we will have a lot of pushback. With regards to how we define things. May we stand tall. May we not waver on any of these things. But be able to come back to what God says. And have good, strong convictions about it. Let's pray together. Father, thank you for tonight. Thank you for every one of us who are here tonight who have been able to share in the things of the Word of God. And I pray, Father, that indeed our hearts would be touched and that we would be ever mindful of that which you have for us. And tonight, while heads are bowed and eyes are closed and the piano plays in just a moment, I would like to go ahead and just talk to you tonight. There's not really much of an invitation here with regards to what I shared tonight as far as marriage and its definition. Maybe some of you tonight might wanna pray and just be able to say before God, all right, I'm here and I wanna uphold what the Bible says and I believe it. I want to challenge you tonight because there's a number of teenagers here tonight. The Bible says that marriage is honorable and the bed undefiled. May I say tonight it's imperative for teenagers and adults alike to be pure in their lives. Pure. Maybe tonight as a teenager Maybe tonight as an adult, you want to come and pray for your teen. You as a teen want to pray for your life. You want to pray for your grandchildren that they would be pure. Oh, how much I hear about impurity in the lives of young people. How many things are going on where teens are becoming pregnant out of wedlock. and how it alters and changes their life. Oh, can God do things through their life? Yes, He can. He can take up the messed up, broken lives, and He can do something with it, but that was not God's initial design. May I encourage you tonight, if you've got some grandchildren, why don't you come and pray for them, that they would be pure before God. Maybe you as a teen tonight, I want to challenge you as teens, stand for what's right. Don't give in to this world. This world is so sex-crazed. Don't give in to it. Stand for Jesus Christ and do what's right. Father, help us today, in this time, in Jesus' name, amen.