Daniel J. Sparks

  • An unbroken Church

    Lots of folks believe the Church is broken these days. Some of the words they use to describe it: messy, a failure, irrelevant, archaic, and more along this line. And those descriptions come from people who identify themselves as Christians.

    I don’t know what church they’re talking about, but it’s certainly not the Church founded by Christ. After all, he speaks of his Church as a spotless bride, a pure virgin waiting for her beloved to take her to the wedding feast.

    Sure, men are flawed. Men have failed. Men have used God’s gifts in perverted and sinful ways. But the Lord’s Church is unbroken because it is founded upon Christ. The Church doesn’t rise and fall with sinners. It triumphs because of Christ. The Church isn’t made by men and can’t be destroyed by men. The Church is animated by Christ.

    Those who think the Church is broken have truly only discovered their own brokenness. They are broken by the sin of pride and selfishness, the sins that beset all men. Quite easily, they project their own sins upon the Church, claiming that there’s no right way to worship, no perfect way to follow God, no way to overcome the brokenness. And in the latter, they are right: there is no way that men can overcome their brokenness. Instead, they must be overcome by God.

    The Spirit of the Lord still leads his Church. Christ said quite plainly that the gates of Hell would not prevail against his bride. The Church isn’t broken, men are.

  • The darkest day in American history

    Genesis 1:26-31.

    Forty Long Years

    Perhaps you’ve heard the old saw that goes like this. A man turned to his friend and said, “Do you know that the two greatest problems in our country today are ignorance and apathy?” To this his friend replied, “I don’t know and I don’t care.”

    That is, perhaps, a most fitting assessment, and especially on this day. This day marks, among all others, the sins and failures of mankind. In this regard, it is not unlike other days. But this day marks a great darkness, a great evil, a great forwardness, a rebellion of the hearts of men against their Creator. This day marks what is most assuredly the darkest day of all in our American history.

    Forty long years were God’s people in the wilderness after Moses led them out of Egypt. In fits and starts they followed him and obeyed his commandments. Sometimes, they honored him; sometimes, they complained against him, accusing him of injustice. At least once, they turned to worship a false God.

    Likewise, for forty long years, the Church in America has largely ignored the darkness of the murder of innocents in our land. Too many Christians sit comfortably in their churches without regard to the blood of the unborn being shed around them every day. In fits and starts has the Church, too, honored the Lord’s commandments. At times, Christians have spoken plainly of God’s truth and honored him in deeds. At other times, and in critical times, we have preferred our own convenience.

    Those of you who are older than I may remember the political struggle over abortion in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. The argument was that abortion was a medical necessity. A handful of states began to legalize abortion. In 1973, the Supreme Court declared it to be legally acceptable to murder children in the womb. Since that time, the argument for medical necessity has virtually disappeared, while we kill children in the womb for the sake of our convenience.

    For 40 years, the courts have declared acceptable that which God has condemned. Since 1973, more than 50 million children have been murdered in the womb. Our chief executive, before he took office, stated that he was in favor of killing children after they were born. (source) This is the state of our nation after 40 years. We have embraced a culture of death.

    The culture of death brings about disrespect for human life across the breadth of our society. You may remember the death of Terri Schiavo in 2005. She was physically and mentally disabled, and her husband sought to have her put to death because she was an inconvenience to him. A state court ordered that food and water be withheld from her. After fourteen days without food or water, Terri died of dehydration. This is the culture of death we have in this country.

    Every day, the disabled and elderly are neglected because they are inconvenient. I think of the nursing home where I lead service each month, of how many of the elderly are dumped there by their families. They are abandoned because they are inconvenient. Children shuttle off their parents to a place where they can die because it’s inconvenient to deal with them. This is the culture of death.

    Murder Condemned, Life Affirmed

    Abortion is an old sin that has been with us since the early days of mankind. It was spoken of in the Old Testament. References to it have been found in ancient texts.

    Elsewhere in the book of Genesis, the Lord said unto Noah, “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man” (Genesis 9:6). Here the Lord made plain to Noah that the life of every man is sacred. It is sacred because man bears God’s image.

