We are slowly progressing through Deuteronomy, Chapter 24 on our study journey in today’s COME AS A CHILD BIBLE STUDY. Verse five shows God speaking through Moses to the newly-weds of Israel and their extended families. This reminder is yet another piece of the things that God wanted his people to observe when they reached the promised land and began living a new life as a prosperous nation together.
DON’T WORK FOR A WHOLE YEAR
Most newly wed couples of today would love having to keep verse five. It says that a man who had been recently married should not be sent off to war, or forced to work a full time job, for one whole year after the marriage ceremony.
He is to be free to stay at home and enjoy his new Bride.
Believe it or not; I actually found a couple on-line who took this ancient advice to heart. What a pleasant read it was, and how interesting to hear her last comment where she says it was “worth the investment.” Her name is Stephanie Smith and I hope she will appreciate me linking you to her blogpost right here: https://www.startmarriageright.com/2011/05/taking-the-first-year-%E2%80%9Coff%E2%80%9D/. I hope to hear more of her stories at a later time.
This was all God’s idea; not mine or hers; but – can you think of a better way to start out your marriage?
It would be like taking a year-long, all expenses paid vacation with the one you love.
Wouldn’t it be great if this could happen in today’s society?
MAKING THE HARDEST YEAR EASIER
The first year of a marriage is usually the hardest because both parties have so many adjustments to make. If the groom and the bride were secure enough to stay at home and simply pay attention to only each other for the whole first year, that marriage would really be off to a great start.
In those days the families usually all lived together, including several generations. The wedding would be given by the groom’s Father at his family home; and the bride and groom would live in a place that had been set aside especially for them on the groom’s father’s property.
THE IMPORTANCE OF A FAMILY INHERITANCE
In those days a family’s children always inherited the family land. It would be passed down from generation to generation.
Most likely the groom would have brothers living with their families in the same compound and the same way. (The woman would be the one to have to leave her family home.) The sons would help the father with all of the work to keep up whatever property he had been blessed with; perhaps a farm or a vineyard or an orchard.
The whole family would work together and cultivate the land, or if they lived in a city together, the house would have many rooms for each family unit and the whole family would help with some type of commerce; for instance a store, or a carpenter shop, or a fisherman’s market.
CHILDREN WERE THE JOY OF LIFE
The pride and joy and main purpose of the Jewish life was to produce good godly children. The Bride and Groom would have a whole year together when they would be relieved of every responsibility but to love each other and to begin to produce a family.
At the end of that first year of marriage, the man would take up a trade (usually associated with his family business) and the woman would begin to help the other women in taking care of the needs of the household, preparing food, providing clothes, and looking after the cleanliness of the home. The highest responsibility though involved overseeing the day-to-day raising of the children. The father would guide and make the big family decisions; but the mother would be there day-in and day-out to be sure that things went well with the little ones. The father and the mother would tend to schooling together; the father doing the heavy teaching at night and the mother reinforcing his instructions.
CONTRAST THE MODERN WORLD
This is certainly nothing like our world today. We are all overwhelmed and stressed-out with making a living and paying for a huge amount of material possessions that consume us more than we consume them. The peer pressure by society to do so is even more present when a young couple is just beginning to live in a new marriage. The civil laws weigh heavily on the parenting process. If you don’t do your job the way the government thinks you should, Big Brother is going to interfere with your happy little home.
In today’s world of couples, both parties of the marriage feel the need to work, and most couples work out arrangements to share the household chores as they go along. Children are expensive, and most couples keep working after each child is born, hiring others to look after their childcare needs as they continue to pursue a professional career. In turn they will train their own children to follow this path behind them.
These two contrasting visions of a young marriage are like daylight and dark; but this is what we have done with the way we have redefined the original ways of God, and how He so very carefully laid them out to those first Children of Israel.
WE ARE CONSTANTLY CHANGING BUT GOD NEVER DOES
Don’t get me wrong; I think God understands a lot of what we have evolved into with our modern-day lives. He allows us grace as he looks at our modern, cultural developments; but it still seems that, try as we may; even in the best of these circumstances, something is always missing, incomplete or just not as satisfying as it could be. We are always striving for better; but in all of our striving we have to learn how to slow down and remember the basics that speak to us of God and about where He wants to lead us in our destiny and purposes that he has created to exist for His Kingdom which are planted deep within each of us.
When you look back and see the stark contrasts it is easy to determine that God’s best ways and man’s best ideas do not always match or melt into one another
The older generations of this world should definitely be leading and guiding and praying for the younger generations of this world. It appears that we have forgotten this somewhere along the way. Have any of the vast groups of populations out there been taking the time to do so?
REMEMBERING TO PASS ON GOD’S BEST WAYS
God’s best ways for our modern culture need to become clear to each individual person and each married couple as they live their lives out here on earth. It is very beneficial to all of us if this process transpires instead of the typical chaos and confusion of no rules, anything goes, deciding that good is evil and evil is good that often takes place now from generation to generation.
If that is to happen, it will require prayer, meditation, study and families communicating with one another about God and His ways for living. It will mean churches opening up again and groups praying, playing and helping one another as neighbors along the way. It will mean observing Communion in the Body of Christ on a regular basis and communities observing the sacredness of life again.
TIME TO STOP, OBSERVE, PRAY, REPENT AND TURN
We all must stop dead in our tracks and think of the future.
What things are God asking of us today?
How can our nation best honor God as Israel did way back in the very beginning of nations?
Those who are just starting out in the hard role of becoming an adult and moving into the sacred sacrament of marriage need our care and nurture as much as our little children just learning to walk and talk. They have never been adults before and our culture today is not going to point out the best examples or show the best paths for them to take.
Being a part of a family is a lifelong commitment; from the cradle to the grave; and God did not mean, nor did He show in his commandments to a young nation called Israel, that things would be so compartmentalized and separated at each stage of life that you cannot remain a continuously growing member of a larger family group. Every aspect of godliness flowed through every aspect of daily living back then. You could not pull it all apart because it all went together to form a perfect blend of what should and what should not be.
INDEPENDENT BUT TOGETHER
Yes; it was just as important for the newly married couple to establish their independence too; that was not overlooked in the scriptures; but if everyone tries, a loving and caring family can always find the right balance for every family unit and their individual as well as corporate needs.
The true secret is to seek God’s face and follow His lead. God knew the times of Israel and He knows our times too. Each part of history has produced the pieces of The Body of Christ and the picture of God’s Kingdom.
If you haven’t found this place in life yet; ask God to show you. There is not a better guide, nor any better travel, than the road that leads one down the path to Christianity. Jesus committed to helping us with this; even from the foundation of the world.
Put your trust in Him and take the walk today.
Note to the reader: The writer of this blog has published two books: THE GOSPEL HIDDEN IN GENESIS BOOK ONE OF TWO and THE GOSPEL HIDDEN IN GENESIS BOOK TWO OF TWO. You will love the journey we took through Genesis in the study that provoked the books. They can be purchased on Amazon.com under their titles, and/or Gail Landgraf’s Author page.
So; hurry on over and order your books!
You will be glad you did.