Voice of the Nazarene 8-17-25

Voice of the Nazarene 8-17-25

Transcript

Pastor Ray LaSalle: 0:01

Coming to you from North Central Ohio. We share with you the voice of the Nazarene, a week by week, venture into the Word of God sponsored by the Bucyrus, Ohio Church of the Nazarene. We join our Pastor Reverend Ray Lasalle and the voice of the Nazarene, Starting a series and I want you to turn with me to Genesis 2:24, open your iPads, iPhone, eyeballs, whatever. And let's look at this little passage. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave unto his wife and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked verse 25 said the man and his wife and were not ashamed. I'm thinking about the four major laws of marriage. Man and a wife were celebrating 50 years of marriage, and what a celebration it was. I mean, the kids were there, the grandkids, they consumed a cake like a garbage truck going through it. Family and friends had come, and she looked around and she couldn't find her husband. She started through the house looking for him, and finally found him in the bedroom, laying on the bed, crying uncontrollably. And she said, What are you crying about? This is our 50th wedding anniversary. You ought to be so happy. And through the tears, he looked up and he said, I was just thinking. And she said, What were you thinking about? He said, Well, do you remember when we were behind the barn years ago and your father caught us? And she smiled and said, I remember. And he said, Do you remember how he pointed a gun at me and said, If you don't marry her, you're going to be in jail for the next 50 years. And she said, Yes, I remember. And he started sobbing and he said, I was just thinking tomorrow I would have been a free man. Well, did you know that God never intended for marriage to be like that. It's not a war zone. When I'm out traveling and I come home, there's no place like home. There's not a motel anywhere or a vacation place that's quite like home. It ought to be someplace that we find peace and joy and happiness and not a war. Now, the Bible said that God created Adam and Eve, and he put them in a special place. It was a garden, and it was called the Garden of Eden. Now, do you know what the word Eden means? It means ultimate happiness, literally, a paradise. God never meant for your marriage to be something that's endured. One man said that marriage was kind of a give and a take proposition. His wife was all the time giving, and he had to take it zoom, and there it went again. Another guy said that marriage was a institution, but he said, Who wants to live in an institution. God said that he wanted ultimate happiness. Wanted to be no place like home. There's 100% success in marriage. I repeat, there is 100% success in a marriage if done God's way. And here in Genesis, two, verse 24 here's the recommendation, Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave to his wife and they too shall be one flesh. God, apparently wanted us to hear this. You say, no, no, no, Pastor, that was for Adam and Eve. No, it wasn't for Adam and Eve. No, it's for you and me. I think I can prove that. You see, Adam and Eve didn't have a father and a mother to leave. They didn't have a Papa and a Mama. So it wasn't for Adam and Eve, it's for you and I. Someone said they had a real problem with the virgin birth. I don't know why you would. I mean, if God can create a man without a father and a woman without a Mama and a Papa. If he didn't need somebody else to make a man or two, he can choose why he ought to not have a problem with the virgin birth. But he's saying this to us, this little formulas to us. God said it to us. And not only did God say it to us, but Jesus said that to us over here in Matthew chapter 19. And not only God said it, not only Jesus said But the great Apostle Paul said it in Ephesians five, apparently, ladies and gentlemen, God wants us to get at the laws of marriage. You say, Well, Pastor, my marriage is sick, perhaps so, what's the hope? Well, Psalm 107, verse 20, said he sent his word and healed them. So what's going to heal a sick marriage? The Word of God. You say, Well, Pastor, my marriage is beyond that my marriage is dead. Well, the Bible said in John 11, verse 14, then Jesus said very plainly unto them, Lazarus is dead. You say, my marriage is dead, so was Lazarus. You say my marriage stinks, so did Lazarus. And look at what John 11:23, and when He had spoken, He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus come forth. You know why he said, Lazarus? Because the whole