Remarriage is Adultery
Like a person who went through divorce myself I wanted to find out why so many divorces? And among Christians, supposedly! My divorce was not by choice. I did not want one, but we cannot our spouses for not wanting to live with us because they quit loving us, or found someone else, or just got tired of the responsibilities of being a husband or a parent.
I knwo there are different situations out there. You are probably saying that it wasn't you who wanted the divorce. I feel for you. In those situations you cannot stop the other from leaving. In fact the Word of God says in 1 Cor 7 that if the non-believer wants to leave, you just let him or her go. Now, God did not say it was going to be easy, but that one cannot force one to be with them.
Yes, ideally, or better said, if we are believers we should not even think about divorce, yet how many of us in a moment of anger express that desire or threat, just so we can vent. Ideally our husband should loves us, our wives should submit, and our pastors should preach against divorce and remarriage. But they do not. Why? Because their relationship with God is not good either. Becuase the fear of God has left the homes and the churches.
There is a false kind of understanding of what love really is. Love has become very conditional even among churchgoers. " I stay with you as long as you love me and treat me right. When I had enough, I am out of here". Listen folks, that is Americanism talking. If you really call yourself a beliver in Christ then you need to accept the suffering. Well, you can disagree with me or those who believe like me, but what did Jesus say? He said that if someone slaps you on one cheek, to turn the other. How did he show His love to those who mistreated Him? Aren't we supposed to follow in His footsteps? But, that is not what we do. We go and sue each other, pull the " I forgive you, but will not let you do it again card" ( make sure you tell God to use that card with you), and we break up our marriages and families.
See, God said, that when a wife and a husband join together, she becomes his flesh and blood. Remember Adam? "This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh". Adam had a right view of marriage. Your wife becomes your flesh and blood and your husband is the same. So how come we get rid of our spouses and not our children? I am not saying we should, but I am just trying to let you see something. If our children are our flesh and blood, which they are, and we do not get rid of them because of that reason, then if God says your spouse is your flesh and blood, then how can we call God a liar and say to Him that, that flesh and bloos will not be our flesh and blood once we divorce! Jesus said that yoru wife is your body: it is you, husbands. So, if you consider flesh and blood only your child and not your wife, you are calling God a liar. And if you children cannot become non-flesh and blood, then how can your spouse?
People really do not understand what marriage is. See in that union is not just you and your spouse that come together. It is not about Jane and John who come together. It is about the office of marriage that God created and whoever steps into it it gets locked in because God is in it. Dont you think that if God created marriage, He knows what He created and what marriage really is?
The world has not invented it, God did. So, how come we let the world define what marriage is? Society changes. Long time ago only a man and a woman was considered in a marriage. Today two men or two women can be married. Is that what really marriage is? Can we follow the world's view of marriage? If tomorrow they say we can marry animals then is that ok?
God created marriage and He defines it. When you enter into marriage it is you, your spouse, and God into covenant. A covenant cannot be changed except through death.
We all heard about the Old Covenant and New Covenant. Until Jesus died, the Old Covenant still stood. Once He died, a New Covenant came, because it is then when Jesus entered into a love relationship with the Church, through a New Covenant. The old one had to be doen away it and it could only happen through death: Christ's death.
So, Proverbs chapter 2 says, that it is woe of the woman that leaves the husband of her youth and FORGETS the covenant with her God. It doesnt say, the covenant was broken, or diluted, or deleted, or cancelled by court. It says it has been forgotten. The Covenant was not only between you and your spouse , but between you and God, too. So, in order for a covenant to be broken should not all parties agree to get out? If you leave and your wife doesn't and God doesn't then how in the world can one believe because you chose to leave God left with you to join you into another marriage covenant?
Paul said, talking about dying to the Law to marry Christ, to become another's that we had to die to MR LAW inr oder to marry Jesus. Only through death to theprevious husband or spouse, we can become another's. 1 Cor 7:40 He says, that a wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. Not as long as he leaves, or divorces, or he finds someone else. It is not the law of the country that binds one...because nowadays you can have common law marriage with no paperwork. It is the law of marriage created by God Himself.
Yet, I can hear the protests and excuses, " Well, she is a an adulterer. He is abusive or she is abusive. He is crazy. I am bored. We jsut do not love each other anymore." Then pray!!!
Your spouse is your flesh and blood. She or he is your family. What do you with your child if they are in drugs and make your life hard? You go and find yourself another child? You go and take care of someone else's child? It is family and family takes care of family. You do not enter into a marriage thinking everything will be perfect. We are humans. You are marrying a fallen person. And they might have a hard time in their life where they need your prayers and support and love. Becuase next time it could be you.
Satan tries to devour families. We are not made of stone and you need to watch out for him to protect your family andif he attacks you do not abandon them but be there to protect them because you belive God when he says in Ephesians 6 :11 and on that you do not wrestle against flesh and blood. It is not your spouse attackign you it is satan through them. You have to engage the right enemy and fight for your family.
" Well, it is too hard. I cannot do it anymore!" You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. It is your family. Your wife is your own body. Marriage is more then just getting along with someone. I can find a dog to get along with. It doesn't mean they are my spouse! We are supposed to represent the marriage relationship between Christ and the church, so how do you think it would look like if Jesus turned against His own body, the church?He is a good husband and every husband needs to copy His attitude and every wife is supposed to submit to her husband as the church submits to Christ. And that is something I finally had to come to terms with because we have this nasty teaching in the church that says we women we are equal with men. Ladies, we are not equal. Yes, we are equal in salvation and as value before God, but we are not equal in roles. I wish someone taught me mroe about that before my marriage has failed. No wonder we have divorces, because we are not following the order God created.
Can the church have the same role as Christ? Are we equal to Christ? This is not about feminism and what the world thinks. this has nothing against women. I used to be oen of the most pro-feminist woman on the planet.
We are supposed to show the relationshop between Christ and the church. What kind of relationship do you think God has in mind? One where the church is the head of Christ? Where Christ constantly hurts the church and tells her she is too sinful to be loved and that He "forgives but doesn't forget?" If I remember well, He says He removes our sins and throws them into the sea of forgetfullness. Now, that it forgiveness!...choosing to forget. Now if someone chose to forget then it is like you never did anything agaisnt them and how many marriages would prosper if a husband said, " I represent Christ to you and the world and I choose to forget what you did and we can start over". Same goes for wives.
