“And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

- Josh. 24:15

Governments.Church.

Basic Unit of Society

Created for Man’s BenefitPsa. 127:3

Place to eat and sleep.Place of emotional security and appreciation.Place to be self.

•Tongue.•Temper.•Temptation.

Place to be pampered.

Various

1. A group of individuals living under one roof.2. A group of persons of common ancestry.3. A group of people united by certain convictions.5. The basic unit in society traditionally consisting of two parents rearing their own or adopted children.

Dictionary

- Merriam-Webster

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”

- Gen. 2:24

Bible

Positively.•Man: Husband.•Woman: Wife.•Children, Gen. 1:26-27; 4:1-2

*Not always,11:29-30

Bible

Negatively.•Not two men.•Not two women.•Not a mixed group of unmarried, unrelated people.

Bible

Massachusetts’ Supreme Court Ruling.•“Evolving paradigm.”•“Voluntary union of two persons.”

Redefinition

- In Defense of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

Problems.•Man & horse.•Polyamory.

Redefinition

- The Slippery Slope of Same-Sex Marriage, Family Research Council

ProblemsRedefinition

- The Slippery Slope of Same-Sex Marriage, Family Research Council

Relationship Duration

0 5 10 15 20 25

1

2Homosexuals

Heterosexuals

1 ½

20 +

4.5

8575.5

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Pe

rcen

t

ProblemsRedefinition

- The Slippery Slope of Same-Sex Marriage, Family Research Council

HomosexualsMarriedMen

MarriedWomen

Monogamy75.5

4.5

85

ProblemsRedefinition

- The Slippery Slope of Same-Sex Marriage, Family Research Council

11.4

15.4

0.26 0.05

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

1 2 3 4

Pe

rcen

t

Violence

Homosexuals

Married

MenLesbiansMarrie

d

Women

Redefinition of family.Redefinition of marriage (Netherlands).

•Same-sex unions legalized in 1998.•Marriage increasingly irrelevant.•Registered partnerships converted to marriages, vice-versa.

The Family Is Under Attack

- The Transatlantic Divide on Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

Increased government control.Ease of divorce & remarriage, Mt. 19:9Pornography, Gal. 5:19Gambling, 1 Tim. 6:10Entertainment.

•Cohabitation.•Dad’s a dope.

The Family Is Under Attack

Compromise among churches.•Acceptance of divorce & remarriage, Mal. 2:16•Acceptance of shacking up,1 Cor. 6:18•Operation of day-care centers,Titus 2:4-5

The Family Is Under Attack

In Society.•Divorce rate.•Children killed by parents.•Parents killed by children.•Heinous juvenile crimes.•Proliferation of professional counselors.

Families Are Failing

In the Church.•Divorce increase.•Children falling away.•Parents falling away.•Young people marrying wrong people.•Young people going to college, not church.

Families Are Failing

Morality.Authority.Religion.Work ethic.

Initial Learning Place

Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.

- Prov. 22:6

Rome.•Undermining of dignity & sanctity of home.•Rapid increase of divorce.•Divorce for frivolous reasons.•No shame in divorce.

Lessons of History

Break Down of Home & Society

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35P

erc

en

t

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

OutOf

WedlockBirths 1940 1970

1999

Break Down of Home & Society

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

16.3

2.4

44.9

24.8

6.7

4.9ChildrenLivingWith

BiologicalParents

First MarriageIntact Family

AllOthers55.1%

2.71

2.07

3.7

1

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4P

erce

nt

Break Down of Home & Society

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

CriminalityRelated

ToFamily

BackgroundIntact

MotherOnly

Step-Father

Step-Mother

4.3

2.9

1

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5P

erce

nt

Break Down of Home & Society

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

SchoolExpulsions

Intact

Divorced

NeverMarried

35.3

29

19.9

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40P

erce

nt

Break Down of Home & Society

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

MarijuanaUse

Intact

DivorcedNeverMarried

7.5

5.2

2.8

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8P

erc

en

t

Break Down of Home & Society

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

CocaineUse

Intact

Divorced

NeverMarried

51.751.1

32.3

52 54.1

0

10

20

30

40

50

60P

erc

ent

Break Down of Home & Society

- The Positive Effects of Marriage, The Heritage Foundation

SexualActivity

14-18 yrs. old

Intact

Step-Parent

DivorcedSingle

Cohabiting

SingleNever

Married

As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.

- 2 Pet. 1:3

God’s Word Is Sufficient

Husbands & wives, Eph. 5:22-33Parents & children, Eph. 6:1-4

God’s Word Is Sufficient

Noah, Gen. 6:5-11; 7:1Abraham, Gen. 12:1-3; Jas. 2:23Samuel, 1 Sam. 1:28Zacharias & Elizabeth, Lk. 1:5-6

Godly Examples

Noah & Ham, Gen. 9:20-23Abraham & Abimelech, Gen. 20

Ungodly Examples

Our families are made of sinners!

Governments.Church.

Basic Unit of Society

Created for Man’s BenefitPsa. 127:3