"You Are A Christian Married To An Unbeliever, What Should You Expect?" By: Dr. Shuffel P. Hepburn

You are a Christian married to an unbeliever, what should you expect. We'll discuss that in this message. The text is taken from 2 Corinthians 6:14.

At the very end of this message there is an anointed prayer of faith for anyone who is in an interfaith or troubled marriage, as well as anyone contemplating marriage, and you do not want to miss that.

The marriage of a believer in Christ Jesus to one who is not a believer commonly referred to as an

interfaith marriage, is potentially one of the most challenging marriages in the world. I say potentially so because some marriages have survived this lethal spiritual imbalance by invoking the power of prayer and by infusing their relationship with love and true dedication.

A Pew Research Report released in 2010 said one in five Americans, 18% to be exact were in this type of marriage between a Christian and a religiously unaffiliated spouse. This can be a huge problem. While it is difficult to find data on the fail rate of interfaith marriages. There are sources that claim that these marriages have a higher rate of divorce

in comparison to same faith marriages. And these sources also say poor communication, an absence of mutual respect for each other, and an inability to resolve religious issues. Are perhaps the main causes of marital stress in these marriages.

Unfortunately, many interfaith marriages would probably be troubled marriages today if they have survived to this point. God's command in 2 Corinthians 6:14 says "do not be mismatched with

unbelievers, for what do righteousness and lawlessness share together, or what does light have in common with darkness?" And this is a powerful warning that there will be problems in this type of

unbalanced marriage. This spiritually uneven relationship is dangerous because the spirit of the living God dwells in the heart of the born again spouse. While the other spouse has not been delivered from the oppression of sin, and can

therefore be controlled by the evil one. Hence the word of God calls it mismatched. Which means it is an unsuitable or incorrect match in God's eyes. Thankfully this is not an entirely hopeless situation.

Father we thank You for Your grace and mercy and we pray Your blessing on this message. We thank You, Lord, that it will go far and wide and that it will transform the lives of Your children everywhere in the world. We thank You and praise You for the anointing of Your Holy Spirit upon this word in Jesus name, amen.

You may be aware that the holy bible says that the two in the marriage shall become one. Yes friend from the time of the institution of the very

first marriage when the lord made Adam and Eve. He declared that a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall be joined to his wife. And they shall become one flesh according to genesis 2 and 24. This was repeated by Jesus Christ Himself according to Matthew 19 and 5 where He said they are no more two but they are one. And He said what God has joined together, let not man separate. The apostle Paul came along and compared the marriage of a man and a woman to the relationship of Christ to His church saying that Christ sanctified and cleansed His church. Implying that the husband cleanses and sanctifies his wife also according to Ephesians 5. And the apostle also said that the husband and the wife are one flesh.

Unfortunately, this oneness cannot be attained in an interfaith marriage unless the unbeliever repents and converts to Christianity.

This warning against an unbalanced or unequally yoked relationship of a believer in Christ with someone who does not believe in Jesus Christ extends beyond marital relationships. It also includes other close relationships and even business partnerships. In other words it applies to people that you hang out with in general or that you spend a lot of time with.

Quite often people make the mistake of thinking that they can marry an unsaved person and then save them or lead them to the Lord after they marry. Most times this turns out to be a fool's

journey because it hardly ever happens according to various sources. Another common mistake is not

making sure that the individual you are about to marry is truly born again through Jesus Christ. There are many who claim to be born again believers in Christ, however there is no evidence of the fruit of the spirit in their life. If the Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of the individual, the Holy Spirit's fruit will be evident in their life.

I assure you day after day some believers in Christ and most especially unbelievers underestimate the power that satan wields in the life of the unsaved

soul. I assure you that this unbalanced relationship will become more complicated almost immediately after the ring is on the finger. There are many living today who bitterly regret their poor choice. There's a popular saying that says love is blind and this is especially true for unmarried couples who are sexually active during the courtship. The devil does not often raise his ugly head meanwhile he begins to sink his hooks deeper into the soul of the unsaved spouse. Then after the marriage is consummated he begins to use his slippery and devious tactics to cause problems, sometimes subtly and at other times in an outrageously clear fashion as he seeks to destroy the marriage. And so it bears repeating that satan has significant control over the individual who does not have Christ in his or her heart.

On this topic it is very important for believers in Christ to adhere closely to the Lord's commands or there will be painful regrets I assure you. And there are misleading views on this topic at various online sites. For instance, one source says that the bible does not offer a single definitive answer on interfaith marriage also saying that many Christian denominations permit or even encourage this kind of marriage. This is not true my friend for any truly Christian church that follow the Word of God for His Word has made it clear from the very beginning that

mismatched marriages will be problematical.

In fact according to Exodus 34:12, the Lord God warned the Israelites as they entered the promised land as follows, be careful that you do not make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going or it will become a snare in your midst. This warning also holds true for every Christian believer. The amplified version of the bible makes this clearer saying "Do not make a covenant a solemn agreement or a treaty with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going or it will become a dangerous trap among you."

Friend a marriage is certainly a covenant and so are business relationships, partnerships that is. In fact the marriage is the first covenant to be blessed by Jesus Christ at the very beginning of His ministry here on earth when He turned water into wine at a wedding feast.

