Building Godly Marriages and 'God Kids' (Mal. 2:10-16)

We have One God, who is Creator. We have One God of covenant. He brings covenant people together in marriage, and He makes two people One. One, One, ONE!

Now Malachi has a question: Why One? “Why did You make them One?” And the answer is: Because He desires godly offspring!

Have you got it? There is one God, Creator, and there’s one God of covenant. This covenant God brings a man and woman together and makes them one!

He makes them one in two different ways! First of all, there is a spiritual oneness. In fact, He talks about them being “One in flesh, and spirit” (2:15). What does that mean? It means that when two believers in the covenant—the new covenant we have in Jesus now—come together, God makes them one. It is a spiritual oneness predicated on God being witness and God doing something in their lives as He brings them together! But then, there is oneness in flesh! What does that mean? It means that there is, and here’s the technical word, “a consummation of that which God has done!”

So when you actually stand at a wedding, something remarkable is happening! Two people, under the covenant relationship with God the Father through Jesus, having been brought together, now stand in front of their family and friends and God—the witness—to make their vows to each other. And as they do, the Spirit of God works in their lives and makes two people one! Then they go on their honeymoon and—I don’t think I’m giving away any secrets here—it is not unusual on their honeymoon, hopefully, for that marriage to be consummated! And now they are one in flesh!

You did notice the order, didn’t you? I don’t know if you are aware of this, but the people who insist on engaging in sexual oneness without God first uniting them in spiritual oneness are simply re-enacting a lie!.

When God makes two people one in marriage, in spirit and flesh, guess what happens? Little offspring often come along. It’s quite normal! In fact, it’s more than normal; it’s divinely intended! God intends that because these “little ones” were brought into this covenant family, then it is incumbent on the parents who care for the child to bring up the child to become what the Creator God of covenant intended the child to become. The child is intended to become godly offspring! Makes sense, doesn’t it? One, one, one, and one, and now we’ve got a little one! The expression “godly offspring,” is not a very good translation of the Hebrew. “Godly” is an adjective, “offspring” is a noun; in the Hebrew it’s two nouns—literally a “God offspring.” Another way of putting it could be a “God kid,” that is “a child of the covenant”!

Jesus was a Child of the covenant, a “godly offspring.” His parents brought Him to the temple on the eighth day, He was circumcised, He was a Child of the covenant! Now, we have a little clue about how He was brought up! We are told that “Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and men.” So this is what you can realistically expect to see in a “God kid” who has been brought up in favor with God and in favor with man. The parents will be making absolutely certain that that child is developing and maturing normally in a balanced way.