    From the time of the early church, abortion was condemned as murder. In the Didache, the oldest known catechetical document of the Church, written sometime around 100 A.D and intended as a summary of the Apostles’ teaching, are these words: “You shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill one who has been born” ([tooltip tip=”Didache, c. 80-140, as quoted in A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs, edited by David W. Bercot (Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson, 1998), 2.”]source[/tooltip]). We see that this sin has been around for a long time, and it is practiced with impunity in our own time. The Church has always looked upon this act as an offense against both God and man.

    Tertullian, in about 210 A.D., wrote this, “Life begins with conception, for we contend that the soul also begins from conception. Life takes its commencement at the same place and time that the soul does” ([tooltip tip=”Tertullian, as quoted in A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs, edited by David W. Bercot (Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson, 1998), 172.”]source[/tooltip]). That is to say, at the moment when God causes two cells to combine–in that moment when he creates the body–he also animates the body with his own breath. Into a man fashioned from clay, the Father breathed life. Therefore, we honor life, not only because it came from that first receiving of God’s breath, but also because it is that continued receiving from God, that continued imprint of his image upon men.

    Christ affirmed the value of mankind throughout his ministry. He did so when he declared them to be made whole by speaking words of healing or laying his hands on them. He did so when he called them to repentance so that they might be saved from destruction. He did so when he said, “Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14).

    Likewise, when he said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10), he was affirming the value of life. He was affirming the value of human life in his eyes, both the life of that first breath and the new life that comes through the saving work of Christ our Savior. This is everlasting life given to those who repent of their wickedness and follow after Christ.

    Instead of taking life, Jesus gave his life, saying, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). He showed the value of men in God’ eyes: not that men are worthy, but God has made them worthy through his first Creation and his New Creation.

    Made in God’s Image

    What does it mean to be made in God’s image? That has been an important question throughout human history, and it is no less important to us now. The answer to this question have tremendous implications for our understanding of God, of man, of how God has revealed himself to man, and, especially, our understanding of Jesus, the incarnate God, God in human flesh.

    In seeking to explain this impression of the image of God upon the soul of man, we use a variety of terms. We speak of being made in God’s likeness, made in his image. We talk of the sacredness of human life, the dignity of men. The American Founders spoke of it in the Declaration of Independence in those words that are familiar to most of us: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

    We speak of the inalienable nature of the right to life. This means that the right to life is inherent to our identity as humans. God made us such that this right is essential to our being. This right can neither be taken from us nor can it be given up; it is inalienable–we cannot be separated from it. This is the value that God gives mankind. We have value because he has deigned to leave his fingerprints in the clay with which he made man and woman.

    What might we learn from the passage we read in Genesis 1? Firstly, that God has given man dominion. He gave mankind authority over every creature, every creeping, flying, or swimming thing. He gave man authority over the trees and other plants.

    Insofar as this authority of dominion is practiced by man with uprightness, he reflects the image of God. Just as the Lord rightly exercises his authority over all things, so man rightly exercises his authority over those things placed under his control. Man may use the things of Creation for good purposes, just as the Lord has made them all for his good purpose. As God has exercised his creative power, man may exercise the power of creativity bestowed upon him by the Creator.

    Secondly, we bear the image of God in our moral nature. That is, we are formed according to his character. The Lord has endowed each man with conscience, with some ability to discern right and wrong, to seek goodness. Certainly this desire for goodness, this ability to discern what is pleasing to God, has been marred by sin. We see with dimmed eyes; we stumble in the darkness because we have shut out the light. Our consciences are seared by sinfulness such that our minds are faulty and our wills given to that which is evil. Certainly, our natural tendency is toward sin and all that is displeasing toward the Lord.

    Yet, however dimly we may see, and however vainly we may grasp at goodness without the illumination of God’s Holy Spirit, mankind is not entirely divorced from the goodness of God. Because of the mercy of the Lord, it is this indelible likeness of the Father upon us that gives us any inclination to do that which is good. It was of this impression of the Father’s character on us that Christ spoke when he said to his disciples, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (Matthew 7:11).

    Take Up the Tools at Your Hand

    How do we address this sin of the devaluing of human life? How do we act in such ways as to affirm life?

