Caution:
In this essay, I write about a topic that is considered taboo in Christianity. If frank discussions of intimacy bother you, please do not continue reading.
Here is a truth,
The Church Has Usurped God’s Position As The One Who Governs Intimacy
Before I delve into this topic, let me state for the record, that I am not against marriage per se. I believe that if you are God-ordained Divine Mates, the form of earthly contract you make with another matters little to Him. Therefore, only those whom God has joined together by His Spirit, not necessarily by the church, should no man put asunder.
Furthermore, I’m against the belief that marriages sanctioned by the church, under whatever circumstances they are made, are automatically holy matrimony.
Licensed for sex
What marriage is, or has become in most of Christendom, is a license to have sex. Marriage is the power of the clergy to approve or disapprove of sexual unions. Most of the time, unless you wed as your church dictates, they do not approve of your sexual union.
For women who care about their social standing, this is a powerful lever of control. Though women want to give themselves to the man they love, they also want the approval of their community. Therefore, the desire to remain pure in the eyes of God and man is a very strong motivator to follow the dictates of their church.
Clergy, family and friends
Interestingly enough, remaining pure as defined by Christendom is less and less of a concern for many young people. However, the acceptance of their friends, family, and clergy is. Disapproval from any one of these groups can often put enormous pressure on young couples to conform.
Since procreating is at the center of who we are, those who control access to it wield enormous power. This is the ultimate expression of the clergy’s assumed role of “intimacy police” among congregations. Church leadership considers it not only their right, but also their duty to control access to intimacy. Preserving their concept of what is holy and righteous before God, they police relationships among believers all the time. Moreover, if they do not approve of the way God is leading you, they oppose you. In some extreme cases, clergy even deny fellowship to those that don’t adhere to their “moral” code.
The leadership of God’s church usurps God’s position
The truth is, these faux-vicars usurp God’s position in the area of intimacy. Whereas YHWH authored the first Divine Union, now the church believes it has the exclusive right to perform that function. If all they were doing was facilitating what God wanted, that would be fine; however, minsters control and manipulate their congregations through controlling access to mates for their own ends.
God is the only one qualified to join us together. No one should ever form an earthly contract unless their Lord first joins them through His Spirit. While clergy can perform ceremonies to celebrate a couple, it is not mandated by God. Being married in church doesn’t make the couple any more or less holy.
You cannot be licensed for sex: God is the one who joins us together
Therefore, marriage is optional and simply a custom we partake of if we wish. Whether or not a man and woman choose to have a ceremony is totally up to them. A couple living together should be as accepted and valued as a couple who took vows sitting next to them. All that matters is that the Holy Spirit is allowed to join believers as He sees fit. The fact is, we don’t have to be licensed for sex from anyone, only led by the Holy Spirit to join together.
Marriage is an idol within the Christian church used by clergy to control and manipulate their parishioners. However, “In the beginning” it was not so. Moreover, the fact that false belief that earthly marriage is necessary to be in right standing with God gives the clergy enormous power over those who accept that. In turn, this false authority helps ungodly people maintain dominance over the lives of men and women who are supposed to be Spirit-led.
I am not against marriage ceremonies
While, as I’ve stated, I am not against performing ceremonies, per se, I am against the belief that you must be married by the church in order to be acceptable to God. Only God has the authority to join people together by His Spirit, and He never gave nor vested that authority to the church leadership. Truly Spirit-led believers have no need of a marriage certificate or anything else the church mandates in that area.
Only what God has joined together
In conclusion, if you are Divine Mates, mate when God directs you. If you choose to have a public ceremony in a church after that, it’s perfectly OK. Realize, though, that saying vows before men does not make you any more or less joined together by God. The bottom line is that living together as the Holy Spirit directs obviates the need for a marriage certificate from any church. Amen.
