Ok, Here's my thoughts on DATING:
The first thing I want to talk about is: what is a definition for dating?
-Well in my mind it's when a young man and a young lady want to have an emotional and intimate relationship
with little or no intent on getting married.
-Wiktionary said "dating is a form of romantic courtship between two individuals who may or may not expect
marriage (now I want you to think with me for a sec, if i walked up to 10 random people who are dating and asked them if they were going to get married. How many people do you think would say "we are not going to get marred")
-and the definition my mom gave me for dating is, "seeing someone with no intent on marrying them".
So I think most of you would agree when someone dates they have no intent on marrying.
Now, some things I don't like about dating.
-First thing I don't like about it is; most of the time the parents of both parties have little or no say about
what goes on ( like rules or how much time they should spend together, you know, stuff like that) most of the time they're not around! And if you ask me that can get real ugly real fast! Now I want to look at this:
1. What is some of the reasons God gave us Parents?
-Ephesians 6:4 ( I really like the way the ESV said it )
-Proverbs 22:6
-Psalm 127:3-5
-Ephesians 6:1-4
Ok, so to me a Parent is someone who Loves us and cares for us more than we will know, and they have lots of wisdom. So, for them not to be a part of dating in my mind sounds like a really Bad Idea.
2. It's not good for a man to be alone with a girl!
-1 Corinthians 7:1
-2 Timothy 2:22
-James 1 14-15 (really good)
-1 Peter 2:11
-Matthew 5:27-28
No man can be alone with a girl for an extended amount of time and not fall into Sin! If you have some idea about
the Doctrine and Sin Nature of man you will agree with me.
One more thing I don't like about dating is The fact that most of time they have no intent on getting married. Now what are some of the reasons for that?? This is what I came up with:
1. They are too young.
2. They are doing it for the fun of it.
3. They don't have the money/a house/able to support another person.
Now Ii'm sure there are more, but let's just look at those 3:
- Ok, so the first one. They are too young:
-Genesis 2:24 "A Man......." So, you see the Bible says A MAN. This is important to see, why? Because it shows you can take care of a wife. So you see if you're too young to get married, then you should not be dating. You see when your not married and your looking with Lust (Matthew 5:27-28) your Sinning! And you think that's what God wants or that's what his will is??(1 Thessalonians 4:7-8)
Ok, the 2nd one; They are doing it for the fun of it.
....Ok where do I start?
-Matthew 5:27-28
-2 Timothy 2:22
- You know one thing I want you to think about is; What is one of the reasons God made the "Intimate Relationship"? One of the reasons I have heard is that it is an idea of how much God Loves you; look at it this way, when you look at your wife and your heart just wants to bust because you love her so much, that's just a taste of how much God loves YOU; it's just a taste! And doing it for the fun of it is Sick!
Ok, Not having the money/a house/being able to support another person ( to get married)
-If a man doesn't have enough money to take care of a wife; then it is not the right time to get married. If I was a dad, there is no way I would let someone court my daughter if he did not have the money to take care of her...
There is one more thing I don't like about dating, and that is most of the time there is no commitment.
Most of the time it goes something like this. "Hey, I kind of like you, or I have feelings for you, or you're cute; you want to go out? .... something like that.
-Now, you may be asking yourself what's wrong with that?....do you see the reasons we date? "I Like You", So one might ask why do you like me? The thing I hear the most is, "We have a lot in common", (now don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with that), But when that's the only reason.... that can be dangerous. Why? Because that can change. Now, what better place to look than Proverbs??
- I looked at Proverbs and 31:10 is really good, but really you could look from 31:10 through 31 and find A LOT of good stuff!!
One more thing I really dislike about dating; Most of the time the young man goes right to the young girl and asks her to be his girlfriend; or if she would like to go out sometime. Now, I'm going to use a story that Paul Washer used and I really like:
Ok, Let's say I get a call from my dad (who is my boss, btw) at 8:30 am and he says" Matt, we have a big problem at the Commons, (where I work). I need you there right now. There was a fire. So, I fall out of bed, get ready, find my keys, and head out the door to find.... my truck is gone!!! Now I'm freakin out; I have no idea were my truck is! I call my friends; I call the cops, and I'm sitting there wondering what to do, and then at about 12:30 you pull up in my truck! Young dumb little punk you. And you hand me the keys and say, "Thanks Matt I sure had fun"! What do you think I'm thinking about this young man right now?? Well, 1st thing is... I'm going to kill him....but also I'm thinking he does not respect me or my truck......now, if that's how I feel about a truck; think how much more a girl means to her dad. You see guys have NO right to go around the the father. He is the one that God has set over her (Deuteronomy 6:6-9, Exodus 20:12), it is wrong for the guy to do that!
I have covered a lot here. I hope it is helpful to you. One last verse I want to leave you with:
Hosea 4:8
