The Evolution of Divorce

Read the full article here.

Prior to the late 1960s, Americans were more likely to look at marriage and family through the prisms of duty, obligation, and sacrifice. A successful, happy home was one in which intimacy was an important good, but by no means the only one in view. A decent job, a well-maintained home, mutual spousal aid, child-rearing, and shared religious faith were seen almost universally as the goods that marriage and family life were intended to advance.

But the psychological revolution’s focus on individual fulfillment and personal growth changed all that. Increasingly, marriage was seen as a vehicle for a self-oriented ethic of romance, intimacy, and fulfillment. In this new psychological approach to married life, one’s primary obligation was not to one’s family but to one’s self; hence, marital success was defined not by successfully meeting obligations to one’s spouse and children but by a strong sense of subjective happiness in marriage — usually to be found in and through an intense, emotional relationship with one’s spouse. The 1970s marked the period when, for many Americans, a more institutional model of marriage gave way to the “soul-mate model” of marriage.

Fruit

I wrote about this in an email to a friend recently and thought I’d put it up here for discussion, if any are so inclined.

I had kind of an interesting train of thought the other day. We, in Adam, grasped forbidden fruit to be like God – the creature striving to be the Creator. Christ, humbly, did not think equality with God a thing to be grasped but laid down His perfect life in perfect obedience for our sake. The Righteous for the unrighteous. He Who know no sin became sin THAT we might be the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21). Many have called this the “Great Exchange”.

As a function of that exchange we are given a new nature and sealed by His Spirit. (2 Cor. 5:17; Eph 1:13-14). His Spirit via the new nature bears “fruit”. (Gal. 5:22-23) Fruit is singular in Galatians even though nine attributes, or “slices” so to speak, are mentioned.

So, here is the thought: Christ exchanged the fruit of our sin for the fruit of His Spirit. In striving to be as God, we became as devils. Yet, in His humble obedience, He redeemed us so that one day we will be like Him. (1 John 3:2). He gave us freely through His obedience what we could not grasp in our rebellion.

Translators Will Overhaul NIV

Big news in Christianity Today concerning Zondervan’s pledge to overhaul the TNIV in a move at correcting the “mistakes” made in its gender-neutral slant in translation.