Divorce and Re-marriage
As marriage is an institution
set up by God and it should last until 'death do us part', divorce should never be taken lightly. Of course, we
live in a world which is groaning under the weight of sin! This topic is not
being posted by me to be judgemental - it is how I see Scripture as God views
divorce in the light of His covenant with His people!
I wish to
remind you that marriage was the first institution set up by God way back in Genesis
2:21-25
Genesis 2:21-25
And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
And Adam said:
"This is now bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man."
Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
And Adam said:
"This is now bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man."
Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
It is a
picture of God's covenant with Israel and in the new covenant a picture of
Christ (as the Bridegroom) and His church (the Bride).
The first
allowance of divorce was back in Moses' day - Deuteronomy 24
Law Concerning Divorce
Laws Concerning the Family
Law Concerning Divorce
Laws Concerning the Family
Deuteronomy 24:1-4
"When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house, when she has departed from his house, and goes and becomes another man's wife, if the latter husband detests her and writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her as his wife, then her former husband who divorced her must not take her back to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before the LORD, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
"When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house, when she has departed from his house, and goes and becomes another man's wife, if the latter husband detests her and writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her as his wife, then her former husband who divorced her must not take her back to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before the LORD, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
Christ also mentions this fact
in Matthew 19:8
Matthew 19:8
He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so."
He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so."
The only grounds in Scripture for divorce
is because of adultery.
Matthew 5:32
But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
If someone divorces their spouse
and re-marries then they are committing adultery
Mark 10:12
And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.
And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.
Luke 16:18
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery."
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery."
Keep Your Marriage Vows
1 Corinthians 7:10-11
Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.
Those above passages imply that anyone who is divorced must not remarry! I do know of Christians who have been divorced (through no fault of their own - the divorce has been filed against them!) so should they have remarried? One person was not a believer when he got divorced but has remarried after becoming a believer! This is such a tricky area to cover. I have discussed this with a friend and she believes that people can remarry - so long as they were the innocent party (ie - the divorce was filed against them and not vice versa!).
1 Corinthians 7:10-11
Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.
Those above passages imply that anyone who is divorced must not remarry! I do know of Christians who have been divorced (through no fault of their own - the divorce has been filed against them!) so should they have remarried? One person was not a believer when he got divorced but has remarried after becoming a believer! This is such a tricky area to cover. I have discussed this with a friend and she believes that people can remarry - so long as they were the innocent party (ie - the divorce was filed against them and not vice versa!).
What if I have an unbelieving
spouse? I am going to stick my head above the parapit here and say (from
Scripture) that if you were a Christian before you married your unbelieving
spouse, then you have gone against Scripture (as discussed in the previous
topic), but
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
You must not however rush out
and seek a divorce!
1
Corinthians 7:12-13
But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him.
But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him.
Although it is Paul who says
this and not the Lord, he was an apostle, personally chosen by the Lord Jesus
Christ and he had an immense grasp of scriptural truth!
If an unbelieving spouse is not
happy, then they are permitted to leave
1
Corinthians 7:15
But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases. But God has called us to peace.
But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases. But God has called us to peace.
If you are married to an
unbeliever then you must act in a godly way and be a witness to them
Submission to Husbands
Serving and Suffering for God's Glory
1 Peter 3:1-2
Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear.
Serving and Suffering for God's Glory
1 Peter 3:1-2
Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear.
These days we hear of people
getting divorced for such trivial and ridiculous reasons - the spouse became
too fat, had too many wrinkles, burnt the toast etc etc. Divorce is serious!!
Marriage is also serious - it has to be worked out - just as our salvation is
worked out! OK it is tough and there will be times when your spouse will wind
you up and drive you crazy, but remember, marriage is
a picture of Christ's relationship with His church - one which is from eternity
and will go into eternity, so with this in mind, let us all seek
to have godly marriages, striving to serve and honour the Lord within this
God-given institution and not looking for a way out when things get tough -
seek the Lord in ALL things!
Another thing to remember -
Satan is the enemy of God and he is always out to destroy anything that God has
put in place - marriage and proper relationships in general seem to be under
such heavy attacks in these days! Stand firm, put on the armour of God and
resist the devil, then he will flee from you (even within a troubled
marriage!!)
Sanctification can come through
our marriages!
May the Lord bless you richly
within your homes and marriages, beloved brothers and sisters in the Lord.
In Him
Carolyn xxxx
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