Does God disapprove of my marriage?<\/p>\n
I have been with my (wife) for over 3 years now. I know that a marriage must have a witness for it to be true. The day we wed we were under the canopy of heaven (outside.) We asked God to be a witness to our union.\u00a0 Does God disapprove of my marriage because it is not through the court system?<\/p>\n\t
Marriages in the United States are not done through the court system. The government provides a record of marriages that take place. Courts only get involved when people desire to break their marriage vows. Our government requires documentation that a marriage has taken place for a variety of reasons. There are only a few states left that recognize a common-law marriage, which is what you are attempting to create. The greater majority have discarded their common-law rules because of the mess created by them.<\/p>\n
God tells us to be obedient to the governing authorities. “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves<\/i>” (Romans 13:1-2). If our government requires a marriage license for those wishing to claim they are married, there is no harm caused by following that law. It does no harm to the marriage itself.<\/p>\n
Paul insisted once that funds sent to needy saints be carried by people selected by the local churches. It wasn’t that Paul wasn’t trustworthy. He was concerned as to how it appeared to people. By having others involved he was “providing honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men<\/em>” (II Corinthians 8:21). But in your marriage, you are only claiming to be honorable to the Lord. It is a noble thing, but it is only partial. “Respect what is honorable in the sight of all men<\/em>” (Romans 12:17).<\/p>\n If you are like most, you are avoiding that “piece of paper” because it would serve as a witness to a commitment. Though you claim God as your witness, the fact that you don’t want it recorded so that man can also see that a marriage has taken place tells me you have no long term plans to remain committed to the woman with whom you currently live. You want to retain imaginary freedom to walk out whenever you decide you don’t like how things are going. You don’t want any evidence left behind that you had other intentions earlier.<\/p>\n It is not whether God disapproves of your marriage, it is whether you are honest enough to admit that you are married in a verifiable way. Even in your own note, you appear to hesitate to call the woman you are living with your wife. This doesn’t sound like a commitment to me.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Question: Does God disapprove of my marriage? I have been with my (wife) for over 3 years now. I know that a marriage must have a witness for it to be true. The day we wed we were under the canopy of heaven (outside.) We asked God to be a witness to our union.\u00a0 Does…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[310,64],"class_list":["post-11792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-government","tag-marriage"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":40162,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-god-join-all-marriages-or-only-some\/","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":0},"title":"Does God join all marriages or only some?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 9, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: \"What God has joined together let no man put asunder.\" Because of this scripture, I recently heard someone say that God doesn't join all\u00a0marriages. Is this true and under what circumstances will He not? (This excludes gay marriage or people remarrying) And if God doesn't join a marriage does\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":41468,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-had-sex-before-with-a-different-woman-does-that-mean-im-committing-adultery-with-the-woman-i-am-with\/","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":1},"title":"I had sex before with a different woman. Does that mean I’m committing adultery with the woman I am with?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Please. Please, I have many things I have to ask. A woman took my virginity, but it was only for a night. I'm with a different woman now and have been with her for five years. Is that adultery? Answer: Fornication is when you have sex with someone you\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":21609,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-a-couple-get-married-by-simply-taking-a-personal-vow-between-them-and-god\/","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":2},"title":"Can a couple get married by simply taking a personal vow between them and God?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 8, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have a question about marriage: Is it biblical for a man and woman to get married simply by taking a personal vow between them and God, or must it be done legally? Answer: What creates a marriage is a covenant. \"Yet she is your companion and your wife\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":68180,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-god-honor-all-marriages\/","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":3},"title":"Does God honor all marriages?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 22, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Good morning, I would like to know if God honors all marriages. I was recently in a study and they brought up Hebrews 13:4. I was told this verse God applies to Christians who are in the church. God does not honor marriages outside of Christ. For example, if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":21761,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/doesnt-a-marriage-license-mean-the-government-controls-marriages\/","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":4},"title":"Doesn’t a marriage license mean the government controls marriages?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 21, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: You said: \"They imagine all sorts of nonsense regarding giving up rights, but the reality is that the government is serving as a repository of the covenant.\" License is a prior restraint. It presumes that the activity is not a right but stems from the licensor (government in this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":34890,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-think-the-government-is-corrupt-so-can-i-get-married-without-the-government-being-involved\/","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":5},"title":"I think the government is corrupt, so can I get married without the government being involved?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, My girlfriend and I would like to marry outside of the state due to the condition of the corruption and anti-God position of the government and states. 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