But, ahh, the other tempting woman on the fence. She can lure you and pull you and talk sweet to you and make you feel " complete".Read the consequences in Proverbs chapter 2 and chapter 5 thru7.Or the other man over there, he can really meet your " needs". The only need you have is Jesus. Don't you know that everything new wille eventaully become old? If that is how we measure or loyalty and commitement until the "newness" wears off then we are better off not marrying then breaking people's hearts. Satan will come in a moment of weakness and he will tempt you with your weakness. Do you know how you can tell someone's weakness and what could make them fall? Look at what sin they live in most of the time. So, girls if your boyfriend was a player, you better pray for him and make sure he is changed or run from him. Break up before it is too late. Because the same temptations will come back and you need to make sure you marrying a godly man before you tie that knot. Once tied you are locked in.
God says, that every remarriage is adultery. What is adultery? It is cheating on your spouse. So let's rephrase that. What God is saying is this: " He who marries aka gets a marriage license with another woman after leaving his wife, cheats on his wife". Right? Well, if the woman you marry was God was ok with for you to be with, then you wouldn't be cheating on her, would you? Now if God says you are cheating on your spouse, then He acknowledges that you already have a spouse. He doesnt say this new person is your spouse becuase then He would not say you were cheating aka committing adultery. In the Old testament the moment you said I do, you would get stoned...now we do not do that today, but God still sees it the same sin.
So, how come we belive we can say, " Oh God forgave me for cheating on my spouse but now I am married and I have to stay here?" Didn't you hear He said if you " marry" you cheat? The marriage with this new person is cheating. And when God convicts us of something, shouldn't we stop doing it? That paper you got, the license you got, God calls it adultery or cheating on your spouse." Well, God forgives adultery. It is not the unpardonable sin". Again, what is adultery? Cheating. So, if He forgives your cheating and the marriage is the cheating and by that God acknowledges that you have already a spouse, then doesn't that mean that God considers that license adultery? YEs, God forgives adultery not marriage! Marriage to your first spouse is not sin. Where do we get this idea that once God forgives adultery, the marriage is dissolved between you and the person He just said you were cheating on? Sin gets forgiven. Marriage is not sin, so it still stands. If we steal something and repent doesn't that mean we need to stop stealing? " Well, I am stealing now, so sorry Lord, but I am still going to continue doing it". How come we can discern that, but not marriage? Do you know how? Because we do not want to discern marriage. We enjoy our sins. We enjoy being hard -hearted and then we expect God to be merciful towards us. Havent you read the parable of the unforgiving servant. He was forgiven for his debt, but when his turn was to forgive, he did not. So then he got thrown into jail until he paid everything back. And then Jesus said: this is what Father will do to anyone who doesn't forgive with all his heart his brother. You will not escape until yuou pay everything to God.Forgiveness is more than a word. It is maiking it right. If you cheat. STOP IT! The marriage is sin because God doesn't see it as marriage. So get out of it. Yes, get a divorce. The world calls it divorce, but God calls it "loving yuour spouse whom you already have a covenant with that can only be broken through death".
" Well, a second divorce?" Yes, becuase it is not marriage. Well, God forgave. No He did not. He doesn't forgive sin you are still committing( Matthew 5:25). Even if He did, it doesnt delete your previous marriage. You are already bound by a person and God. For God to join you into this other" marriage" it would mean for Him to violate His character and word and lie and say, " Oh, ok since you got out of the covenant then I will, too". Does God take back His Word Is He a liar? If He takes back His Word then how can we trust Him? Then He is not reliable.He would have to leave this covenant to bind you to another. Which we know He doesnt because he hates divorce. And we need to hate it, too. But there are spouses calling their husband or wives and putting them down and boasting with their new person. Thye are loving their divorces and then they say they follow Jesus. Not sure which Jesus bc that is not the Jesus of the Gospels. He hates divorce and if you follow Him, you would hate it, too. You wouldnt show off with yoru sins. The book of Jude, you know it is only one chapter, says that there are people that are foaming their shame-and that is what some of us do. We let oru shame rise up and have no more shame and we show it off for everyone to see, including our children. Then we pray with our kids in one room and committ adultery with ther mom or dad in the other! Abomination! " Mommy why can't we go back with daddy?" " Well, this is my husband now. But I love Jesus". And the kids is wondering how in the world is that love if yuou cannot forgive their dad or their mom? Is that the thing we are modeling to our kids? That forgiveness and love is conditional?
Do you know what true repentance is? Change. A true repentant says, " God, I am so sorry I did what I did, that I wish I could change it. I want to change it". And then he or she sets off making things right. Apology should be first to the persons you hurt. It is not just saying a lame " sorry" to God and we pretend everything is fine now. Make things right! Someone who is truly repentant will never say they are gald they did what they did now. It clearly exposes the lie and the fake "repantance". God said, "These people honor Me only with lips, but their hearts are far away from Me". God doesnt want your lip worship, your lip praise, your lip "sorry", etc. He wants your heart changed which in turn leads to a changed behavior. You died and Christ lives now and if you are not living , but Christ then people should see Christ all the time and if they don't then it emans He is not living. You are! Selah.
......Please understand, I know this is a hard issue. I know some of us have messed up our lives so bad and now we have kids with these other people and we feel for the kids... I understand. Sin can sure whip us and make a mess of our lives. Some of us have kids with 2 and 3 persons. Which kids deserve better for us to keep the family whole? Do your kids with the second person deserve more than the first kids?
The kids are the innocent persons here. It is sad.
...... But I have been thinking about something. My dad was married before he married my mom. All my life I have been sad about the fact that they did not live together and I do not know what it means not to have my parents together living in peace. But when God showed me this truth ( and I am not the only one that belives like this; I will give you later some websites to check out and decide for yourself) I realized that I would not want my mom and dad back because I love them enough to know I would rather them go to Heaven then live in sin for me to be happy and then them end up without Christ in hell. I cannot be that selfish. I am not an accident. God gives life, but my parents blinded by satan, sinned. I was born in sin. The truth is we all are already.
Listen, if you have kids with other people but your first spouse, and since God considers that not a marriage, then it is just like having kids out of wedlock only you already have a spouse home, broken and maybe even sinful that needs your help, support, and prayers. The truth is that the greatest gift you can give to those kids you had with the other person, is truth.