    Some years ago, I was seeking work through a temporary staffing agency. Reviewing the agency’s advertisements for jobs, I discovered one that was a bit cryptic. As I carefully read over the words, it became apparent that the temp agency was seeking a nurse to work in the abortion clinic in town. I spoke with the local manager of the service, who referred me to the corporate office. I spoke with the president of the company, who dismissed my concerns about the murder of the innocent, stating that they were supporting a business engaged in legal activity.

    I called friends in the area and asked them to pray and to participate in an effort to stop the supply of nurses to the abortion clinic. After several days of standing on the sidewalk in front of the employment agency, greeting the folks who came in and out of that business and explaining to them what sort of services it supplied, we were able to impact the abortion industry in our town. People who sought help in finding a job through this agency were shocked to learn that it was working for the abortion industry in this way. Some learned for the first time that an abortion clinic even existed in the area.

    Eventually, we were able to have an impact on the staffing of the clinic, and its hours were reduced after the prayers and faithful witness of many in the pro-life movement. Its sister clinic in another city was shut down by the state.

    I think also of my friend who heads a ministry dedicated to teaching Ukrainian orphans about Christ and showing them compassion. He and his wife help coordinate the adoption of scores of children each year. These are children who would be abandoned; those who make it to adulthood often turn to prostitution and other crime to support themselves. Now, instead, they have the love of adopted parents. They have the love of Christ shown to them through the acts of men and women who understand the value of human life.

    These are only some of the things that we can do when we take up the tools that are at hand. Perhaps the most important and the most expedient thing you can do to honor the sanctity of life is to teach it to your children. We so often spend time seeking magic solutions that we neglect the work before us. We do not live in a fairy land; there are no magic beans. Let us teach our children about the sanctity of human life.

    Men who are not taught love as children will seldom love when full grown. We must speak the message of truth in our homes and in our churches. We must teach children about the dignity of all men. We should teach them how we are fearfully and wonderfully made–by God, in his image. We should teach them how to love others, that humiliation and ridicule do not show our appreciation of human worth. We should teach them that children are a gift from the Lord, not an inconvenience to be avoided or disposed of. We should teach them that God will hold us accountable for all our deeds, both good and bad. We should teach them that, in honoring the value of men, we honor the Lord.

    Let us not forget prayer, that most important discipline of Christian life. Pray for the safety of children in the womb. Pray for the hearts of men in authority, that they will respect the value of life. Pray for doctors and nurses, that they will seek to preserve life, not to destroy it. Pray for all who suffer from abortion, the childless mothers and fathers who need the forgiveness of the Father. Pray for those in the nursing homes, the elderly and the disabled, that they will be comforted by the Holy Spirit in their moments of loneliness and distress.

    Take up the tools that are at your hand and work in the Lord’s kingdom. Work to affirm the sacredness of human life. Work to glorify God by honoring his Creation.

    Embracing Life

    In exercising dominion, we do not seek dominion over others. We do not seek to control them, to limit their freedom, to make them slaves. All of these things attack their dignity and show that we have no value for them. We do not dominate or subjugate others or murder them. We are to exercise dominion in goodness, in all that pleases the Lord. When we offend the dignity of men, we offend the majesty of God.

    We may embrace the fullness of life by following after Christ. We show this by speaking and acting in accord with his word. We show this by affirming human life in all its forms, in all its locations, in all its conditions. We show our reverence for God by our respect for men–men who are created in the image of deity.

    May we honor all men and so honor God.

  • Bible studies provide support for Soldiers and Families

    While in Afghanistan, the 2nd Engineer Battalion Bible studies proved to be a relief to Soldiers during their tour, and now the battalion is bringing those studies back home.

    Chaplain Daniel Sparks started the battalion Bible studies before Soldiers deployed for Afghanistan in December 2008.

    Read more at http://www.missileranger.com/artman/publish/article_5631.shtml

  • Everything you need for an epic Easter

    In its bid to part consumers with their money, Walmart has produced a television commercial advertising Easter merchandise. The ad makes reference to an Easter meal, an Easter basket, Easter eggs, and running shoes. The ad suggests that, with these items, kids can get ahead of the pack at an Easter egg hunt. The message of the ad is summed up by these words: “Only Walmart has low prices every day on everything you need for an epic Easter.”

