Books on marriage will continue to appear on bookshelves as long as we live and this has a lot to do with the challenges of this institution to the sustenance of mankind. Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage by Kenneth E. Hagin provides an exhaustive study of marriage in the Christian fashion.

As a Christian, you probably are aware of the law that says a person who is divorced for any reason except sexual immorality should not get married again as such a person will be living in adultery. This subject is addressed with practical cases in chapter one. The writer by the virtue of his long pastoral experience enumerated different scenarios and reasons that lead to separation of married couples. He compared Jesus’s teaching (Matt 19) and Paul’s teaching (1 Cor. 7) on marriage and addresses the issue of divorce and how it affects one’s faith.

He mentioned a way to manage this challenge which is through the lens of divine love. People who get divorced are likely living a different life from the one God wants us to lead hence they could easily give up on their choice of a partner. He emphasizes the fact that people may actually get divorced, re-marry and their marriage will be recognized by God. A mark of recognition is the baptism of the Holy Spirit which the writer alludes to with several examples. Another point of note is that people can repent anytime and God will accept you and your marriage so far it is patterned in the way he wants.

He went on to discuss God’s ideal marriage using Ephesians 5:22-33 as his major text. You probably have read that text and understood its major points but one thing is clear as revealed by the writer, God’s idea of marriage is bound around his word. The writer emphasizes that “genuine” Christians must get married to Christians (not church goers) to enjoy the blessings of marriage. Marriage is a union based on love and relationships should be cultivated based on an overwhelming desire to please God and build Godly homes.

In suggesting how intending couples should court, the writer discussed four areas of contention that must be addressed for one to have a successful marriage. These contentions are based on religion, sex, money and children. According to him, many people who fail to address these challenges before marriage are often left with no choice but to address it or go their separate ways when they eventually marry. Also, he advise that people should not rush into marriage no matter how dedicated the partner is to church activities. Partners should date for about six months to a year so as to get to know each other well. In other words, it is best to have a broken courtship than a broken marriage.

Lastly, he discussed life in the home. This chapter addresses the challenge of day to day living for every family. A major emphasis in this chapter is loving your spouse and children the way God would want you to. Men should love their wives, women should submit to their husbands and children should respect their parents. Men should do well to assist their wives, women should mind the home and children should obey their parents. The writer expresses a warning here that words alone cannot work as actions go a long way to determine how things will turn out eventually. The place of personal example cannot be substituted as children take after what their parents do rather than what they say.

The marriage institution is facing a lot of challenges today and people are becoming skeptical about the institution. Thus, one should be prepared to educate one’s mind so as to have a model marriage. A Christian has no reason to live like one in the world hence must emulate the teachings of the word of God on marriage. The future of marriage is a desire to express divine love towards your spouse and bring up your children in the way of God.