Leave a legacy that says, " Mommy made a mistake and I had to leave to show you that it is not ok to do what I did. For your marriage sake my dear children. For the generations to come. I blew it, but I love you and will take care of you the best I can. Please forgive me. "
I committed adultery. After my husband left, the pain was unbearable. I cried almost 90 days in a row. I still cry sometimes. And there was no one here to comfort me through most of my crying and depressing days. No, I did not want to remarry. Even the day before the "wedding" I still was thinking about my husband. I just wanted to have someone there for me. Rebound. Kill the pain. Love me. Yes, I had feelings for him( but not real love bc one cannot love someone while still lovign another), but the truth is it did not feel right to be with someone else. I did not have many boyfriends either when I was younger. I gave my virginity to my husband. Those who mess around a lot before marriage, it is easier for them to leave their spouses. Parents, do not let your kids date and date. It will not benefit their marriage. Those of you who went through the pain of divorce know that you do not want your child go through that. But you have to lead by example and that is why I say that the best thing you can give a child is truth. If you call yourself a follower of Christ then show them how Christ treats his Bride. Go back and love your wife. Let the children see that you cannot just leave and if circumstances are such that it is hard to live with someone because of abuse, do not remarry. You are bound. Pray for that person. God is giving you an opportunity to make a difference through prayer and unconditional love. Everything we do we are supposed to do just as we were doing it for Jesus. When your spouse is acting ugly, you have the chance to act like Jesus and He will reward you. It will also change you. God did not give you your spouse to show tough love. He allows certain things in our lives to change us. And I am afraid so many of us are running away from the shaping and we tell God, " I do not want You to use this circumstance or person to shape me. Stop it or I will stop it myself". And you become lord over your own live. But you know it will not stop. If you run out from God's protecting shield by blunt disobedience then He will allow satan to have you and you know satan has no mercy.
It is sad that kids are put into those kinds of situations, but more than having a mom and dad together while they are living in sin is passing down to them truth. So, when they grow up they will remember that yes, my daddy or mommy made a mistake, but they corrected it, teaching me therefore that I should not do that one day. It is not ok. If you do not change and lead by example, how long do you think your "truth" will stand? Or how long do you think your kids "truth " will stand? Truth is not relative. There are standards we have to live by. We are His children. Sons and daugthter of the King. We need to have principles to live by. Marriage is not something that changes with society. To the world it is, but not to the author of it. Marriage is an absolute truth just like the truth that cannot be changed that Jesus is the only way to God. "In the beginning it was not so", Jesus said therefore disagreeing with humnistic mentality. He also said, " But I say..." Yet we pull put Moses' laws and say , " Well, in Deutoronomy it is written you cannot go back to your first spouse"...Are you kidding me? Jesus said, " Moses said this because of your hardened hearts..but I SAY". Jesus os bigger than Moses and if Moses was there when Jesus said this, he would have bowed down and woshipped Him and he would have told everyone to listen to Jesus. If you still follow the OT rule on this, you are obeying Moses not Jesus. You are under the Old Covenant ( the Old Lease which Hebrews says it is almost gone..perishable). We all know that if the terms of your lease change or the terms of your mortgage change, you cannot say, " I don't care. I will use the old terms to my benefit". Yeah..maybe they benefitted you more then, but it is OUT. Try following the old mortage terms and ols lease terms, see if you will have a loan anymore or a place to live! God doesn't go by those rules anymore. Isn't is sad that we use the Old Terms to justify what we are doing and then the New Lease to get forgiveness for what we are doing. Make up your mind! Did you know in the OT if you dis-virgined a girl before marriage, you had to marry them and you were not ever allowed to divorce her? We cannot pick and choose. Jesus has come and He showed perfection, forgiveness, and love. You and I have no more excuses in having a hard heart. If you still do, then you are not the follower of Christ, but Moses'. And even Moses did not like the rules he gave, but he was influenced by the hardness of their hearts. Jesus never said that Moses gave those laws because God told him, but he let the hardness of the hearts of his people influence his decisions. Selah.
....Would you like someone treat your child (on the account that well their spouse will marry someone else and ask for forgiveness later) like you treated your spouse? Your spouse is someone's daughter and someone's son. And it is not only them hurting. Your kids, their parents or other family members are hurting with them, too. That is why God hates divorce. It has a domino effect.
And sadly most of us made mistakes even the ones that chose to leave. To say that you had no mistakes, you say you are better than the other person and you deserve better. That is what the world tells you.
Let me give you just another scripture why one is bound still even after divorce. In Matthew 19:9 says that whoever marries the one abandoned ( or as we call it the "innocent" party), he commits adultery with her. Well, if she is free, how can he commit adulteyr ( or cheat on the spouse)? Unless she is not free.
I know it is a hard topic. But the church in America and in the world is full of people living in adultery. It is time to forgive your spouse and time to change yourself and show ALL kids the truth and live it before them.
Listen, your relationship with the other person will not work anyway. Psalm 127 says that if the Lord doesn't build a house, it will not be built. And we all know God did not want you to beark your spouses heart, commit adultery and join someone else. Through suffering we will enter the Kingdom of God, Jesus said. And sometimes our spouses are acting like humans and sometimes they are just sinful. If 1 Cor 7 says not to leave a sinful ( non-believer spouse) spouse, only if they want to, then how can we justify to leave at all anytime, if we are the better people, the Christian people? We are supposed to represent Christ. Marriage is more than finding someone I get along with. It is the picture of Jesus and the Bride. Divorce shows the opposite: it is unforgiveness, brokeness, pain, depression and more. Think about it. If it really was God, then why is there no peace in your soul? The Kingdom of God ( or the dominion of the King, or wheere He reigns) is peace, joy, and truth.
I am not with that other man anymore. I listened to well-meaning pastors. Yes, I wasnt a good wife to my husband. Some of the things I have done are too embarrassing to mention. My rebellion because of this feminism also affected my marriage.
Now God has changed me. I drew closer to Him more than ever. I feel like I just got saved after the divorce. Its like a never knew Jesus before. I understand my role as a woman and I accept it which I did not before. I represent the church in relation to Christ. I never should go over my head: Christ. Too sad that, my husband did not love me enough to separate and pray for me.
In our selfishness and anger we run into other relationships thinking we will be happy or to show our spouse, "I will show him. Or show her!" The truIth is we get ourselves into more trouble, children are passed back and forth against their will, and many hearts still broken.
But I forgave and I cannot believe I entered into another relationship with a man and displayed this relationship in front of my child. Good thing it only lasted 2 months! That is not the message I want to send to my daughter. I apologized to her, to my "ex" husband, and to others, too for doing that.
God was showing me the truth, but I did not want to see it, and listening to pastors and preachers and friends only led me deeper into sin.
I am free now because God has mercy on me. He loves me. I do not cry every day anymore. He has become my provider, my husband, and the one who satisfies me. I am so glad He saved me from sin and adultery( my adultery was when I remarried). I could have died and end up in hell.
Besides He Himself speaking to me, I had some amazing people, who believe the Lord, teach me the truth. Check out
And I ask for your forgiveness too as a believer. May God bless you! May His face shine upon you! May He protect you and give you peace!
