Theology of Weddings

[Coram Deo]

Ok, Here is a topic I have been thinking about lately and the other thread about weddings made me think of it more... Here are the questions..

Aside from the Government requirements that one must get a marriage lic.
Lets leave out all governmental requirements for the moment...

What is Scripturally required for one to be considered married?
I understand that a covenant is required by two consenting adults to be covenanted together for life in Holy Matrimony.

But what else is required?

Is a pastor required, scripturally for a marriage?
Must it be public performed?
What else would be considered required and Why?


What if two consenting adults (of course man and woman) decide to covenant together and take vows to one another to hold each other in Matrimony till death to them part and consumate the marriage with sexual union privately without a pastor or public performance or "consider now" without a state lic.? Are they Married? Are they bound together, Or do they Sin?

What saith Ye?

 

[tdowns]

I always wondered that.....

I don't think you can take the Government out of it....I think, if you lived in a culture, that had zero marriage requirements, then, you would be Married in the eyes of God with your scenario, but if in your culture, there are ANY marriage requirements--that are not sinful--then you should follow those, so that your culture sees that you are married....

 

[Coram Deo]

But the culture does allow for it to a degree with Common Marriage laws....

I understand the principle behind obeying the government is biblically, but I wanted to first get a feel of what is required by scripture for a marriage and then second add in the government issue...

I don't think you can take the Government out of it....I think, if you lived in a culture, that had zero marriage requirements, then, you would be Married in the eyes of God with your scenario, but if in your culture, there are ANY marriage requirements--that are not sinful--then you should follow those, so that your culture sees that you are married....

 

[Coram Deo]

Ok, let me add a futuristic realistic scenario..

Tribulation befalls us (Not dispensationalism) but great tribulation. Christians are not allowed to marry. Two people fall in love but they cannot find a minister to marry them for most christians are in hiding or slaugthered. They take Covenanted vows together to be wedded and they consumate that night. Are they married?


P.S. Note, I am a Covenantal PreMill (Post Tribber), please do not think I am Dispensational Premill in the above scenario.

I don't think you can take the Government out of it....I think, if you lived in a culture, that had zero marriage requirements, then, you would be Married in the eyes of God with your scenario, but if in your culture, there are ANY marriage requirements--that are not sinful--then you should follow those, so that your culture sees that you are married....

 

[tdowns]

Braveheart scenario.....

Or we could take the Braveheart scenario, but, I just remembered, they found a Minister to do the ceremony, but what if they couldn't have, I say no problem.....but.....I'm interested to see, where in the bible, it gives the guidelines, that it must have "The Church" approve it? But even here in the United States, in our culture today, do we say that the church HAS to be part of it? I mean, would most be O.K. with a marriage on a ship, or in Vegas? We accept those don't we, as long as they are legal in the eyes of the law? If so, then we are saying, The Church Part, isn't the most important, it's the Government Part.....and in your "Christian's Can't Marry" scenario, then the Government is off limits, and if a Minister is not to be found, only option left is the "If Two make covenant, and become One, then Married".....I think....

I guess, back to your first post.....

What are the biblical guidelines for a Marriage being "Official". My uneducated vote is, the two in your situation are married once consummated.

I think???

 

[Davidius]

I always thought the popularity of having the church involved was the result of the declaration of marriage as a sacrament by the Roman Catholic Church in the 11th century.

 

[Coram Deo]

I was just looking up Common Law Marriage and in many states of America it is still legal and is recognized by the other states that do not have Common Law Marriage... So, in my first scenario it would also still hold up Biblically.. Correct?

Here is the List of Rules...

The essential distinctions of a common law marriage are:

1. Common law marriages are not licensed by government authorities.
2. Common law marriages are not necessarily solemnized.
3. There is no public record of a common law marriage (i.e., no marriage certificate).
4. Cohabitation alone does not amount to common law marriage; the couple in question must hold themselves out to the world to be husband and wife.
5. In some jurisdictions, a couple must have cohabited and held themselves out to the world as husband and wife for a minimum length of time for the marriage to be recognised as valid.

The parties must mutually consent to be married, be of legal age or have their parents' permission, and so on.

Or we could take the Braveheart scenario, but, I just remembered, they found a Minister to do the ceremony, but what if they couldn't have, I say no problem.....but.....I'm interested to see, where in the bible, it gives the guidelines, that it must have "The Church" approve it? But even here in the United States, in our culture today, do we say that the church HAS to be part of it? I mean, would most be O.K. with a marriage on a ship, or in Vegas? We accept those don't we, as long as they are legal in the eyes of the law? If so, then we are saying, The Church Part, isn't the most important, it's the Government Part.....and in your "Christian's Can't Marry" scenario, then the Government is off limits, and if a Minister is not to be found, only option left is the "If Two make covenant, and become One, then Married".....I think....

I guess, back to your first post.....

What are the biblical guidelines for a Marriage being "Official". My uneducated vote is, the two in your situation are married once consummated.

I think???

 

[satz]

Genesis 24:63-67 And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.

I am not sure I can think of any verse where the bible specifically sets out that you need a pastor/justice of the peace's approval to get married.

Given the lack of explicit command (unless I am wrong) I think in an extreme situation like the ones you guys have been discussing, a christian couple could just covenant between themselves and God, in private, based on the example of Issac and Rebekah.

 

[Coram Deo]

Found an interesting article regarding?

My wife found an interesting article relating to this topic for me tonight.. Not that I approve of all their theology but I do enjoy there child rearing material..

I found it to be interesting.

Most of the article can be read here...
http://www.nogreaterjoy.org/index.p...]=186&tx_ttnews[backPid]=118&cHash=1a383bea1c


But here is what it said in the post script.

None of my daughters or their husbands asked the state of Tennessee for permission to marry. They did not yoke themselves to government. It was a personal, private covenant, binding them together forever—until death. So when the sodomites have come to share in the state marriage licenses, which will eventually be the law, James and Shoshanna will not be in league with those perverts. And, while I am on the subject, there will come a time when faithful Christians will either revoke their state marriage licenses and establish an exclusively one man-one woman covenant of marriage, or, they will forfeit the sanctity of their covenant by being unequally yoked together with perverts. The sooner there is such a movement, the sooner we will have a voice in government. Some of you attorneys and statesmen reading this should get together and come up with an approach that will have credibility and help to impact the political process. Please contact me when you do and I will assist with publicity.

What Saith Ye?