Quotes on Marriage

A famous cigarette billboard pictures a curly-headed, bronze-faced, muscular macho with a cigarette hanging out the side of his mouth. The sign says, “Where a man belongs.”  That is a lie.  Where a man belongs is at the bedside of his children, leading in devotion and prayer.  Where a man belongs is leading his family to the house of God.  Where a man belongs is up early and alone with God seeking vision and direction for the family.
John Piper
Desiring God, 1996, p. 185

To be like Jesus Christ in relationship to your wife is an enormous order to fill.  You are to be the head of your home, including your wife, just as Christ is the head of the church.  When you fail, you not only fail your wife, you also fail to represent your Lord’s love for His church. That is why your task is such a solemn one.  When you fail to reflect Him in your marriage, you damage His name.  You are called to show forth Jesus Christ by the leadership that you exercise in your home.
Jay E. Adams
Christian Living in the Home, P&R Publishing, 1972, p. 89

Marriage is a call to die (to self), and a man who does not die for his wife does not come close to the love to which he is called. Christian marriage vows are the inception of a lifelong practice of death, of giving over not only all you have, but all you are.  Is this a grim gallows call? Not at all! It is no more grim than dying to self and following Christ.  In fact, those who lovingly die for their wives are those who know the most joy, have the most fulfilling marriages, and experience the most love.
R. Kent Hughes
Disciplines of a Godly Man, Crossway Books, 1991, p. 35-36.

The Christian is supposed to love his neighbor, and since his wife is his nearest neighbor, 
she should be his deepest love.
Martin Luther
Christian Reader, v. 32, n. 3.

Marriage is a picture of Christ and the church. It is a sacred mystery. In fact, the sacredness of Christ’s church is linked to the sacredness of marriage. Christ is the heavenly Bridegroom and the church is His bride (Revelation 21:9). Marriage illustrates this union.The husband is called to be Christlike in his love for his wife because this protects the sacredness of the divine object lesson. The Christian husband therefore displays what he thinks of Christ by the way he treats his wife. And marriage itself is a sacred institution because of what it illustrates.
John MacArthur
Successful Christian Parenting, 1998, p. 180.

Marriage itself is consummated with the literal bodily union of husband and wife. From that point on, the husband should regard the wife as his own flesh. If she hurts, he ought to feel the pain. If she has needs, he should embrace those needs as his own. He should seek to feel what she feels, desire what she desires, and in effect, give her the same care and consideration he gives his own body
John MacArthur
The Fulfilled Family, Copyright: John MacArthur, 2005, p. 68.

God intends and expects marriage to be a lifetime commitment between a man and a woman, based on the principles of biblical love. The relationship between Jesus Christ and His church is the supreme example of the committed love that a husband and wife are to follow in their relationship with each other.
Biblical Counseling Foundation
Self-Confrontation Manuel, Lesson 14, Page 2, Used by Permission of the Biblical Counseling Foundation.