So what are some of the reasons why the Lord discourages interfaith marriages? One, the unbelieving spouse can be used by the enemy to draw the believer into sin. For instance, after warning the Israelites against making a covenant

with the inhabitants of the land, because those dwelling there did not recognize The Father as the one true God. The Lord cautioned them to tear down their altars and smash their memorial stones. In other words tear down everything that related to their worship of false gods so that they would not fall into the trap of worshiping another god. Simply stated bad company can corrupt good manners and this does not apply only to children. Proverbs 13:20 says, "He who walks with wise men will be wise but the companion of fools will be destroyed." In yet another place the word of God says, "Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the company of mockers."

Naive believers in Christ are everyday gathering unsuspectingly with unbelievers and are quietly being deceived into giving less importance to

the word of God and to His commands. Bit by bit without being aware they end up adopting some of the ways and habits of those they fellowship with and this is the way that the devil sets a trap for us. The most effective way that he does this is by planting seeds of evil spirits into the unsuspecting believer in Christ through sexual intimacy.

Number two, when the unbeliever who has no power over sin, falls into sin, satan has legal rights to afflict him. And when he reaches out to strike this individual the unsuspecting believer may be caught in the crossfire.

Reason number three, when the Lord' wrath falls upon the unbeliever because of his sinful ways the believer will be impacted and this can even be lethal.

Of course there are other reasons. Some good news is that the interfaith marriage is still blessed in

a couple of ways. 1 Corinthians 7:14 says "the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife and

the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband otherwise your children would be unclean but now they are holy." And this is the new king James version. The amplified version says that this term sanctified as it is used here means the unbelieving spouse receives blessings granted through the believing Christian spouse and therefore this

prevents the children from being unclean unto the

Lord. It is worthwhile noting here that the implication is that the children of unbelievers might be considered unclean in the eyes of God. I’m not entirely sure if this is what is meant here.

In addition to this the saved spouse is able to pray that the lord would soften the heart of the unbelieving spouse and this will help, however, in most cases this will require long suffering on the part of the believer and I have discovered that the best person to pray for the physical or spiritual healing of an individual is a loving spouse who will lovingly present their spouse before the Lord in prayer every day.

Focus on the family located in Colorado springs gives couples in interfaith marriages four pieces of valuable advice to help them navigate the challenges of their spiritual imbalance. Number one, the couple should respect each other's beliefs. Secondly, they should find common

ground in areas of shared values, morals and life goals. In other words, focus on the things that they can agree upon. Thirdly, the saved spouse should

prioritize God's will whenever possible, keeping His will as the primary focus. And number four the couple should seek wise counsel from trusted mentors pastors or counselors that they both

feel comfortable with and hopefully those agreed upon will be anointed. If interfaith couples can follow these valuable suggestions they will succeed in minimizing the conflicts that satan will be able to create in order to make their marriage hell on earth, and finally destroy it altogether.

And here are some additional suggestions especially for the believing spouse. One, it is important to shift the focus from their struggle to the Savior. Secondly, they should make their spouse their number one priority next to God and the believing spouse should also resist the temptation to pay too much, attention to the other spouse's unbelief. And finally, the believing spouse is encouraged to consider the importance of

living out Godly principles in their own life no matter what happens. Now here's the prayer that I promised you at the beginning.

Father we thank You for this word and we pray Your blessing on anyone listening to this message especially Lord to those who are in troubled marriages, those who are in interfaith marriages. We thank You for cleansing them of all unrighteousness. For pouring out of Your Spirit upon them and giving them wisdom, knowledge and understanding. And putting on the mind of Christ on them. Father in the name of Jesus that they may walk in obedience to Your Word. We pray the peace that surpasses all understanding upon their relationship. Father and we thank You for enduring marriages for all who listen to this message. We pray for those who are contemplating marriage Father oh God that You would open their eyes and give them wisdom, knowledge and understanding to make the right choice. Cause them to hear clearly Your voice and to get Your approval before they take another step. Bless them Father we pray in the holy and the wonderful name of Jesus and protect them from the evil one, that he may not confuse their decision-making process. Bless them today Father we pray in the Holy and the wonderful name of Jesus Christ and we give You all the praise and all the honor and all the glory in Jesus most holy and precious name, Amen.

You've been listening to this message and perhaps you do not know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, we want to give you an opportunity to make that commitment today. Please say this prayer after me.

-Father I am a sinner.

-I am sorry for all my sins.

-Dear Lord I crave Your forgiveness and I thank You for Your patience with me.

-Today I commit myself to Jesus Christ.

-Lord Jesus please come into my heart.

-I give You the key to my heart because I now belong to You forever.

-Please give me the Holy Spirit to lead me into all

truth, to give me wisdom, knowledge and understanding in the Word of God.

-Thank You for saving my soul, Amen.

Welcome friend to the body of believers in Christ. There are many of us here awaiting the return of the Good Master. In the meantime we want to

encourage you to become water baptized as quickly as possible. Let your pastor know that you've given your heart to the Lord and you want to be baptized.

Begin reading the Word of God every day. Begin in the book of John and then go to Matthew mark and Luke reading audibly as often as possible because faith comes by hearing the Word of God. Pray daily, attend at your local church and one glad morning the Savior will come and receive us all unto Himself and we shall forever be with the Lord. God bless and keep you in Jesus mighty name, Amen.