#115 Covenant Marriage Q&A
How is “covenant” marriage different from contractual/legal marriage.
A contractual marriage is based on what is legal in your locality. But a covenant marriage is based on what is right according to the Bible. A contractual marriage is one based on a legal agreement which may be ended at any time for any reason. A covenant marriage is more personal. It is a heart to heart commitment to following God’s will even when the going gets tough.
What are the benefits of covenant marriage?
A covenant marriage is a commitment to your marriage. Where you make a covenant to your spouse that divorce will not happen unless with a biblical exception. The idea of a covenant marriage is that you are holding yourself to God’s standard rather than our cultural standard. The benefits of a covenantal marriage are manyfold. It may provide more relational security during hard times since you know the other person will not leave you. Furthermore the commitment may improve the connection between the couple as they realize the commitment level of their spouse.
Why might a covenant marriage not work between a couple?
A covenant marriage only works in the context of a christian couple and community. If the couple is not christian they may not see their commitment as binding. While if they are not a part of a christian community then there is no one to hold them accountable for their commitment. A covenant marriage depends on the circumstances, a piece of paper or some words. There is nothing substantive holding that couple to their commitment if they choose to separate.
Covenant Marriage and the Law?
Incidentally a legal form of covenant marriage exists in three states. Including, Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana. According to Arizona, “For a covenant marriage, the court can only grant a dissolution of marriage for limited reasons.” The legal bounds of covenant marriage in these states seem to roughly equate to the idea of a biblical marriage found in Thomas chapter 3. Even in these states though, the covenant marriage is based on the foundation of laws rather than on your relationship with God.