    In recent times, the term epic has come to be used to describe all sorts of things. From books and movies to the names of rather mundane churches, from ice cream to running and all sorts of human activities, epic is a widespread adjective these days. Apparently it also applies to Easter egg hunts.

    And, apart from the bastardization of the English language, all of that might be okay. But if we think spiral-sliced hams, plastic eggs, and Starter running shoes are what make Easter epic, we’ve fallen a long way from reality.

    Shortly before he was crucified, Christ prayed these words to God the Father (John 17:3): “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” Weighed against eternal life, fake eggs and juicy hams don’t seem important.

    Jesus Christ’s resurrection from the dead was and is what makes Easter epic. Only Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross and his defeat of death and the grave can effect eternal life for mankind. The epic story of all time is the love and mercy of God shown in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

    To learn more about having your own epic Easter, drop me a line.

  • An ordered life

    From time to time, every man must pause for a moment of introspection. Is the life he’s living purposeful?

    Socrates stated that “The unexamined life is not worth living.” One tends to agree, but with the understanding that an unexamined life is unworthy not because it is unexamined but because, by being unexamined, its sins go without repentance. C. S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity,

    When a man is getting better he understands more and more clearly the evil that is still left in him. When a man is getting worse he understands his own badness less and less. A moderately bad man knows he is not very good: a thoroughly bad man thinks he is all right.

    The world in which we now exist sets great store in entertainment and fleeting moments of ecstasy. The Christian must set great store in that which pleases our Lord. Only in doing so may he enjoy the created world, his relationships with others, and the pleasures of earthly life. To have a life unordered is to never truly know pleasure. The malcontent shall never have satisfaction until he gives up control to God.

    Introspection is often accompanied by uncertainty or pain. On rarer occasions, it may come with a chance and sidewise glimpse of the ordered life exposed in someone else. It is only with humility that we may sincerely seek to “heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation”. And such humility comes with the examination of self in light of the majesty of God.

  • Liberty requires capitalism

    A friend shared this brief cartoon-like video with me today. In short order, it gets to the point: free markets are a natural and requisite outgrowth of a free society. Capitalism is the practical application of liberty. The socialism, communism, and totalitarianism espoused by national leaders today are only attempts to destroy the liberty of a free society. This short from 1948 gives us much to consider about our current state of affairs. May we shore up the foundations of liberty by revoking state control of our markets.

  • Christmas as a day of worship

    It has become my tradition to attend church service on Christmas Day. This is a tradition generally abandoned in our present time, sadly. How can I not take the time to worship the Lord on the day we Christians mark as the celebration of the birth of Christ? I encourage you to take your family to church this Christmas Day so that you may give thanks for the incarnation of the Son.

    Likewise, it is also my practice to decorate my house for Christmas on Christmas Day. These decorations are left for the twelve days of Christmastide. This is another of those practices that has been largely forsaken in our time. However, it is a practice that was formerly common throughout the Christian West. Marking the seasons of the church year helps keep life–and the life of Christ–in proper perspective. Being careful to celebrate each holy day in its place, and its fullness, aids in maintaining a hallowed life.

    C.S. Lewis wrote the following brief comments about the Christian holy day of Christmas.cslewis

    “What Christmas Means to Me”

    Three things go by the name of Christmas. One is a religious festival. This is important and obligatory for Christians; but as it can be of no interest to anyone else, I shall naturally say no more about it here. The second (it has complex historical connections with the first, but we needn’t go into them) is a popular holiday, an occasion for merry-making and hospitality. If it were my business to have a “view” on this, I should say that I much approve of merry-making. But what I approve of much more is everybody minding his own business. I see no reason why I should volunteer views as to how other people should spend their own money in their own leisure among their own friends. It is highly probable that they want my advice on such matters as little as I want theirs. But the third thing called Christmas is unfortunately everyone’s business. [Continue Reading]

    “Exmas and Christmas”

    Beyond this there lies in the ocean, turned towards the west and the north, the island of Niatirb which Hecataeus indeed declares to be the same size and shape as Sicily, but it is larger, and though in calling it triangular a man would not miss the mark. It is densely inhabited by men who wear clothes not very different from other barbarians who occupy the north- western parts of Europe though they do not agree with them in language. These islanders, surpassing all the men of whom we know in patience and endurance, use the following customs.

