Non-Christian marriage and God

[Colin]

Hi there,
Jesus says in marriage God joins the two together. My question is, does this only work when both parties are believers, or is God also at work when two non-believers, Hindus or something get married? When non-Christians get married they are making vowes to each other, and are clearly different from fornicators etc, but is this only a civil thing, or is God, even though neither believe in him, also active and honoring of their marriage?
God bless, Colin

 

[Brother James]

I believe they are simply following the laws of whatever state or country in which they abide as God as ordained for men to do. Has for what marriage is of God, clearly it is only believers.
Before the priests could go back in the land under Ezra they had to put away thier strange wives and 1 Cor 7 tell us that even the children of the unsaved are unclean. Also, believers are never to marry the unsaved for we are told not to be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.
Asking God to bless that kind of marriage is like asking him to bless sin. Paul gives us instruction in 1Cor 7 on how to deal with an unbelieving spouse if after salvation we find ourselves married to one.
Sola scripture
God bless you

 

[Ransom]

My question is, does this only work when both parties are believers, or is God also at work when two non-believers, Hindus or something get married?

For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. (Rom. 2:14-16, emphasis added)

When the pagans marry each other, it shows that there is still a tiny knowledge of God within them.

Furthermore, if you read the Bible, you never see God condemning the pagan nations for doing the right things. He condemns all sorts of deviant sexual behaviour, but not marriage.

 

[Bartimaeus]

Colin,
Case in point....Ahab and Jezebel. Man and Woman and according to the scriptures - husband and wife. God has always recognized pagan marriages throughout the scriptures. If a pagan man promises himself to one woman and breaks that promise he is at the very least a liar. All men are sinners and all sin will be accounted for. What our brother is citing above is and was for the children of Israel. You must be careful on this site and "eat the fish and spit out the bones". There is alot of "Bones" on the BB.
Thanks -----Bart
......pray hard and squeeze the trigger gently.

 

[rjprince]

Kind of tough to argue that Adam and Eve were believers in ANY sense of the word! God joins a man and a woman when they get married, it is creation order and provides for procreation. Marriage is God's idea and His plan.

Whether involving believers or unbelievers is not relevant to whether marriage WAS and IS of God. Paul does clearly state that believers are not to marry unbelievers.

 

[Gina B]

I'm not sure how solid this is since I never really thought about it that much, but I believe it's marriage that is honorable, not the people in it. I believe God created it (marriage), it is good. What God has blessed is marriage, not the two people or any couple getting married, as God isn't likely to bless an unscriptural marriage. (ie a believer marrying a heathen)

The state is secondary. I believe you can have a valid marriage in God's eyes without the state involved whatsoever, but that's another topic, yet brought up because it helps show how strongly I believe it's a God thing.

As far as working in a marriage, that's something we don't know. He obviously works in marriages where one spouse is saved and the other isn't, but more likely if the saved spouse becomes a believer after the marriage, or if done in sin, has repented. I've never seen scriptures on it. Maybe someone else has?

 

[standingfirminChrist]

The Adam and Eve argument is a weak argument. God joined them together. He made Eve for Adam. He brought Eve to Adam.

Adam and Eve cannot be compared to men who go chasing after women and marrying them. Nor to women who chase after men to marry them.

Many times man steps out before God and marries the woman that God did not intend for him to marry. God did not join that couple. Their own fleshly desires did. Genesis 2:24 does not applie here.

 

[Petrel]

Christians get married without thinking enough about it too, and that doesn't mean their marriages do not exist.

 

[Marcia]

Marriage (the joining of a man with a woman) was instituted by God, so whether people are believers or not, they are participating in something God created when they get marrried. It is something God gave to man -- part of his plan for humanity and part of his common grace (the intimacy and love that can come from marriage).

I think marriage all reflects a creator God just as creation does, because it reflects a relational God of love. Not everyone sees this, but it is one of the pieces of evidence God has of his existence.