HOME THERAPY SERIES: THE LAW OF ONENESS

"The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tabernacles of the righteous: the right hand of the LORD doeth valiantly" (Psalms 118:15).

A happy home and a blissful marital experience is the absolute will of God for all His children - without exception. It is the unchanging plan of God that our homes should be palaces of jubilation. With the help of God and our active cooperation, this is achievable. Our cooperation is enlisted as we observe the various laws that God has put in place to help us experience marital peace. 

Today, I will share with you one of these keys that will put the grace of God to work in your home. It is what I call the law of oneness. In Genesis 2:24, the Bible refers to the law of oneness when it says the husband and the wife will become "one flesh". Again, the Bible says that the husband, who is the head of the home must give honour to the wife if their prayers would not be hindered and if things would go well in the home (1 Peter 3:7). 

Apart from being one in the sense of two separate entities joining together to become a singular entity, the word translated 'one' in Genesis 2:24 also means 'alike'. Human biology may teach us about the essential differences in the anatomy and physiology of men and women. Psychologists may want to emphasise the emotional dichotomies of the two sexes. But the word of God says the primary thing to consider in order to have peace in the home is that the husband and the wife are alike and must be treated alike. My wife has every right to enjoy whatever I enjoy. 

Again, the word translated 'one' in that verse means 'first'. In other words, in a marriage equation, the husband and the wife are both first. No wonder that the Bible says "Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God" (1 Corinthians  11:11-12). The implication is that God sees you as one and you must also see yourself as one to enjoy God in your marriage. Since my wife and I are both first, we are equally entitled to all privileges available in the home, even if both of us will not use up those privileges all of the time. 

The inevitable conclusion from the foregoing is that the law of oneness in marriage demands that there be equal rights in the home without prejudice to the headship status of the husband. Yes, in God’s order, the man is the head, but he is only first of the two equal parts of the marriage. Equal rights is a fundamental necessity for there to be peace, justice and progress in any human institution. Marriage is no exception. The husband has no right to abuse the wife in any way simply because he is the head. 

There is so much to say about the subject of equal rights in the home, especially between the husband and the wife. However, time and space remain our constraints. But if you want peace in your home, remember the law of oneness and let its principles apply in your relationship with your spouse. Remember also that the just God who made them one is watching to maintain justice in the home (Malachi 2:14-15).