Daily Bread 2010
Daily Bread 2010
Matthew 19
Divorce
1When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. 2Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?"
4"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,'5 and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? 6So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate." 7"Why then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?"
8Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."
Depending on whose statistics one cites, the divorce rate in America is around 50% and goes up higher with each subsequent marriage. Although some, like Barna, will say that the Christian divorce rate is lower especially among Evangelical Christians, many other studies show the rates are not that much different.
Of course divorce is sensitive subject, as probably 50% of you reading this may have been through one. The point is not to lay guilt on anyone who has gone through a divorce. But we often shy away from what the bible teaches concerning divorce. We see that the Pharisees wanted to try and catch Jesus by asking him about divorce. They knew if he said it was categorically wrong, they would cite the part of the law where Moses allowed because of the hardness of hearts of the Israelites. And if he said it was okay, they would try to say He wasn’t keeping the Law.
As is often the case, Jesus reinterprets the Mosiac law under the assumption that with the kingdom power He is now bringing to all who believe, there would be more of an emphasis on the Spirit of the Law and not the letter of the law. Jesus was always more interested in a person’s heart and character than mere rules.
As Jesus uplifts the sanctity of marriage, he goes back to its inception by God. This was a man and woman coming together in God’s eyes, and becoming one, as male and female. Since God joined the two persons together it would be impossible to split apart. This teaching could help us to “redefine” marriage in spiritual terms, rather that how it is often viewed today. Although marriage can be difficult, if we remember how we were brought together by God, it will help keep marriages together by that same power that is greater than our own.
Prayer: We pray for all Christian marriages that they might be strengthened by Your presence, power and the remembrance of Your united the two persons as male and female as sign of the completeness You have as our Creator. In Your name we pray, Amen.
Matthew 19
Divorce
1When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. 2Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?"
4"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,'5 and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? 6So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate." 7"Why then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?"
8Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."
Depending on whose statistics one cites, the divorce rate in America is around 50% and goes up higher with each subsequent marriage. Although some, like Barna, will say that the Christian divorce rate is lower especially among Evangelical Christians, many other studies show the rates are not that much different.
Of course divorce is sensitive subject, as probably 50% of you reading this may have been through one. The point is not to lay guilt on anyone who has gone through a divorce. But we often shy away from what the bible teaches concerning divorce. We see that the Pharisees wanted to try and catch Jesus by asking him about divorce. They knew if he said it was categorically wrong, they would cite the part of the law where Moses allowed because of the hardness of hearts of the Israelites. And if he said it was okay, they would try to say He wasn’t keeping the Law.
As is often the case, Jesus reinterprets the Mosiac law under the assumption that with the kingdom power He is now bringing to all who believe, there would be more of an emphasis on the Spirit of the Law and not the letter of the law. Jesus was always more interested in a person’s heart and character than mere rules.
As Jesus uplifts the sanctity of marriage, he goes back to its inception by God. This was a man and woman coming together in God’s eyes, and becoming one, as male and female. Since God joined the two persons together it would be impossible to split apart. This teaching could help us to “redefine” marriage in spiritual terms, rather that how it is often viewed today. Although marriage can be difficult, if we remember how we were brought together by God, it will help keep marriages together by that same power that is greater than our own.
Prayer: We pray for all Christian marriages that they might be strengthened by Your presence, power and the remembrance of Your united the two persons as male and female as sign of the completeness You have as our Creator. In Your name we pray, Amen.
Comments
Post a Comment