Pastor Bell's Words To Live By

For the next couple of blogs I want to ask the question, is marriage still the best option for humanity and for the African Diaspora in particular?

A few weeks ago I asked my grand nephew when was he going to marry the mother of his young child. He said to me, “he did not believe in marriage” and that he was still living with her and looking after his child. Within my own wider family structure, there are many children produced by one man and many different women.

It this unique for my family and where does the notion that I don’t need to marry actually come from?

Firstly, let me quote Fredrick Douglas, who said, “in slavery there is no such thing as family” therefore having children and leaving them to fend for themselves was commonplace. During the period of African chattel enslavement circa 1500-1838 (1865 in America), it was illegal for slaves to be taught to read and write, to have any liaison with a ‘white woman’ or to legally marry.

The legality of marriage pans into insignificance if one does not understand the underlying principle and the premise of marriage.

The biblical narrative of Genesis 1:27, 2:23-24 & 5:2 sets out the basis on which the institution of marriage is to be built. Jesus Christ confirmed and re-iterated this, as did the apostle Paul in their New Testament pronouncements (Matt 19:4-6, Eph 5:22).

Marriage is the sexual (one flesh), emotional, psychological, financial, spiritual and cultural union between one man and one woman. If you have had sex with more than one person other than your lifetime partner (wife/husband), either before or after your legal marriage, you are an adulterer and need deliverance. The sexual bond creates a ‘soul tie’, which indelibly links one individual to the other spiritually. If this tie is not broken, then issues will appear in future relationships. [more about soul ties and their impact later].

Marriage is a God idea not just a good idea and is for life not just for a few Christmases!

Read the scriptures quoted above. Get a copy of my book from http://www.hdr-ministries.co.uk