Check out my other websitewww.rejoiceministries.org and also www.cadz.net ( very powerful).www.csillaelam.com and thanks for reading. Please feel free to comment.
Published by Csilla Elam
I was born in Romania, Transylvania, and moved here about 10 years ago. I am a Christian and passionate about Jesus. I play guitar, tutor, and interpret. View profile
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Post a CommentDIVORCE - REMARRIAGE Jun, 2012
Recognizing the Crises
What is the right teaching on divorce-remarriage? Its my opinion that we need to take a long hard look at this disastrous conduct that is spreading destruction to the American family unit. Has this issue long since been settled? Please lend me your ear. Repeatedly, I was encourage by a brother at church to do my own study of this topic. He kept saying to me that we were teaching error on divorce and remarriage. Usually my rebuttal was that I wasn’t aware that we were doing any teaching at all on the subject. But more specific he said we were doing false teaching on the two verses in Matthew that have the “exception clauses”, Matthew 5:32 and 19:9. So, I began a detail revealing study that lasted for over a year. My conclusions shook me up some because it changed my views on marriage, divorce and remarriage later referred to in this paper as MDR
I am 78 years old and over the past 60 years I have seen a very alarming , escalating trend in our society and culture that is disturbing to say the least. The crisis is marriage, divorce and remarriage. It is rapidly destroying our country . It is shattering families and it is happening across all of “Christendom” (the Christian World). The divorce rate in America is around 50% and if the figures included those cohabitating the rate would be even higher. Just recently I read where the figure was approaching 75% in some area in California. The divorce courts in America are putting asunder approximately 9,000 marriage partners daily, affecting around one million children annually. A few sources were quoted as saying that the divorce rate was slightly higher in those who claim to be Christians (Christendom) than non-believers. Huh ? How can this be?
What kind of a black mark and influence is this to the false religions of the world?
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Sound, scriptural, non-institutional churches are not exempted. Of course the divorce rate is not nearly as high in the Lord‘s church but it is on the increase and becoming more common. Why is this happening in the Lord’s church (the bride of Christ)? God forbid. The church(Christians) are suppose to be the light of the world and pillar and ground of the truth. Its affecting many families in the church now, elders, deacons, ministers alike. My own immediate family is included.
The reason for this article is to draw attention to this cancer and ask ourselves. WHY ? Its my opinion, as well as many others, that we could even be interpreting the scriptures and giving the wrong meaning to Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9. After studying the issue for over a year, I doubt that anyone will ever convince me again that a person can divorce his mate for being unfaithful and marry again without committing adultery. How ironically and sad that God’s truth has not been brought to the light (not taught) to the common people by the very ones who ought to bring understanding, our elders and ministers. A similar situation existed in the days of Jeremiah when the religious leaders were telling the people of his day that “all is well” when doom was just around the corner because the land was full of adulterers. see Jeremiah 23: 9-14. There were many false prophets in the land that told the people what they wanted to hear. Jeremiah said that both prophet and priest were profane (secular) vs11.
Every Generation Must Search the Scriptures
I believe every generation has got to search the scriptures and determine what the truth is on any subject. I am keenly aware
of more devout men than I in the past have written books on
this subject. Does this mean that I have to take their conclusions on MDR and not study the issue myself?. There seems to be
“air” in the Lord’s church, a feeling of intimidation , not to even
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study the subject because of all the material that has been
written on this controversial subject in the past as if the matter has long since been “settled“. After seeing what has happened over the past 50 years this “settlement” has certainly been a detriment to the sanctity of marriage to millions of families. They have been ripped apart because of false teaching or no teaching at all on MDR. The “exception clause” has been misapplied for so long now that is it going to take a couple of generations of teaching the truth to extricate or lift us out of this “adulterous generation” quagmire. The general liberal denominational, or Christendom’s view of MDR is in error and to think that we have been on their bandwagon for at least 50 years.
Of course false doctrine and teaching is not the only factor. Some things will likely get worse during the coming years such as the signs of the times and influences from the world. Attitudes such as the “Lord wants me to be happy” with no kind of restraints or lines drawn in the sand. This belief is common and borders on humanism and I’m a “free spirit” to do as I please. Sure, the entertainment industry, movies and television will definitely not change and if anything will get worse. We have immoral shows because the producers themselves are immoral. The programs and movies are a reflection of their lifestyles. A new network program this year is “Happily Divorced”. Hollywood is synonymous with adultery.
The Confusion Around Matthew 5:32 and 19:9
The Lord did not intend for the scriptures to be difficult to understand, I think all we have to do is just look at the context closely and the truth will reveal itself.
Basically my study has been on two verses in the New Testament. Both are found in the book of Matthew, Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9. These are the verses that contain the “exception
.
clause”. False teachers on the subject have turned the
“exception clause” into the “deception clause” by ignoring other
scriptures and other words of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
My study has led me to a stance or position because of what I see in the Word of God. My conclusions were not influenced by subjective, emotional feelings. I have not taken scriptures out of context, I have rather tried to mesh them together. I did believe once upon a time that a man could remarry if he had a living mate but this study put that line of thinking behind me.
The claim of the one exception the Savior gave is not actually grounds for divorce at all. It is merely the erasing or annulling of a relationship in which the parties were not joined by the Creator at all. Only death unbinds a bound marriage. fornication( porneia), not adultery, is a valid reason to put away a betrothed wife (Mary was called Joseph’s wife before they came together) with the right to marry another if acted upon before consummation as in the case of Joseph and Mary.
If you cannot agree with me or grasp the following point then you might as well discard this whole article. And that is, in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus said several things that applied to the Jewish audiences(Scribes and Pharisees) that we need to leave in the exact context in which they were said. They were made
under the time dispensation of the old law in which Jesus lived.
Some of the subjects discussed by Jesus were not directed to Christians.
Look closely at the two verses in Matthew 5:32 and Mt 19:9. Understand the remarks of Jesus in the two verses and just who He was talking to. The two verses in Matthew that contain the exception clauses need to be left in the exact setting in which Jesus put them. They were directed to subjects of the old law starting with Mt 5:20 and continuing thru end of the chapter
And Mt 19:9 has more special application to exactly what the Scribes and Pharisee’s ask Him. Keep in mind there were other
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things that Jesus said in the Gospels to the Jewish people that are not for Christians. What would be your reply to me if I said
“today we are to leave our gift at the altar” from what Jesus said in Mt 5:24 and Mt 8:4 says to “offer the gift that Moses commanded you”?. I know that there is some application that
can be drawn for Christians about bringing your gift to the altar and today‘s riches. He also told them when fasting to anoint their heads and wash their faces Mt 6:17. Does this have application today? A person defending that a sexual sin is grounds for divorce and remarriage today because of what Jesus said in Matthew without looking at other verses in the N.T. is the same as the following analogy. Suppose I were to tell you that for salvation or to inherit eternal life that I needed to keep the old law from what Jesus said in Mt 19:16. A Jewish man came to Jesus and ask Him “what thing shall I do to inherit eternal life?“ Jesus replied “keep the commandments” Again Jesus gave a commandment to a Jewish man (in which he outlined the old law) that was not for a Christian. You would quickly tell me that “Jesus was not addressing those remarks to us.” I would reply "well said." By the same reasoning, the two “exception clause verses” in Matthew were directed to Jewish people that were living under the Old Law.
