IT IS NOT GOOD THAT MAN
SHOULD BE ALONE
In Genesis 2:18 the Lord declares, “It is not
good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him.” You’ve
read it. I’ve read it. And it sounds ever so lovely. But have we ever stopped
to ask the real reason why it is not good that man should be alone? Let’s find
out.
1.- Man was created for others.
First and foremost if we look at things from a
strictly anthropological angle, man was created for communion and fellowship.
As a recipient of God’s great love, he needed people around about him with whom
he could share the blessings of the Almighty. Man was not made to be alone. God
didn’t create isolated individualistic beings. There is something within man’s
heart that reaches out for others. It forms part of his constitution. Folk that
hide themselves away from community life for prolonged periods of time become
barbaric, mad and uncivilized. Remember that the worst punishment possible for
any prisoner is solitary confinement. Man just can’t make it alone.
2.- Man was created to reflect
God.
But man wasn’t only given a perfect help mate in
order to please him. Eve’s existence was more than anthropologically driven. It
was theological. Adam and Eve together represented the image and likeness of
God on earth. It was only when they were male and female together that God
pronounced them as according to “His own image” (Genesis 1:27)- not a second
sooner. Paul said that any teaching forbidding man to marry was a doctrine of
devils (1 Timothy 4:1-3). When two became one they were able to make known the
glory of God on the earth. How come? Because the God of Scripture is
Trinitarian. God has never been alone. Even before the foundation of the world,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit abode in eternal communion and love.
God delights in others. He lives in the bliss of perpetual togetherness.
3.- Man was created to display
Christ and the church.
It’s not until we get to the New Testament that
we find out another reason why male-female marriage is so important. Ephesians
5:22-33 is a precious paragraph that establishes an analogy between the
husband-wife relationship and the Jesus-church one. Marriage exists to magnify
Christ. It tells us something of the great love between the Saviour and His saved
people. In this portion of Scripture Paul lists various things which make
Christ manifest in a marriage: submission, headship, protection, love,
nourishment, cherishing, union, reverence, etc. In other words, when two souls
get married on earth, their marriage is not an end in itself. It points to a
greater reality, that is, the love between Christ and His flock.
Conclusion
The aforementioned should help us to realize why
it is not good for man to be alone. Evidently some disciples may have the gift of
continence and thus feel no desire for marriage, but even so, that does not
excuse them from embracing the warm hug of human fellowship and fraternity. We
are all created for one another. That is what’s good for us. That is what makes
us reflect God. And that is what displays the love of the Lord Jesus for His
bride.