    In the middle of winter when fogs and rains most abound they have a great festival which they call Exmas, and for fifty days they prepare for it in the fashion I shall describe. First of all, every citizen is obliged to send to each of his friends and relations a square piece of hard paper stamped with a picture, which in their speech is called an Exmas-card. [Continue Reading]

  • St. Augustine on marriage

    From Of the Good of Marriage.

    1. Forasmuch as each man is a part of the human race, and human nature is something social, and has for a great and natural good, the power also of friendship; on this account God willed to create all men out of one, in order that they might be held in their society not only by likeness of kind, but also by bond of kindred. Therefore the first natural bond of human society is man and wife. Nor did God create these each by himself, and join them together as alien by birth: but he created the one out of the other, setting a sign also of the power of the union in the side, whence she was drawn, was formed. For they are joined one to another side by side, who walk together, and look together whither they walk. Then follows the connection of fellowship in children….

    4. There is this further, that in that very debt which married persons pay one to another … they owe faith alike one to another. Unto which faith the Apostle allows so great right, as to call it “power,” saying, “The woman has not power of her own body, but the man; again in like manner also the man has not power of his own body, but the woman.” But the violation of this faith is called adultery, when either by instigation of one’s own lust, or by consent of lust of another, there is sexual intercourse on either side with another against the marriage compact: and thus faith is broken, which, even in things that are of the body, and mean, is a great good of the soul: and therefore it is certain that it ought to be preferred even to the health of the body, wherein even this life of ours is contained. …..

    6. ….. Therefore married persons owe one another not only the faith of their sexual intercourse itself, for the begetting of children, which is the first fellowship of the human kind in this mortal state; but also, in a way, a mutual service of sustaining one another’s weakness, in order to shun unlawful intercourse: so that, although perpetual continence be pleasing to one of them, he may not, save with consent of the other. For thus far also, “The wife has not power of her own body, but the man; in like manner also the man has not power of his own body, but the woman.” …..

    8. “Honorable,” therefore, “is marriage in all, and the bed undefiled.” …..

    11. ….. But now what shall we say against the most plain speech of the Apostle, saying, “Let her do what she will; she sins not, if she be married;” and, “If you shall have taken a wife, you have not sinned: and, if a virgin shall have been married, she sins not.” …..

    18. For what food is unto the conservation of the man, this sexual intercourse is unto the conservation of the race: and both are not without carnal delight: which yet being modified, and by restraint of temperance reduced unto the use after nature, cannot be lust. But what unlawful food is in the supporting of life, this sexual intercourse of fornication or adultery is in the seeking of a family. And what unlawful food is in luxury of belly and throat, this unlawful intercourse is in lust that seeks not a family. ….. It is better to die without children, than to seek a family from unlawful intercourse. But from whatever source men be born, if they follow not the vices of their parents, and worship God aright, they shall be honest and safe. For the seed of man, from out what kind of man soever, is the creation of God, and it shall fare ill with those who use it ill, yet shall not, itself at any time be evil. But as the good sons of adulterers are no defense of adulteries, so the evil sons of married persons are no charge against marriage. …..

    24. Marriage, I say, is a good, and may be, by sound reason, defended against all calumnies. …..

  • Martin Luther on marriage

    From The Estate of Marriage.

    Part One.

    … From this ordinance of creation God has himself exempted three categories of men, saying in Matthew 19[:12], “There are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.” Apart from these three groups, let no man presume to be without a spouse. And whoever does not fall within one of these three categories should not consider anything except the estate of marriage. Otherwise it is simply impossible for you to remain righteous. For the Word of God which created you and said, “Be fruitful and multiply,” abides and rules within you; you can by no means ignore it, or you will be bound to commit heinous sins without end.