graveyard would have resurrected if he hadn't put a name on it, Lazarus come forth. And what did he do? He resurrected that which was dead. And ladies and gentlemen, I still believe that God can resurrect dead marriages if we will follow His Word. Now, do you know what the most unread book in America is? The most unread book in America is not the Bible. They claim the most unread book in America is the car manual. Car owner's manual. Nobody looks at it. Nobody pulls it out. Nobody turns the corners down. Nobody marks it, unless there's a light that won't function. If something goes wrong, get in the glove compartment, get that book out, start reading but if you want to get it right and you want things to start running, you gotta get the book out, and if your marriage is not working, we've got a book to go to. We've got a manual. It's the word of God, if you want to get now, I'm not trying to hurt anybody, but Oprah didn't invent marriage. And Dr Phil, bless his little heart, did not invent marriage. There was an inventor. And if you go back to the Creator, fact of the matter is, I think you can get your marriage healthy and well, he'll put some vitality back into it, some zip and zing. Well, that car quit, and the guy had the hood up and he couldn't get it going. It was a hot day, and a big limo pulled around and stopped and backed up, and out stepped a gentleman in that brilliant looking suit, dressed to the max, and he said, what's wrong? He said, I can't get the car to run. He said, let me look at it. And he tinkered for a moment. Said, try it now. And it started. And he said, Well, how did you know how he said, I created this car my name's Henry Ford, and if you let God pull alongside of you, he can straighten out messes and crooks and every kind of a problem you've got, he can resolve it, and he wants to do that through his word for it's his concept in the beginning, okay? And there's four quick laws, if I hurry, they'll be quick, the major laws of marriage. And number one is the law of priority. And I want you to see what the Word says, Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother. Now that doesn't mean that you abandon your parents. It doesn't mean that you abuse your parents. Exodus, 20, verse 12 says, Honor thy father and thy the mother. You say, Well, I can't honor their performance. I didn't say to do that, but you need to honor their position. Honor thy father and thy mother. Now it says, Therefore, leave thy father and thy mother. Now what does that mean? Well, here's what it means. It means to relinquish the highest position of commitment to your mate. The highest level of commitment ought to be to who? Your mate, not to mama and daddy anymore, but to your mate, therefore, leave thy father and thy mother. Now, one bride said to her husband, said, Where are we going to live after we get married? He said, anybody ought to know that we're going to live right next to mama. But he soon found out there were a lot of other places to live that was better than living next to mama, because if you're not careful, one man can have two women vying for one man's attention, mama and wife. So he says, Leave thy father. The national average says that when you get married, and five years later you have children. That's national average. Now, sometimes I know the carriage gets before the marriage, and I'm not trying to beat up on anybody, as I said, there's no accidental children there may be accidental parents, but not accidental children. Here's what happens. The children come along and the wife starts saying, you know, my husband, he comes home, and when he gets home, he's exhausted and he's touchy and he's worked all day, and either that or is out with his buddies. And the guy says, Yeah, I get home and my wife, she's worn out. All she's done is work with the kids. Everything's about the kids, as one guy said, he said, the little bit of attention my wife pays to me if I were to die, she couldn't identify the body. There went another one. So here's the secret, folk, we've got to prioritize priorities. I'm talking about the law of priorities. And ladies and gentlemen, number one God is first. God is the only one that will go with you all the way. He doesn't get a divorce from you. He'll go with you all the way through life and into eternity. God has to be first, and you'll be a better husband to your wife if you'll put God first, and you'll be a better wife to your husband if you put God first, and ladies and gentlemen, your spouse is second. God has to be first, but your spouse is second, and