Respectfully Leave Your Parents

You may have moved out of their house a long time ago, but have you really left your parents behind?

God did not mince words when He instructed a married couple to leave their parents. The Hebrew word that normally gets translated 'leave' from Genesis 2:24 more fully means "to forsake dependence upon," "lose," "leave behind," "release" and "let go."

Centuries later, Jesus addressed this issue when He said that God never intended for anybody- not in-laws, not mother, not father, not children, not friends, not pastors, not employers- to come between a husband and a wife (Matthew 19:6). No one!

After our wedding ceremony, walking down the aisle together as a couple is symbolically proclaiming to all witnesses that we have left our parents. We have forsaken our dependence upon them for our livelihood and emotional support, and were turning now to each other- for the rest of our lives- as the most important persons in our universe. This public affirmation of our covenant to each other meant, "No relationship on earth, other than my relationship with The Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ and God, is more important to me than the one with my spouse."

If you or your spouse has not fully left mother and father, begin to discuss how you have failed to leave and what you can do today to truly forsake dependence upon your parents and cleave to one another.

You must leave them in order to cleave to your spouse.