Article March 28, 1970 Issue

The Bible Speaks to You

RADIO PROGRAM NO. 416

Parker Thomas, Harlan Witham

[The participants are Parker Thomas, who is a Christian Scientist, and Harlan Witham, who is not a Christian Scientist .]

Witham: People probably expect too much of marriage. I'm sure that is why in some countries divorce rates are so high. It's not easy to keep a marriage intact, especially when the husband and wife may drift apart and develop different interests.
Thomas: I realize that, because as an attorney I see many couples each morning in the divorce court.
Witham: I wonder if people really aren't expecting too much of marriage in this time of change?
Thomas: Actually, I feel that many are not expecting enough of marriage. Through genuine unselfish love and mutual encouragement marriage can help couples attain growth in character they might not so readily attain otherwise.
Witham: But when people have been married five or six years, they can feel discontented, disillusioned, even trapped. Where is this love and encouragement you mentioned going to come from?
Thomas: It comes from a higher source than mere shared experiences, affection, common goals or interests, as valuable as these are. The source of intelligent love and understanding that both partners need is divine Love, inexhaustible Love, which is God.

As the Bible brings out (I John 4:8), "God is love." This is the basis for love that Christ Jesus called for when he said (John 15: 17), "Love one another." The love that God maintains cannot be limited or cut off. We read in Song of Solomon (8:7), "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it." Basing their marriage on love of this character helps a couple attain the highest and fullest expression of their real identity and the potential of each of them.