In Matthew 19, the Pharisees came to Jesus asking Him if divorce was lawful. This was not an honest question, but rather an occasion to tempt Him. But, Jesus turned it into an opportunity to teach His disciples and the Pharisees. He goes on to clearly state that God does not approve of divorce under any circumstances, "What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder." He explained that Moses had made an allowance for divorce because of the hardness of their hearts, but it had not been so from the beginning.
But, you may ask, what about the so-called exception clause? Let's look more closely at what Jesus actually said and at the Jewish customs: in Jewish history, the engagement period before marriage was looked on almost as seriously as marriage. A divorce was actually needed to break the engagement promise. Next, Jesus said that the only cause suitable for divorce was fornication. Fornication means intercourse between two people that are not married. So, Jesus was not meaning that it was acceptable for married people to divorce. He was saying that if one of the partners who were engaged to each other was found to have cheated, then the engagement could be broken. In order to do this they would have needed to get a divorce. So, to sum it up, when a couple gets married, they are really promising to stay together until death parts them. Under no circumstances does God approve of a divorce! God isn't saying this to make our lives difficult. He is saying this for our good. As we look at marriage this way, we will work harder to work out difficulties and live together peacefully. Praise God for the wonderful miracle of marriage. May we never break its sacredness.
No comments:
Post a Comment