So here is a partial list of subjects and counsel for Jewish audiences that Jesus addresses in the book of Matthew. One
can see from the context and setting that He was not talking to Christians in these verses.
1. Bringing gifts to the altar, Mt 5:24
2. Ceremonial Washing for Fasting, Mt 6:17
3. Divorce-remarriage, Mt 5:31-32, 19:3-9
4. Eternal Life(Salvation), Mt 19:16 ff
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The Meaning of Fornication or “Porneia”
For this study to be complete one has to understand the meaning of the word fornication or “porneia” in Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9. Care should be taken not to take the definition of fornication from religious dictionaries or commentaries which in some cases are compiled and written as to slant biblical topics to there own religious philosophies and doctrine. We will try and be cautious and not do this here.
The bible itself is its own best commentary and it defines fornication within its pages. Adultery and fornication are listed as separate sins in Gal 5:19, I Cor 6:9 and Mk 7:21. So the meanings are different. Several times the bible uses fornication as an all encompassing terms for illicit sex (scripturally unlawful). The context sometimes identifies the specific act of fornication as pre-marital sex in I Cor 7:2 and John 8:41( from implication to Mary). Also, unlawful or incest is fornication from reading I Cor 5:1.
Our Righteousness Must Exceed
Look at the context of the 5th chapter of Matthew and underline verse 20. “Unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees you will by no means enter into the Kingdom of Heaven“. And then subsequently He mentions these subjects and the application from the Old Law to a more righteous action for a Christian. Starting with verse 21 He mentions murder, bringing gifts to the altar, committing adultery, divorcing ones wife, swearing, an eye for an eye taking one to court, love your neighbor-hate your enemy. But along with each Law He lifts His teaching to a higher spiritual ground for the Christian than what was taught in the Old Law and He tells them what is expected of them. Apparently the Jewish custom had deteriorated (because of the traditional influences of the Scribes and Pharisees) to the point all that you had to do to
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put away a wife was to give her a writing or certificate of divorcement, from Mt 5:31. There are no indications in the Pentateuch(old Law) that divorce was ever allowed for adultery. Under early Mosaical times, fornicators and adulterers were stoned, Ex 20:10 and Deut 22: 22-24. In Deut 24:1, it is here that Moses said a writing of divorcement maybe permitted if a man marries a wife and finds "some uncleanliness in her" meaning pre marital-sex or fornication has occurred. It was from this that Jesus reminded them and used the exception clauses in Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9. Many men of the Old Testament married more than one wife. On studying the Jewish culture and customs one finds that wives were put away in favor of another, and some were not even given a writing of divorcement or the right to marry again. Men of God such as David, Solomon, Abraham and others had several wives but were products of their time and culture. Jesus said because of the hardness of their hearts God overlooked their behavior and allowed it. But Jesus said and I paraphrase ‘I want to take you back to the way it was in the beginning to a higher spiritual ground than where you are now. You may divorce or put away a betrothed wife if she is guilty of fornication (pre-marital sex). Or if you find out that marrying her would be unlawful or a incestuous marriage, this also is fornication. The Greek word “porneia” could mean either of the above. Remember that during the betrothal period the couple was considered man and wife, and Joseph was called “her husband” and Mary “his wife” in Mt 1:18. Before they came together Joseph sought to put her away but an angel intervened and instructed him not to. People today look at betrothal as an engagement but it is not, it is much more than this, it is a covenant or at least it was in the old Jewish culture.
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So Jesus you are going to magnify your teaching on divorce and remarriage and takes us to a higher spiritual plane and exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees? So, Jesus took His tempters to the very beginning, where there was no divorce, not one cause, not for every cause, or for any cause. And Lord please tell us about this plateau and describe it. What is your law on marriage, divorce and remarriage? See Mt 19: 4-6 Here it is: vs4: “ Have you not read that he who made them at the beginning made them male and female vs5: and said “for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become on flesh“ vs6: “So then they are no longer two but one flesh therefore what God has joined together let not man separate!.
Absorb Clarification of Fornication Found in John 8:41
Please grasp the enlightenment of the scripture in John 8:41 and what it means to this discussion when the Jews indirectly
told Jesus that He was born in fornication (porneia) the same word used in Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9. There was a stigma or stain put on the name of Jesus by the Jews insinuating that He was conceived out of wedlock. Also, it is possible that Jesus could have been giving some clarification to the Jews about His birth and the fact that Mary was not put away by Joseph and that fornication had not occurred. Mt 1: 18-20.
From this verse alone, (John 8:41) no one could say that when Jesus used the word fornication in Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9 that He could not have meant sexual relations before marriage (or during the betrothal period). Sure you have to study the MDR remarks to the Pharisees, but do so with a open mind without having personal subjective (family ties) or previous teaching to obscure the veil you have over the truth.
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Marriage is a Covenant With Each Other and God
When a man and wife marry they enter a covenant
relationship with each other and God. The two became one flesh and man is not to separate from His wife. God made them one flesh and man can not separate what God had joined
together for any reason. If we had only been teaching this for the past 50 years, think what our lives, families and the church would have been like? . Isaiah 48:18 says this: “If you had only paid attention to my commands your peace would have been like a river”.
The Interpretation That Gives Harmony to all the
Scriptures on Divorce - Remarriage
So the conclusion drawn is this: Jesus’s words in Mt 5:32 and
Mt 19:9 “except for fornication(porneia)“ applies to the audience that He was addressing, not us. This conclusion is in
harmony with all the other verses that were to follow in the N. T. on divorce and remarriage. Mk10:11-12, Lk 16:18, Rom 7:2-3 and I Cor 7:10,11 and 39. All of these verses are plain and none mention remarriage because of a unfaithful spouse. In Mark the scriptures were addressed to mainly a large Gentile audience that lived in Rome (lots of Latin terms found in his Gospel) Luke on the other hand was writing primarily to a Greek audience and Matthew was primarily to the Jews. Pre-marital sex during the “betrothal period” understood by the Jews, is referred to in Matthew only. This “betrothal period” is the only interpretation that blends all the related scriptures together.
