Happy Marriage

In Psalm 1 we read that, “Blessedly happy is the man...[whose] delight in in the Law of the LORD.” Similarly, Jesus said in Luke 11:28, “Blessedly happy...are those who hear the word of God and keep it.” To trust in and obey the true God is the most rewarding and joyful life possible. Since this is the case, when husbands and wives relate to one another in ways that please our Lord, this leads to the happiest of marriages. 

 

Because this is the case, in my next several posts I want to cover what the Bible has to say about how husbands and wives are to relate to one another. The topics I will cover over the next few weeks are these:

1. Remember your marriage gives a picture of the gospel, of Christ and the Church. 

 

2. Keep in mind that you and your spouse are equal but diverse. 

 

3. Rejoice in the reality that you are called by God to help your spouse flourish.

 

4. Never forget that your marriage is a covenant. 

 

5. Husbands, don’t ignore that you are the head of your wife. 

 

6. Husbands, pursue headship as a Christ-like servant-leader who helps your wife flourish.

 

7. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church. 

 

8. Husbands, treat your wife as a weaker vessel and fellow heir of the grace of life. 

 

9. Wives, don’t avoid your Christ-like mission to follow your husband’s headship. 

 

8. Wives, delight in your mission to help your husband flourish. 

 

9. Wives, respect your husbands. 

 

10. Wives, win your husbands by your actions.

 

11. Avoid the blame and resentment “game.”

 

Stay tuned for these articles and ask the Lord to work in the marriages of our own church in ways that would bless us all and magnify Jesus Christ. 

 

Pursuing Happy Marriage With You,

Tom

Just War Theory

Given the current U.S. military operation in Iran, I thought it would be good for us briefly to set forth the “Just War Theory.” My goal in doing this is to provide us all with a framework for evaluating war and military operations without stating a conclusion on this current operation. As you will see in what follows, this provides helpful direction for evaluating potential for war or how a war is carried out, but it does not provide an easy framework that removes all difficulty. I have benefited from this for years and I hope you will also. 

 

Though this post was written and received its final form by me, I was aided by AI in bringing together the parts of the article.

 

The Just War theory is a moral framework used by theologians and ethicists to determine when it is permissible to go to war and how it should be conducted. It is rooted in the Judeo-Christian idea that taking human life without just cause is sin, but that governments have a duty to defend justice and their citizens, which means war is sometimes necessary. Romans 13:1-4 reads: 

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. (emphasis added)

 

There are mainly two aspects to the theory:  Justice in going to war; and justice during war. 

 

Justice In Going To War

Before a war can be considered "just," it must meet several requirements: 

 

• It must be a just cause: The war must be for a morally upright reason, such as self-defense, protecting the innocent from aggression, or restoring justice.

 

• It must be executed under legitimate authority: Only duly constituted public authorities (like a sovereign government) have the right to declare war.

 

• It must have a right intention: The ultimate goal must be the restoration of peace, not conquest, revenge, or economic gain.

 

• It must be a last resort: All non-violent options—such as diplomacy or sanctions—must have been exhausted before force is used.

 

• There must be a probability of success: Military action should not be taken if there is no reasonable chance of achieving its goals, to avoid pointless loss of life.

 

• There must be proportionality of ends: The expected good results of the war must outweigh the potential destruction and evil it will cause.

 

Justice During War

Once a war has begun, it must be fought ethically: 

• There must be distinction, that is, noncombatant immunity: Military forces must distinguish between combatants and innocent civilians; civilians must never be intentional targets.

 

• There must be proportionality in regard to means: The amount of force used must be limited to what is strictly necessary to achieve victory, avoiding excessive or cruel destruction.

 

• Military Necessity must be practiced: Attacks must be directed toward legitimate military targets to help defeat the enemy.

 

Joyfully Seeking to Apply the Bible To All of Life With You,

 

Tom

"Listening To Sermons"

Since I was on sabbatical this past summer, I had the privilege of sitting under the preaching of the Bible for a significant time. It was a reminder to me that it is not just the preacher who must prepare so the preaching is effective and bears fruit, the hearers must also do some work ahead of time. For your benefit (and that of your children, if you have children), let me share how we can go about this. 

 

There is no better resource for how hearers must carry out that preparation leading up to hearing a sermon than the 90^thquestion and answer in the Westminster Shorter Catechism, which has informed me for years. 

 

Having just made the points that Christ grows and preserves us in our faith through the ordinary means or tools (the habits of grace) God has given, which includes the Bible (reading it and especially hearing it preached), prayer, assembling together as the church, and the gospel truth revealed through baptism and the Lord’s Supper, the question is then asked: “How is the Word to be read and heard that it may become effective for [our preservation in] salvation?”  

 

The answer given is that, “We must give attention to it” in the following ways: 

 

1. “With diligence:” In Proverbs 8:34, where we read of wisdom personified, it says: “Blessed[ly happy] is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors.” There is a joy and great benefit that comes to those who daily search out the Scriptures for wisdom in life. When this is the heart habit with which people come to a sermon (they have been searching for wisdom in the Bible all week), they are far more likely to follow the sermon, work at figuring out how it applies to them, follow it to the end, and take it with them. 

 

2. “With...preparation:” The great enemy of our souls seeks to steal away the seeds of the Word implanted through preaching of the Word (Matthew 13:19) and to cause us to doubt God and His promises in His Word (Eph. 6:16). As such, a person needs regularly to put on and take up all the armor of God (Eph. 6:10-18) so they can be ready to hear what the Spirit has to say to them through the Word of God (Rev. 2-3). Especially needed is the shield of faith with which the Christian can extinguish the arrows of doubt the enemy shoots. Finally, we must not miss something as simple as getting a good night of sleep before we assemble together with other Christians to hear God’s Word. 

 

3. “With...prayer:” We not only fight against the enemy of our soul but also our own indwelling sin which causes our minds to wander and sometimes it simply leads persons not to understand or see the importance of preaching. Thus, as we read in Psalm 119:18, we must pray: “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” This is a prayer request I regularly pray in both reading and hearing the Bible. 

 

Additionally, the catechism reminds us that we must: 

 

1. “Receive [the preaching of the Word] with faith and love:” Psalm 119:111 uncovers the heart attitude that prepares us for hearing God’s word in a way we delight in it and expect it to benefit us: “Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart.” We should note also that one shaped and grown by the Word is far more likely to have faith that God is a rewarder of one who seeks Him (Heb. 11:6). 

 

2. “Treasure it up in our hearts:” We must not overlook or forget the words Jesus spoke (Luke 11:28): “Blessedly happy...are those who hear the Word of God and guard it so as to keep it.” We understand that true, lasting happiness, as well as blessedly happy and flourishing life come from delighting in and following God’s Word (Psalm 1). In light of this, we delight in God’s Word (Psalm 112:1-2) and memorize Scripture so that we always have it with us and so we follow God (Psalm 119:11). Such persons have much greater ability to understand Bible preaching and teaching whenever they hear it. 

 

3. “Practice it in our lives:” As doers of the Word (James 1:21-25) a greater hunger for God is grown in us, which leads to even greater love of God’s Word (see Psalms 111-112) and for God Himself, and a greater hunger for doing God’s Word. 

 

May we learn to treasure the Word of God in all forms, including hearing it preached, as we remember the words of Proverbs 13:13: “Whoever despises the word brings destruction on himself, but he who reveres the commandment will be rewarded.”

 Joyfully Listening With You,

 

Tom