    … No vow of any youth or maiden is valid before God, except that of a person in one of the three categories which God alone has himself excepted. Therefore, priests, monks, and nuns are duty-bound to forsake their vows whenever they find that God’s ordinance to produce seed and to multiply is powerful and strong within them. They have no power by any authority, law, command, or vow to hinder this which God has created within them. If they do hinder it, however, you may be sure that they will not remain pure but inevitably besmirch themselves with secret sins or fornication. For they are simply incapable of resisting the word and ordinance of God within them. Matters will take their course as God has ordained.

    The third category consists of those spiritually rich and exalted persons, bridled by the grace of God, who are equipped for marriage by nature and physical capacity and nevertheless voluntarily remain celibate. These put it this way, “I could marry if I wish, I am capable of it but it does not attract me. I would rather work on the kingdom of heaven, i.e., the gospel, and beget spiritual children.” Such persons are rare, not one in a thousand, for they are a special miracle of God. No one should venture on such a life unless he be especially called by God, like Jeremiah [16:2], or unless he finds God’s grace to be so powerful within him that the divine injunction, “Be fruitful and multiply,” has no place in him.

    The eighth impediment is a solemn vow, for example where someone has taken the vow of chastity, either in or out of the cloister. Here I offer this advice: if you would like to take a wise vow, then vow not to bite off your own nose; you can keep that vow. If you have already taken the monastic vow, however, then, as you have just heard, you should yourself consider whether you belong in those three categories which God has singled out. If you do not feel that you belong there, then let the vows and the cloister go. Renew your natural companionships without delay and get married, for your vow is contrary to God and has no validity, and say, “I have promised that which I do not have and which is not mine.”

    Part Three

    ….. I will pass over in silence the matter of the conjugal duty, the granting and the withholding of it, since some filth-preachers have been shameless enough in this matter to rouse our disgust. Some of them designate special times for this, and exclude holy nights and women who are pregnant. I will leave this as St. Paul left it when he said in I Corinthians 7[:9], “It is better to marry than to burn”; and again [in v. 2], “To avoid immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.” Although Christian married folk should not permit themselves to be governed by their bodies in the passion of lust, as Paul writes to the Thessalonians [I Thess. 4:5], nevertheless each one must examine himself so that by his abstention he does not expose himself to the danger of fornication and other sins. Neither should he pay any attention to holy days or work days, or other physical considerations.

    In order that we may not proceed as blindly, but rather conduct ourselves in a Christian manner, hold fast first of all to this, that man and woman are the work of God. Keep a tight rein on your heart and your lips; do not criticise his work, or call that evil which he himself has called good. He knows better than you yourself what is good and to your benefit, as he says in Genesis 1 [2:18], “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” There you see that he calls the woman good, a helper. If you deem it otherwise, it is certainly your own fault, you neither understand nor believe God’s word and work. See, with this statement of God one stops the mouths of all those who criticise and censure marriage.

    For this reason young men should be on their guard when they read pagan books and hear the common complaints about marriage, lest they inhale poison. For the estate of marriage does not set well with the devil, because it is God’s good will and work. This is why the devil has contrived to have so much shouted and written in the world against the institution of marriage, to frighten men away from this godly life and entangle them in a web of fornication and secret sins. Indeed, it seems to me that even Solomon, although he amply censures evil women, was speaking against just such blasphemers when he said in Proverbs 18 [:22], “He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favour from the Lord.” What is this good thing and this favour? Let us see.

    The world says of marriage, “Brief is the joy, lasting the bitterness.” Let them say what they please; what God wills and creates is bound to be a laughingstock to them. The kind of joy and pleasure they have outside of wedlock they will be most acutely aware of, I suspect, in their consciences. To recognise the estate of marriage is something quite different from merely being married. He who is married but does not recognise the estate of marriage cannot continue in wedlock without bitterness, drudgery, and anguish; he will inevitably complain and blaspheme like the pagans and blind, irrational men. But he who recognises the estate of marriage will find therein delight, love, and joy without end; as Solomon says, “He who finds a wife finds a good thing,” etc. [Prov. 18:22].

    Now the ones who recognise the estate of marriage are those who firmly believe that God himself instituted it, brought husband and wife together, and ordained that they should beget children and care for them. For this they have God’s word, Genesis 1 [:28], and they can be certain that he does not lie. They can therefore also be certain that the estate of marriage and everything that goes with it in the way of conduct, works, and suffering is pleasing to God. Now tell me, how can the heart have greater good, joy, and delight than in God, when one is certain that his estate, conduct, and work is pleasing to God?