In the eyes of God, man’s effort to dissolve a marriage is a exercise in futility. A man’s divorce is nothing more than a convenience for him to marry again, it does nothing to dissolve what God has joined together which is exactly what Paul taught in Romans 7:2-3.
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The Solidarity of a Christian Marriage Described in the
Terms of Christ and His Bride (the church)
Lets look at Ephesians 5:22-32 where a comparison or analogy is drawn by the H.S. to tie the characteristics of a marriage between a husband and wife to the Lord and His church. Rev 21: 9 says that the church is the Bride of Christ. Would Christ ever divorce His bride and marry another for any reason? I don’t think so, mainly because He purchased it with His own blood and made it pure. God made man and wife one flesh and they cannot be separated by man Mt 19:6. Just as Christ won’t ever be separated from His church because they
are one. The church is His body.
God Hates Divorce
In the second chapter of Malachi verses 13-16 you will read that God hates divorce. In these verses he speaks of your wife as your companion, she is your wife by covenant and He seeks Godly offspring from the union. You are not to deal treacherously with the wife of your youth and He hints that a divorce covers one‘s garment with violence. Harsh but true, God has never placed his blessings on unlawful or adulterous unions.
Solid Ground on MDR Spoken by Jesus and the
Whole Truth Found in the Apostles Doctrine
Mostly, the previous discussions have been refuting the long misapplied teaching of the “exception clause”. Lets focus on the Holy Spirits guide to all truth.
Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote 13 books of the New Testament. Jesus told His apostles in John 16:13-16 that after His departure the Holy Spirit would come and guide them (including Paul ) to all truth. Can you find a scriptures after
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that time ( actually there is not one before that time either) that was revealed by the Holy Spirit that a Christian could divorce because of a adulterous mate and marry another? If the Holy Spirit guided the apostles to all truth where is it? The “all truth” inspired by the Holy Spirit and very plainly written by Paul to Christians in Romans 7:1-3, I Cor 7:10-11 and I Cor 7:39-40 describes the permanency of marriage (bound to your mate for life) and the “Pharisaical or Jewish exception” is not there!
Was it an oversight? I don’t think so because Paul said in Acts 20:27 “ For I have not shunned to declare the whole counsel of God“. Whole means complete. And he said essentially the
same thing in II Timothy 4:17 with these words “the Lord stood
with me and strengthened me so that the message might be preached fully!” If Paul wrote on the permanency of marriage 3 times and said the woman is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives , where is the Jewish “exception clause”? The Holy Spirit revealed these words to Paul and he said these were the words of the Lord. He made it pretty plain in I cor 7:11 when he said these are the words of the Lord ,( “not I but the Lord“ ). There is not one hint of an exception given in these verses of scripture that Paul penned. How could he have left out a vital point out that would have a bearing on the losing one’s soul? He said he didn’t leave anything out. How plain could the Holy Spirit be about this subject? Should we even be comparing or placing truth value between what Jesus said and the Apostle’s Doctrine? Are they not the same? Paul said what I write to you are the commandments of the Lord, I Cor 14:37 and the Gospel I preach to you came from the revelation of Jesus Christ. Gal 1:12. Those teaching that the “exception clause” is for the Christian ignore other words of Jesus and the Holy Spirit in other parts of the N.T.
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A Very Basic Misinterpretation is Made From Verses
of Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9
Not only is Jesus not addressing Christians in these two verses but “Christendom’s” focus has been on the wrong word. Attention should be paid to all the words in the verse. Why is remarriage after divorce called "adultery" rather than some other sexual sin? After all, the people had already divorced! How can it be adultery if they had already divorced? Think about it. Adultery is solely a violation of the marriage bond. Didn't these people go through a proper divorce so as to dissolve the
marriage bond? Yet Jesus Christ calls a remarriage after divorce
adultery! Why? The only reasonable answer is that marriage is a lifelong bond that is not dissolved by adultery, divorce, or anything else except for the death of a spouse. Paul , through the Holy Spirit and the words of Jesus were united in defining the permanency of a marriage. You can’t get an adultery “exception clause” for the Christian out of these verses with a tire tool or a crowbar.
Here we are 2,000 years later with persons wanting to go along with the secular world ignoring the words of Jesus, the Holy Spirit and Paul. So, we are spending our time trying to convince the denominational world that we are not under the old law anymore (Jewish exception clause). Something similar to this happened in the Apostolic times to the church in Galatia. The Jews were trying to influence the newly converted Gentiles to adhere to a portion of the old law regarding circumcision. Many today believe that the “exception clauses” in Matthew are part of the instructions for the New Testament Christian which they are not. They were said to Jewish audiences who lived under the old law.
The denominational world has taken the words out of context in Mt 19:9 and ran with them ignoring other counsel given by
Jesus, Paul and the Holy Spirit on divorce-remarriage.
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Jesus said, just prior to Mt 19:9, in verse 6, that “He wanted to take them back to the way it was at the beginning, God made them one flesh and what God has joined together let not man separate!“
The Preponderance of all the Scriptures:
Marriage is for Life
You want the instructions about divorce and remarriage for a
Christian then read what Jesus and other writers of the N.T. said
in other places for Christians and sum them all up. The full truth on any subject cannot be gathered from an isolated
passage, but rather from the cumulative revelation of all the Scriptures which deal with the same truth on the subject.
The preponderance of scriptures is heavily weighted that God does not recognize divorce and remarriage today because a mate has committed a sexual sin. A person cannot read and study all the scriptures in the bible on divorce and remarriage (which overwhelmingly say that marriage is for life) and conclude that a man can separate what God has joined together. Remember Jesus lived under the Old Law. If you think there is a safe haven or justification for MDR found in Mt 5:32 and Mt 19:9, you are trying to place yourself in a Jewish culture and dispensation which you are not in! I know these words have been expressed several times in this booklet but it is the theme of the controversy.
God is not the Author of Confusion. The Quandary of Remarriage is Settled by the Answer to a Simple Question.
Years ago, I had a preacher and a very dear brother of mine tell me that he would not perform a wedding ceremony if either person had a former living mate. At the time I did not understand why.
