Editor’s Note: This is an edited transcript from a sermon excerpt from a sermon preached on February 2, 2021 at FCBC Walnut. You can watch the excerpt here. Watch the entire sermon here.
During this time of the pandemic, maintaining and growing relationships have been difficult. Being stuck at home without our normal routine has brought weaknesses, insecurities, and shame to the surface.
So here are some encouragements for all as we navigate through our changed relationships.
For Those Who Are Married
For the married couples who have lost that romantic spark in their relationship and avoided dealing with that problem, you now come face to face with this issue. Perhaps it has been a long time since you had a deep conversation with each other. It’s not that you don’t like each other, but it’s just not the same as it used to be.
We rightly desire physical and emotional intimacy with our lifelong partners. And perhaps, you now realize that there’s this coldness and you don’t know how to address it. You don’t know how to express it because you feel ashamed. You’re afraid to show your weakness.
I want to encourage you to realize that physical and emotional intimacy with your spouse is indeed a good thing that honors God. I want to encourage you not to be like Adam and Eve, who after eating the forbidden fruit saw each other naked and immediately were ashamed. Realize that Christ has covered your shame with his blood. And Christ has given you a blanket of security to express your desires and your hopes to your spouse. Christ has freed you to pursue intimacy and purity in your marriage.
For Those Who Are Single
For the singles, this pandemic has impacted your relationships, whether they be your friends, or whether it’s from your dating life. And maybe you’re at home and bouts of singleness have hit you.
You must face your own insecurities. You wonder if you’ll ever find true love. You may be thinking to yourself that something is wrong with you. That pain hurts because you come face to face with a fear that you may never get married.
I want to encourage you to realize that your singleness is not a mistake. It is a gift from God, and he has equipped you as a single person and saved you for good works. But most of all, remember that God knows you better than you do. God sees all the shame you hold in your heart and yet he deems you worthy of His Son. He sent His Son to the cross to die for your sins. God loves you that much. Cling to Him.
For Those Who Are Struggling
Finally, for those who may be in broken marriages or difficult relationships — living to an unbelieving spouse or arguing to the point where this marriage just doesn’t feel Christ-like anymore — I can’t imagine how hard this pandemic has been for you as you have had to be at home with someone who may seem like a stranger to you. And you’re not sure what to do. You’re not sure who to turn to. And you’re working hard just to keep your family together, and you’re tired. And you feel too ashamed to share your heart struggles with anyone.
I want to encourage you to know that Jesus knows your pain, and He desires to bring you peace. Jesus says, “Come to me all who labor and are heavy and heavy laden I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls.” Jesus is saying: “Learn from me.”
Know His gentleness and lowliness and you will find rest. Learn Jesus Christ, who was betrayed by one of His closest friends, deserted by His disciples, nailed to the cross by His own people, and sacrificed by His own father — so that you may have peace and rest in your own hearts. Jesus understands your pain and your brokenness.
The Church: The Family of Christ
More than that, when Jesus saved you, He has adopted you into a family — a church family. A family that’s not broken, but a family that’s united. Yes, it is a family that is full of sinners, but the head of the family is Christ. He unites us all together through his blood. We’re not perfect. But we are held together by an undefiled, pure, and loving God. And it is here in the church, in the body of Christ, where you can find true security and rest for your soul.
So church, all of us, whether we’re married or single, wherever you’re at in your stage of life, cling to Christ. He is our hope. He is our peace.