Divorce & Christianity 5

Some people may have misunderstood and thought that I was endorsing divorce.  This is not the case at all.  I have been happily married to the same wife for over thirty-four years.  Our marriage is better than ever because we have grown to love the Lord more and therefore, love each other more.  What I have been discussing in the past weeks has been focused on the reasons husbands and wives should stay together rather than an excuse for divorce.  My conclusion is that marriage is no doubt and unmistakably the will of God.

Jesus referenced Deuteronomy 24:1-2 to explain God’s prefect will compared to Moses answering the heartless behavior of the husbands that continued right up until Jesus time.

^NLT  Deuteronomy 24:1 “Suppose a man marries a woman but she does not please him. Having discovered something wrong with her, he writes her a letter of divorce, hands it to her, and sends her away from his house. ² When she leaves his house, she is free to marry another man. (Deu 24:1-2 NLT)

The word Geht is the document Jewish men give to their wife to nullify their marriage. Again, divorce is not of God. There are some many areas in our everyday lives that leaves to the tragedy of divorce.  “Get” n. Hebrew (GEHT). The Jewish divorce decree, traditionally written in Aramaic.  According to Jewish law, in order for a couple to divorce, a husband must give his wife this deed, which nullifies their Jewish marriage contract, the ketubbah.  A woman without a get is an agunah and cannot remarry.  Many Orthodox and Conservative rabbis require a woman to obtain a get before she can remarry; most Reform and Reconstructionist rabbis do not (Dictionary of Jewish Words). The plan of Satan is for individuals to jump to conclusions, hearing  something that not there, or I have got to win this argument with is all over rated. Please reminder, the pure in heart shall see God.

As we draw to a close on the subject of Divorce & Christianity 5, let’s reflect over earlier posts. Throughout the history of the Bible, we see stories featuring relationships between husband and wife scattered from the Old to the New Testaments. When we look and compare the way men handled the institution of marriage it’s difficult to see why mankind struggles to discern the body of Christ. The blueprint of   marriage was given to man as a type of chaperone – teaching the body how to walk through an engagement period before the real ceremony is performed.

A large portion of Jesus’ teachings was through the relations between a betrothed virgin waiting for her husband to come and take her to the wedding feast as in the Jewish tradition.

We are the faithful bride, waiting for our groom.

Matthew 25:1 “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. ² Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ³ The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps, ⁴ but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil. ⁵ When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. ⁶ “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’ ⁷ “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps. ⁸ Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’ ¹⁰ “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked. ¹¹ Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’ ¹² “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’ (Mat 25:1-12 NLT)

 Luk 13:25 When the master of the house has locked the door, it will be too late. You will stand outside knocking and pleading, Lord, open the door for us! But he will reply, I don t know you or where you come from. 

Divorce & Christianity 5

This is a very important point:  While waiting, we should wait faithfully just as the Jewish maidens waited for their grooms. For the Jews, this parable was clearly understood in their culture to mean one thing only. When a bride of the son of Israel would leave her house at night she would carry a lamp to advertise she was betrothed (engaged to be married) and off the market. Furthermore, the oil carried a spiritual Hebraic lesson in covenant relations. ² “Command the people of Israel to bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to keep the lamps burning continually. (Lev 24:2 NLT)

Accordingly to this custom, the betrothed wore white garments and accompanied themselves with a bright, glowing lamp. The bright, glowing lamp was possible because of the amount of oil in the lamp. If the oil’s level ever got too low, a fluctuating flame would produce soot (oily smoke) that would stain her dress. On the Bridegroom’s arrival, the bride’s dress would be inspected to see if she had seriously kept the covenant between the bride and groom.  If the dress was stained, only one conclusion could be drawn.  The betrothed maiden went out to meet her groom with low oil levels. The bridesmaid’s poor efforts showed her lack of enthusiasm to keep her lamp filled with oil.  However, the wise bridesmaid’s reality was that the levels of oil in her lamp was a revered and sacred indicator to her commitment in marriage.   Moreover, if this type of respect would be carried over into marriage, the evil spirit of divorce could rarely take hold.

We also discussed the character of Joseph, husband of Mary in a prior post.  Another example other than Joseph is the evangelist, Hosea. Hosea’s story is about God’s faithfulness to His people even when they showed no truthfulness to the God-covenant.

God animated His Word through the story of Hosea’s marriage.  Hosea was committed to his wife even though she was not faithful to him.  This demonstrates God’s covenant to us.

Hosea’s marriage would have surely ended in divorce if he had not known and served the covenant God. God’s model of covenant is demonstrated through Hosea in his thinking process throughout the story. Nothing seems to shake Hosea from his commitment to his wayward wife.  We see him continually bearing Godly behavior.  To him, this was a greater Kingdom responsibility than getting relief from or getting revenge against his wife.  At a time when Hosea could have jumped to conclusions or placed blame, he instead covered the guilty and shared the blame.

 Hosea 6:1 “Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds. ² In just a short time he will restore us, so that we may live in his presence. ³ Oh, that we might know the LORD! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.”  ⁴ “O Israel and Judah, what should I do with you?” asks the LORD. “For your love vanishes like the morning mist and disappears like dew in the sunlight. (Hos 6:1-4 NLT)

 Divorce & Christianity 5 : God is making someone who is reading this blog become a light that cannot be hidden. Your recovery of your marriage will speak volumes to many hurting marriages right in your church and your neighborhoods. God will take the solutions you employed to push back the Kingdom of Darkness and bring light and hope to another hurting family.