Ministers, elders who act as counselors and have taught the
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acceptance of divorce for adultery have sometimes made for themselves complicated problems. One of which is that they may have to sit down with the partners concerned and delve into private lives about sexual behavior. Many who have done this may well tell you that it is a situation that they would much
rather avoid. Making a determination to what is truth can be
very difficult at times. Thinking all things have been work out
satisfactorily, persons have gone away and remarried and it was later discovered that the truth was never obtained and neither remarriages should have taken place. Who would like to try and sort this mess out? Who will be held accountable for the wrong advice? Not only that, numerous law suites have been
filed against the church by unhappy divorced couples because private matters were made public by well meaning elders and ministers. This confirms that if God is not the author of confusion, then neither is He the author of divorce and remarriage for adultery . God made the solution to this matter simple by the answer to this question “Do you have a former living mate?“ Jesus told the woman at the well “the man you now have is not your husband, for you have had 5 husbands.” He did not mention the “exception clause” or delve into past details.
Until Death Do Us Part
Ministers and preachers sometime speak with a forked tongue. In the marriage vows, a minister normally has the prospective bride and groom repeat these words: "until death do us part” (AMEN !), this is exactly the sound foundation that this booklet is on. Yet, the following Sunday, he stands in the pulpit and utters something that is contradictory to this, amounting to “until adultery do us part“. Where is the consistency in these words? Or in case you have missed the point, on Sunday, the same minister gives the message that one could get a divorce and remarry if a mate has committed
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adultery. Or worse yet, use the NIV term "marital unfaithfulness (whatever that means) which is yet a more liberal term to allow for divorce and remarriage. I am told now that some vows have these words: “as long as we love each other”
See what we have come to by cracking the door to MDR?
Lord, Plant our Feet on Higher Ground
Look around you today and look at our society, civilization and liberal attitudes toward divorce-remarriage, cohabitation and the stability of the family unit and ask yourself is this exceeding the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees? NO, its not even exceeding the righteousness of the divorce rates of atheist, agnostics or the heathen religions of the world. God forbid!
TODAY: I Peter 2:4-9 says this: “but you are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood , a holy nation,“ we are living stones , that we may build a spiritual house and a Holy priesthood. Christians today are God’s priest in His house. Heb 4:11 and Heb 5:10, says Christ is our High Priest.
YESTERDAY: The priest under the Mosaical Dispensation were given this commandment in Lev 21: 7,8 “Nor shall they (priests) take a divorced woman from her husband” and vs. 14 says “the priest shall not marry a divorced woman” No exception mentioned here.
TODAY: So today Lord, plant our feet on higher ground with regard to divorce and remarriage so that “our righteousness will exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees. “
Understanding the concept of the purity of the church and the stability of the Christian home is vital to understanding God’s providence and how he deals with us even to this day. God wants you to do a great and mighty work in His kingdom where you are and we are His instrument. Could DR be hindering us? Is there an accursed thing in our midst,? Sanctify
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yourselves O Ye Saints of God.. Josh 7:12-13 “And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel and curse and trouble it.“ Josh 6:18.
Because you have forgotten the Law, I will also forget your children. Hosea 4:6
Restoring Out Posture on MDR, What MUST We Do?
Brethren, we have got to make some major changes and now and not be subtle about it. We have to look at our thinking, attitudes and material used in teaching of our young children and do some studying of our own. If we do not reverse this trend we will be buried among the ruins and rubble of our country and the next few generations will ask themselves “what happened?” This is a grave matter and I don’t think most
North American churches realize the true situation that we are in
Are our preachers and elders infallible? Of course not! Is it possible that they could be wrong on the their traditional teaching of MDR these last 60 years? Go to them with the truth and tell them to study the issue without subjective personal feelings that are influenced by close acquaintances, family bonds or what has been traditional taught these last 3 generations. Tell them to swallow their pride and remove the veil they have over the truth. David said in the Psalms 119: 97-100 “ I love your law, I meditate on it all day long, I have more understanding than the ancients (elders) for I obey your precepts.”
Elders have to be firm to take steps to keep the church pure.
Just one case of accepting a divorced-remarried couple for membership will contaminate the whole group. The admixture or fact of being mixed in by contact or association into the church makes it vulnerable to become secular, or unfit for Christ. The church of God will not function properly with sin in the camp! The act of acceptance by elders is a signal that they
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condone their lives of adultery. Adulterers will not inherit the kingdom of heaven.
These are harsh words but God has always demanded
obedience from His people. His character and attributes have
not change since the Garden. Because of disobedience, out of
approx a million people that crossed the Red Sea, only Joshua
and Caleb made it to the promised land. Even Moses, who only got a glance of it, was barred from entering because of disobedience. If you think that the blood of Jesus is going to redeem you from your unrepented adultery you need to read your New Testament. John preached repentance for the kingdom of God is hand. Jesus had not yet died. Peter on the day of Pentecost preached repentance after the death of Christ. Repentance is a theme of the Old and New Testament. Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid! Rom. 6:1-2. Sure, today there are hundreds if not thousands of heart rendering stories of broken families because of DR.. There is a story in the Old Testament in Ezra 10:3, where God told Ezra to tell the Israelite men to put away their foreign wives and the children that were born to those unions.
The permanency of marriage should be stressed in our teaching of our young especially our teenagers. Do our memory verses in bible study include verses like Mt 19:6, Rom 7:2, I Cor. 7:39 that command that a man or woman is bound to their original mate for life? If I had my way about it, I would post signs or banners on our blank walls in the church building with verses of scriptures on MDR along with other subjects. Did not God tell the Israelites to do nearly the same thing with His law in Deut 6:9 ?. He said there to write them on the door post and gates of your house.
In the Old Testament there is a story of a prophet of God named Hosea. At the command of God, Hosea married a harlot named Gomer who later was unfaithful to him. She left Hosea
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and he patiently waited for her to return to him. He loved her
very much. He went searching for her and even paid 15 shekels
to get her back. This marriage was really a figurative or prophetic reference to a union between the lost tribes of Israel and God. Several times in the OT God’s people were referred to as married to Him. (Even in the N.T. His people, the church, are referred to as the Bride of Christ). Even though the people of Israel worshipped other gods (adultery), God continued to love them and did not abandon them, He wanted to forgive and take them back. Hosea and Gomer is a story of love and forgiveness on the part of Hosea. Hosea did not hand Gomer a
writing of divorcement and send her out but had a loving
forgiving disposition that all Christian partners should have.
One of the main themes of being a Christian that Jesus stressed many times in the Gospels is that of having a forgiving nature toward your brother but especially one’s mate. We are suppose to forgive our brother seventy times seven but don’t you owe your covenant wife more consideration? She is your own flesh. Should we even be considering reasons to leave a mate and the union that God has joined together?
