When God brought Israel out of their bondage in Egypt and was leading them through the wilderness, He commanded them, “Let them make a sanctuary for Me that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8). This sanctuary was called the Tabernacle and was later replaced by the temple after the Israelites entered Canaan.
We see from this verse that God had a desire to dwell in the midst of his people. Since the coming of Christ, God no longer dwells in any earthly building. He now seeks to dwell in human hearts and homes. The Lord speaks even today, ‘Build a sanctuary (holy place) for Me that I may dwell with you.’ It is with that purpose that God unites a husband and wife in marriage. They must build their home as a holy place for God to dwell with them.
Building a Home for God’s Glory
Generally, when people get married, they think of building a home for themselves. That is what every non-Christian couple has as their aim. But as believers, if we are to honor the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word, we should not build a home for ourselves. We should build a sanctuary for God to dwell in. This is the fundamental difference between a truly Christian home and a non-Christian home. It is because this is not the aim of many believers that we see so much misery and ungodliness in their homes. They built their home for themselves and not for God.
When people get married, they have great hopes about how happy they are going to be. But six months down the line, as reality settles in, it is a different story altogether. They constantly bicker and yell at each other. By the time they reach their tenth anniversary, many couples are sick and tired of each other. Why is that? Because they were selfishly building a house for themselves. But the word of God teaches us that we can have a happy married life only if we seek to glorify God and build our home for Him.
The purpose of God for married couples is the same as His purpose was for the Israelites in the Old Testament. He brings people together in marriage so that they might build a home for His glory. In Exodus, God gave the Israelites precise building plans for the tabernacle, and they were to build it exactly as He commanded. The Israelites were humble enough to follow God’s plan exactly. As a result, the glory of the Lord rested upon that tabernacle (Exodus 40:34). You also must build your home exactly according to God's plan if you want the glory of God to dwell in your home. Seek to build your marriage exactly as the Lord has commanded in Scripture. Then the glory of God will rest upon your home as well.
Building a Home According to God’s Order
We see bitterness, jealousy, grumbling, and the love of money in many Christian homes. This is not much different from a non-Christian home. The reason is clear: God's glory cannot fill the home, because the couple has not sought to build it according to God's word. Instead, they built their home according to their own reason.
In 1 Corinthians 11:3, we see clearly God's order for the home: “Christ is the head of the man and man is the head of the woman.” We often see these words on a wooden plaque in Christian homes – ‘‘Christ is the head of this home.’’ But in reality, Christ is not the head of the home. When God made Adam and Eve, He gave Adam as the head to Eve. God Himself was the head of Adam. After God joined them together, the very next thing we read in Scripture is that Satan entered the scene. This teaches us that, even today, as soon as God joins a man and woman together in marriage, Satan will come. So, we must be alert. Satan must not be able to enter our homes.
How did Satan get into that first home? It is that Adam and Eve did not follow God's order. When Satan came to Eve and suggested that she disobey God’s command, she should have said, “Well Satan, I can’t take this decision on my own. God has given me a head. Let me consult him first and then I will answer you.” What a different story it would have been if she had done that! But she carried on a discussion with Satan and finally took a decision without consulting her head. She violated God's law, then told her husband also to disobey God. Adam should have told her, “God is my head. Let me consult Him.” But he also did not follow God’s order. If only they had followed God’s order for their home, all the sin, misery, and confusion that there is in the world today would not exist. That is how Satan penetrates many homes and ruins them even today. Psalm 127:1 says, “Except the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.”
The only way the Lord can build our home is if we obey His Word exactly.