the children are third. Somebody said, Well, we're just together because of the kids. What a horrible statement to make. How belittling and how cutting can you be. We're just together for the kids. Well, you got problems your children shouldn't have the greater priority than the mate. The Bible said you're only one flesh, not you and the kids, you and your spouse. That's your mate. God is first, your spouse is second, and your children is third, and then the church is fourth. And let me restate that the church not only but the church you're serving within ought to be forth. You say, Well, Pastor, my church needs me. No, no, you need the church. You desperately need the church to be involved in the church, and then your family, then your friends, and then your work, and then your hobbies and your other interests. It's the law of priority. It's putting first things first. Do you understand the law of priority? We got that one. Okay, here's the second law of the law of pursuit. Look at what it says, And it shall cleave. What does it mean to cleave? It means to pursue him or her energetically and cleave to him or her the rest of your life. One guy, his kids will call him and said, Dad, what are you doing? He'll always say, I'm chasing your mother around the house. It means constantly pursuing. Do you know, if we'd pursue our mate like we did when we wanted to win them, we might be able to keep them when you put all that barn paint on guys, when you used to shave, when you used to use some right guard, When you put on some of that come thither. What happened to all that romance? Now you throw a big old blanket around yourself and Humpty Dumpty wouldn't know who you were. We pursue one another. And if you want to get marriage right, can I give you a little hint? Hang around people that have made their marriage work for years, not somebody that's been married so many times they've got rice marks on their face. They don't know what is right. One man, married for 70 years, said, I don't care when you got married, what era you live in, there's nothing easy about marriage you've got to work at it. It's truly a work Bobby Bowden's statement. It's the law of pursuit. You say, Well, Pastor, what happens when the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence? Well, the Bible tells us in Proverbs 5:15 drink water out of your own cistern and running waters out of thine own well. What do I do if I encounter greener grass? I can help you on that water your own yard. Quit having eyes for all the other greener grass, and have eyes for your own yard. And you look over the neighbors and the grass looks greener. The Bible says He that goeth after her straight way as an ox goeth to the slaughter. What does a ox do? He'll eat a lot of green grass, the fool now he's going to get slaughtered. If you want to lose about half of what you've got. Just keep looking over the fence, and it's probably grass over the top of a septic tank. Somebody asked the question, what is love? Somebody said, Love is a word composed of two consonants, L and V, and two vowels of O and E and two fools, you and me. You know what we've listened to Hollywood, and I believe the world has sold us a bill of goods. The world says that love makes you tingle and something just flutters when he or she walks into the room, and then we fall out of love. Well, listen, the world's lied to us. They've taught us that love is just something that you feel. If Tina Turner was here, she would sing to you, what has love got to do with it? Do you know what the Bible says? This is not a feeling. Let me prove it. It says Husbands love your wives. That's a command. Now, you can't command somebody to feel a certain way. I can't command you to feel grief right now. Love isn't just something that you feel. Look at what Titus 2:3 says. It says the aged woman, likewise, shall do what it says. I don't know what it says. Let me find my place here. Okay, Column four, line nine, it says that they may teach the younger women. I don't know why 20 year olds think they ought to teach 40 and 60 year olds. That's not what the Bible teaches. Fact of the matter 25 year old don't even know what the question is, let alone the answer, but somebody that's been around the block and have gone through the storms and tasted blood and been hit and bitten and fought their way through life, they understand something, and here's what it says, the older is to teach those who are younger love your husbands. Now you can't command someone to feel a certain way. It's not a feeling. Now look at what First