Our Time Here on Earth is Very Short, Like a Vapor
Eternity cannot be described in terms of time, because eternity existed before God created time. Eternity has no beginning or no end, therefore no bounds. If on this side of eternity we could see the whole spectrum of eternity we might feebly describe it like this. Suppose only one grain of sand represents all of time as we know it, then eternity’s length could be said to exceed the time of all the grains of sand on our earth including the Sahara Desert. MDR decisions in our lives are very important and monumental and will determine where we spend eternity. If scriptural decisions are made by us God will take care of one’s family during this relative short time span.
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I love children more than anyone. I know all the names of the children at church. I love them and their Godly parents. I believe they should be cemented together, as God wills, with love and forgiveness and He will in turn bless their union.
I am only trying to get to the truth on this matter. I will not back track and believe what I have believed for 60 years. I see the fruits of this past teaching and what it has done to the country, “Christendom” and to some extent the Lord’s church. We are reaping what we have sown !
May God bless the reading of His Word, and if read in earnest, it will not return unto Him void. Isaiah 55:11.
Now, lets get on with our mission and activate the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by “bringing in the sheaves” The fields are white unto harvest.
In Christian love from a concerned brother,
Bill Hare 1795 Oakmont Circle, New Braunfels, Tx. 78132,
harebs@aol.com…………………..www.wordsofsalvation.net
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Memory Verses for the Young and Old
To be inserted and stored in their impressionable minds
Matthew 19:6 What God has joined together let not man
Separate.
Genesis 2:24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother
And be joined to his wife and they shall become
one flesh.
Ephesians 5:25 Husbands love your wives just as Christ loved
the church and gave himself for her.
Malachi 2:15 The Lord has been a witness between you and
the wife of your youth. She is your wife by
covenant. (Covenant is a solemn binding agree
ment between two or more parties)
MalachI 2:16 The Lord God of Israel hates divorce.
Romans 7:2 The woman who has a husband is bound by
the law to him as long as he lives.
Romans 7:3 If while her husband liveth she marries another
man, she shall be called an adulteress.
I Corinthians 7:39 A wife is bound by law as long as her
husband lives, but if her husband dies she is at
liberty to marry whom she wishes only in the
Lord.
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My Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank several sources for keeping me on course during the writing of this booklet. Above all, thanks to the Holy Spirit for the guidance given to the apostles to ALL TRUTH on divorce-remarriage. John 16:13. The apostles doctrine and the words of Jesus guided me to the conclusions in this booklet.
There are many articles and booklets written by concerned Christians from across the country that made a contribution to this booklet. I could not have written this booklet without them and encouragement from others.
Booklets:
“From the Beginning it Was Not So” Bro Herbert Russell, Liberty Ky,
“Marriage & Divorce” Bro Emery McCallister, Chesapeake, Ohio “Marriage-Divorce-Remarriage Bro H.E. Robertson, Springfield, Mo.
“Marriage-Divorce-Remarriage” Bro Richard Aegerter, Waco, Texas “Have You Not Read?” Bro Casey Whitaker, Clarksville, Ohio
Individuals by Conversation and E-mails:
Bro Joe Hill, Hagerhill, Kentucky
Bro Joe McClure, of Madison, WV. Who kindly reminded me that I could not remain silent on the truths of the scriptures. Ezek 33: 7-9.
God’s original marriage law is in EFFECT !
Jesus and the Apostles doctrine CONFIRMED IT !
It is not NEGOTIABLE nor can man REDEFINE IT !
June 1, 2012 BH
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“A woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives.†1 Corinthians 7:39
A civil court has nothing whatsoever to do with a covenant made before God and a civil court cannot dissolve a covenant that is bound by God.
http://www.cadz.net/mdr.html
Divorce + Remarriage = Adultery
http://www.cadz.net/mdr.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCPcCIqMOn4&feature=related
No one can say that they are free after a divorce because Jesus charges them with adultery AFTER they obtain a divorce. Jesus said we can still commit adultery after a divorce--but the divorce papers say---we are no longer married—those divorce papers are lying to us. God does NOT recognize divorce as ending a first marriage. This is proven in Scripture.
Jesus said you will be committing adultery while on a honeymoon with a “new person†after a divorce and a remarriage ceremony. If you are committing adultery AFTER a divorce and remarriage ceremony your divorce did NOT work (it did not end your marriage). Most people refuse to accept the TRUTH.
A marriage covenant lasts until the death of one of the spouses according to God. People would never even go to the courthouse to obtain a divorce certificate if they knew the truth. Those divorce papers do not end their marriage. The papers say the “State of Colorado†has dissolved the marriage--NOT GOD! God says, “A wife is
Why do you think there is such disagreement on divorce and remarriage? The tenor of Scripture is clear that remarriage of a divorced person is indulging in the continuous sin of adultery. How is that honoring God? If you don't understand why it is continuous adultery, then ask yourself, "How many times can two become one flesh?" which is what sex does? What separates humans from the rest of the animal kingdom? Our cultural practices debase the spiritual values and laws which Jesus taught. "Living" for Jesus is not something our culture attains to, it's about 'living' for self. Thankfully, there are some examples out there who do live for Christ, and are not stumbling blocks for others. Serial marriages do not honor God, or Jesus would have said that it's okay to divorce and remarry, and he wouldn't have had the dialogue with the Pharisees in Luke 16 that he did.
Luke 16:18 One of the three nets with which Israel is snared is referred to as the remarriage of a divorced woman (see The Damascus Rule, Qumran text). Jesus called for a more strict interpretation of divorce and remarriage than the Pharisees or the Mosaic Law. He called the Pharisees 'idolatrous' because they put other things - wealth and self- before loyalty and commitment to God. 'What God has joined together let no man put asunder.' Remarriage is an act of idolatry. The Law of Love - 'love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, and with all your strength' -is a higher law than cultural or Mosaic Law. No wonder the disciples were amazed at what Jesus was teaching. What do you think eunuchs were about? Our cultural emphasis is narcissistic - it's about pleasing the 'erotic self.' We want Jesus to say 'okay' to our narcissistic behavior, and not have to indulge in self-discipline or any sort of self-denial. Why do you think
It is truly a Blessing that there appears to be more Christians standing against 'Divorce and Remarriage' for such Remarriage after any divorce is Adultery, no matter what the world says! .. We are called to enter by the "straight gate" for we know that the world enters in through the "wide gate" and such wide gate will lead to the bottomless pit of hell. Also, As Christians we must understand that "GOD is NOT mocked", we also must be sure to accept the entire HOLY BIBLE. I know from such HOLY BIBLE there is written in Hebrews 10:26-27 "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries." ... As Christians we also must recognize and accept this in Matthew 7:21-23 "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many