This week I am writing to let you know about two new resources from Biblical Foundations. The first is a new website, www.biblicalfoundations.com. Under the new arrangement, www.biblicalfoundations.com features postings of, or links to, most of my publications, while www.biblicalfoundations.org continues to be the site featuring my weekly blog and other materials and resources. So, please go to www.biblicalfoundations.com some time and check out the new site!
The second new resource is a 12-week discipleship series I am currently teaching at Richland Creek Community Church in Wake Forest, North Carolina. This series is based on my book God, Marriage & Family: Rebuilding the Biblical Foundations and features one-hour lessons and discussions of various topics related to marriage and the family. Please join us on a weekly basis by accessing the following link: http://www.richlandcreek.com/godmarriagefamily.htm. To whet your appetite, here is a brief excerpt from the first session.
“As we argue in our book God, Marriage, and Family: Rebuilding the Biblical Foundation, at the root the current crisis surrounding marriage is a spiritual, not merely cultural, crisis. Now if the root of the problem is spiritual, the solution must be spiritual, too—agreed? I submit to you, therefore, that the solution to our current cultural malaise surrounding marriage and the family is a return to the biblical foundation. To adapt Paul, no foundation can be laid other than the one laid by God himself in his Word.
But when we look, say, at the marriage and family section in our local general or Christian bookstore (there is surprisingly little difference between the two), what do we find? Do we find the thorough, spiritually nurturing treatments of marriage and family that will help us put God first in our marriages? Last night as I was preparing for our class I took a moment to browse through the “Relationship” shelf at the Barnes and Noble, and here are some of the titles that I found:
- Love Smart by Dr. Phil
- Chicken Soup for the Romantic Soul
- Find a Husband after 35
- The Manipulative Man
- How to Succeed with Women
- Be Happy or I’ll Scream!
- The Getting the Love You Want Workbook
- The 7 Best Things (Happy) Couples Do
- The Commitment Cure
- Loving Him without Losing You
- “Honey, Are You Listening?” Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder & Your Marriage
- The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Perfect Marriage
- The Single Girl’s Manifesto
- . . . and the list goes on and on!
Obviously, this is not going to get the job done. Remember, no one when they get married plans to have a divorce. We don’t lack good intentions. We don’t even lack resources, or romantic ideas, or more education, as if that were the cure for our relational problems. What we lack is a commitment to seek God and his kingdom first in this crucial area of our lives. Marriage is not man’s idea—it’s God’s idea. Marriage is a divine institution, not merely a human convention. So if we want to have a God-honoring marriage, we need to go to Scripture where God has revealed that purpose to us.”
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Dr. Kostenberger,
Thank you very much for your book “God, Marriage and Family.” As someone who recently became a father, I find the book both intellectually stimulating and spiritually motivating (as well as practical).
I appreciate the fact that you seem to back up every key statement w/supporting reference material. But one reference is surprisingly missing. You state on p. 98 that mothers have a special care of the children for the 1st decade of their lives. May I ask what support (bible reference/example) you would give to back up that statement?
Thank you.