Marriage Compared to Christ's Love

It wasn’t until recently that I finally figured out why marriage is compared to the love of Christ.  I never truly understood that.  Now I know why pastors read certain Scriptures at weddings, and compare the newlyweds love to the love of Christ. 

I discovered this a couple months ago when I began to feel completely cared for and loved by my boyfriend, no matter how moody or unloving I was.  After five and a half years of dating, Brian and I have been through so much, and he has loved me through it all.  He has loved me through my mood swings, my crazy emotions, my insanity, my indecisiveness, and my downright nastiness.  He forgives me for everything wrong I have ever said or done.  It amazes me he has stuck around for this long, and that his love for me has increased, and not decreased. He loves me even when I don’t deserve his love.

Christ’s love is unconditional.  He loves us no matter what we do or how we act.  He forgives us for our repetitive sins, and treats us like we never did anything wrong. We don’t deserve His love, but He gives it freely!

Here are some verses that had a great impact on me while thinking about God’s unending love for His children. 

-          Jeremiah 31:3 KJV- “…Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love.” 

o   The dictionary’s definition of “everlasting” is the following: “lasting forever, eternal; lasting or continuing for an indefinitely long time; incessant, constantly recurring.”  God promises us in this verse that His love for us will never end! His love will last for all eternity, which my mind cannot even begin to comprehend!

-          Romans 8:35, 38-39 KJV- “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” 

o   How amazing are these verses?! We are reassured that absolutely NOTHING can separate us from God’s love.  His love doesn’t fade over time. His love doesn’t end after hard times.  His love doesn’t even end after our death.  Nothing can tear us away from our Lord and His love for us.

Marriage is a lifetime commitment to love your spouse unconditionally.  Your love is meant to grow with time.  Your love is meant to bring you through hard times and strengthen your relationship. Nothing is meant to tear your marriage apart.  On your wedding day, you promise to love your spouse, and only your spouse, completely for the rest of your life. 

As we approach Valentine’s Day, I am reminded of how blessed I am already, in my dating relationship, to have a boyfriend who loves me unconditionally. I am excited to see how God’s love shines evidently through our future marriage. But it is even more exciting to serve a Savior whose love is absolutely, without a doubt, everlasting.  He our Constant, our Companion, and all we need!  Thank you, Jesus, for loving me even when I don’t deserve your love!

Dedicated to my loving boyfriend of 5 ½ years. Happy Valentine’s Day, Brian!