Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

Genesis 2:24

This is the essence of biblical marriage: leave, cleave, become one flesh.

First, leave. If the couple does not adequately leave, then the marriage is torpedoed from the start. Honor your parents, love your parents, but look to each other for primary support and direction. You are a new family. Live like it! Beware of undue dependence on your parents.

Second, cleave. The idea of the Hebrew term is permanence. God’s ideal is marriage for life, “till death do us part.” At the beginning of your marriage decide that divorce is not an option for you. If marriage is permanent, if you know that you are sticking together no matter what, then it will make all the difference in how you tackle problems.

Third, become one flesh. One flesh means a oneness at every level – emotionally, spiritually, socially, intellectually, recreationally, physically. The point of the phrase is intimacy, a sense of closeness. You are soul mates, lovers, best friends. You live life together. You pursue a shared life. You are alert to any signs of creeping separateness. And over time, despite many challenges and hardships, you become close, so close you can scarcely believe it.

This is God’s dream for every marriage – a one-flesh marriage. This is the beauty and glory of marriage as God intended it to be.

Make it your dream too and pursue it with all your heart!