Corinthians 8: 18:25

1 says, Love builds up. Love builds up. You know what, it tells me, love isn't something that you feel? Love is something you do. A bell is not a bell until it rings. Song is not a song until it sings. And love is not putting your heart to say it's not love till you give it away. And here's what the Scripture says, Love is patient. Love is kind, it does not envy, does not boast, it's not proud, doesn't dishonor one another, not self seeking, not easily angry, keeps no record of wrong love. Love, well, I want to feel kind. No, you want to do kind. It's being kind. We're talking about the law of priority. We're talking about the law of pursuit, but let's mention the law of possession, and I'll try to land this thing. Look at what it says, And they shall be one flesh. Now, I don't want to beat up on anybody. You may not agree with me on this, and that's all right. You don't have to fall out with me. Okay? You have to quit the church over it. My mother was married to a man that had been married before. They didn't come to Christ. They were 35 when they got married. A year later, they came to Christ. They didn't know how to undo the scrambled egg. They had two little boys to raise, and that dad kept me in church, and that dad paid my way through Bible school, and there wouldn't be a Ray LaSalle standing in the pulpit if it hadn't been for that dad whether you accept him or you didn't accept him, it was just the way it was. And whatever marriage you're in, you're to be one flesh. If you have children involved, they need to know there's one relationship from here on. They ought to know that they can come home there will always be a home when they leave school Mom and Dad are going to stick together for the rest of it. They may have blown their lives early on, but it's time they get it right. They become one flesh, one relationship, one possession, one soul. They need to see what a godly marriage looks like. Now we come into marriage separately, but now we're jointly. I'm talking about the law of possession number one, the body. Look at what the Bible says. First Corinthians, seven, verse three and four, the husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise, the wife to her husband. That's talking about a physical relationship. Now, 80% of men get more excited about this than women do. I'm just telling you. Men really get excited on any day of the week that starts with a T like Tuesday and Thursday and today and tomorrow and Taturday and Tunday. Look at what it says, the wife does not have authority over her own body, but yeilds it to her husband in the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body, but yields it up to his wife. Now that's not a license to abuse. That's not getting weird. It's not using leverage and manipulation and punishment. We're talking about one flesh and God's provision for sexual fulfillment is marriage. You say, Well, I don't think you should be talking about it. Why not? God's the one that wrote the book on it. God's the one that created it. God said it's wonderful. You may not, but God said it's wonderful. That's what dad used to tell mom, and then he'd say she's one whole door full. No wonder he was in trouble. Always one black eye, and what I'm trying to say, most of us got here because of it. So I don't think there's anything wrong with saying something. Maybe in saying something is because you disagree with it and you're having problems. Get it right. And then, not only that law, but the body, but your finances. When you're single, is mine, mine, mine. But you get married, it's ours. I got a lot on my mind. I'm just trying to be good. One lady said her husband said, if it wasn't for my money, that BMW wouldn't be sitting out in the driveway, and if it wasn't for my money, that olympic sized pool wouldn't be in our backyard. If it wasn't for my money, those jet skis wouldn't be here. She said, If it wasn't for your money, I wouldn't be here either. And not only that, your children. Well, I've got two, he's got two. No, no, no, you've got four. You've got four. Theodore Heisberger said the greatest thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother. I've lost my place again. You say, Pastor, I'm in my second or third marriage. Well, let your kids see now what a godly marriage can do, since God's got into your life, and if you blew it in round one, it's time you get it right in round two. I was talking with my friend Rich Hurles, and he was pastoring, and he had a team come into his church and one of those said, you know, when we knock on doors, if they tell us they've been divorced, we just turn around and walk off and go to some other house because we don't offer any opportunity to get back to God. I want to tell you something 50% of the world's in that kind of a mess. And if God can't forgive that, then there's a lot of other things He probably can't forgive either, just saying. But here's the last the law of purity. Look what the Bible says verse 25 they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. What was it? It was an atmosphere of intimacy and openness. They were totally open to each other, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, and they weren't ashamed. But I want

you to see something Genesis 3: 24:20

7 says they sinned and they knew they were naked, not till they'd sinned, and when they sinned, they knew they were naked. And verse 10 says something, I was afraid because I was naked and I hid myself. What happens to our relationships? When we sin, we begin to have secrets, we'll begin to hide things from each other, and that purity and that transparency is no longer there, because secrecy and sin is taking control. Trust is built on what I call foundation. Trust is the secret of foundation of every relationship, that's trust. How do I build trust? Well, get this the Bible says in

Ephesians 4: 25:09

15 speak the truth in love. Just speak truth. Just tell truth. Just live truth. Just act truth. And it builds relationship. You've all heard the story of the acres of diamonds. Ollie Hoofer, he had a little farm, a wife and kids, and life was good. And somebody came along and told about a tale way off yonder, somewhere was diamonds. Diamonds everywhere, and you could find these diamonds and dig them up and become wealthy beyond your mind. And he got it in his mind, and couldn't he quit his job and left the farm and left his wife and the kids and bought some diamond equipment and to hunt for it with and travel the world trying to find diamonds. He ended up getting a divorce, and his kids hated him and never found any diamonds. And the story is a true story, he walked out of the water and drowned. And a week after his death, the man that had bought the little farm saw a strange stone and picked it up and looked at it, and somebody told him, that's a diamond. And he began to dig in his backyard, and there were diamonds everywhere. It was a diamond mine. It had been there all along, right under Ollie's nose. And what you're searching for, you already have. You've got diamonds at your own backyard, your family. You don't need to look over the fence. You don't need to look around on the job. You need to look at each other and begin to see the diamonds. All you've got to do is just follow the law priority. Put God first and then your mate, second, children third, the law of pursuit, like when you used to pursue each other and you tried to win each other, you need to do that every day of your life and follow the law of possession. It's ours. We're in this together, honey and the law of purity. And if you'll do that, you know what? There'll be no place quite like home. Thanks for being a part of the voice of the Nazarene. Visit us every Sunday at 9am with BNC Pastor Ray La Salle for more information regarding BNC, visit us at bucyrusnazarene.org.