    ….. No one can have real happiness in marriage who does not recognise in firm faith that this estate together with all its works, however insignificant, is pleasing to God and precious in his sight. ….

    ….. Whatever God calls good must of necessity always be good, unless men do not recognise it or perversely misuse it.

    ….. For if special grace does not exempt a person, his nature must and will compel him to produce seed and to multiply. If this does not occur within marriage, how else can it occur except in fornication or secret sins? But, they say, suppose I am neither married nor immoral, and force myself to remain continent? Do you not hear that restraint is impossible without the special grace? For God’s word does not admit of restraint; neither does it lie when it says, “Be fruitful and multiply” [Gen. 1:28]. You can neither escape nor restrain yourself from being fruitful and multiplying; it is God’s ordinance and takes its course.

    But the greatest good in married life, that which makes all suffering and labour worth while, is that God grants offspring and commands that they be brought up to worship and serve him. In all the world this is the noblest and most precious work, because to God there can be nothing dearer than the salvation of souls. Now since we are all duty bound to suffer death, if need be, that we might bring a single soul to God, you can see how rich  the estate of marriage is in good works. God has entrusted to its bosom souls begotten of its own body, on whom it can lavish all manner of Christian works. Most certainly father and mother are apostles, bishops, and priests to their children, for it is they who make them acquainted with the gospel. In short, there is no greater or nobler authority on earth than that of parents over their children, for this authority is both spiritual and temporal. Whoever teaches the gospel to another is truly his apostle and bishop. Mitre and staff and great estates indeed produce idols, but teaching the gospel produces apostles and bishops. See therefore how good and great is God’s work and ordinance!

    ….. One should not regard any estate as better in the sight of God than the estate of marriage. In a worldly sense celibacy is probably better, since it has fewer cares and anxieties. This is true, however, not for its own sake but in order that the celibate may better be able to preach and care for God’s word, as St. Paul says in I Corinthians 7 [:32-34]. It is God’s word and the preaching which make celibacy, such as that of Christ and of Paul, better than the estate of marriage. In itself, however, the celibate life is far inferior.

    To sum the matter up: whoever finds himself unsuited to the celibate life should see to it right away that he has something to do and to work at; then let him strike out in God’s name and get married. …..

  • Martin Luther on marriage

    From Table-Talk (“Of Marriage and Celibacy”).

    ….. But neither God’s ordinance, nor the gracious presence of children, the fruit of matrimony, moves the ungodly world, which beholds only the temporal difficulties and troubles of matrimony, but sees not the great treasure that is hid therein. …. Let the contemners and rejecters of matrimony go hang … who recognise not marriage, but live all together like animals … [DCCXX.]

    ….. None, indeed, should be compelled to marry; the matter should be left to each man’s conscience, for bride-love may not be forced. God has said: “It is not good that the man should be alone;” and St. Paul compares the church to a spouse, or bride and a bridegroom. …. [DCCXXI.]

    ….. A woman is, or at least should be, a friendly, courteous, and merry companion in life, whence they are named, by the Holy Ghost, house-honours, the honour and ornament of the house, and inclined to tenderness, for thereunto are they chiefly created, to bear children, and be the pleasure, joy, and solace of their husbands. [DCCXXVI.]

    There is no greater plague in this life than a morose and unchaste wife. Solomon says, that to be married to a woman one dislikes, is the worst of calamities. [DCCXXIX.]

    ‘Tis a grand thing for a married pair to live in perfect union, but the devil rarely permits this. When they are apart, they cannot endure the separation, and when they are together, they cannot endure the always seeing one another. …. Married people must assiduously pray against these assaults of the devil. I have seen marriages where, at first, husband and wife seemed as though they would eat one another up: in six months they have separated in mutual disgust. ‘Tis the devil inspires this evanescent ardour, in order to divert the parties from prayer. [DCCXXXII.]

    He who has an old, spiteful, quarrelsome, sickly wife, may fairly reckon himself in purgatory. [DCCXL.]