Sunday, August 2, 2020 am – Online Lesson
TEACHINGS OF JESUS (13)
Sermon on the Mount (12)
Divorce and Remarriage
Matthew 5:31-32
We
are continuing our study of the teachings of Jesus, with a current
emphasis on the “Sermon on the Mount”, an early lesson in His “ministry”
that would set the tone for what He taught and did.
We are in the midst of Jesus explaining how our righteousness
must be pleasing to God and thus it must “exceed the righteousness of
the scribes and Pharisees” (5:20).
Jesus proceeded to give 6 examples of how this is the case.
We have discussed 2 of them (murder & anger and adultery & lust).
Today, we notice a third example – this one dealing with divorce
and remarriage.
Like the previous topic, this is an uncomfortable topic, but it needs to
be addressed, especially in light of the times we are living in – with
high divorce rates for any cause, as well as a rejection of the
importance and sacredness of marriage. It
is also a controversial subject as it is debated over exactly what
circumstances apply to what is said today – namely who has the right to
remarry after a divorce.
This is a complex subject which we do not have time to address in this
lesson (that is not our purpose today), though we will clearly see some
of what God HAS instructed concerning this subject.
So
today we want to address this text and make some applications for our
times.
a.
“Furthermore, it has
been said” …
i.
“Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce…”
Based on Deuteronomy 24:1-4.
In that text we find a specific circumstance where divorce was permitted
under the LOM. It involved a
man who took a wife and he finds some “uncleanness in her” (what exactly
that involves is not specified) and thus he writes her a certificate of
divorce. She then becomes
another man’s wife and if the LATTER husband divorces her or he dies,
the command was that the first husband was NOT to take her back (because
she has been defiled). That
was the SPECIFIC situation that Moses addressed.
ii.
How had they manipulated this doctrine? There
could be many ways they did this:
1.
For any cause
- They might have viewed that as long as the man gave the certificate of
divorce to put away his wife, he was not sinning, REGARDLESS of the
reason. This disregarded the
specifics of the text – the ONLY text in the LOM that addressed this
subject.
Consider Matthew 19:1-9ff, esp. vs. 3 where the Pharisees ask Jesus, “Is
it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?” (NKJV)
2.
They also disregarded
God’s intent of marriage
to be one man and one woman for life.
Genesis 2:22-24 – where Moses expounds on Adam and Eve and how
that shows what marriage IS SUPPOSED to be.
Again, Jesus in Matthew 19:4-6 in answering the Pharisee’s
inquiry by quoting from Genesis 2:24 and then he notes, “Therefore what
God has joined together, do not let man separate.” (19:6)
b.
“But I say to you…”
i.
Jesus presents God’s
intent, regardless of what the LOM tolerated (though they were setting
that aside as well). And
bear in mind, as we have noted throughout this study, that I believe
Jesus is not only clarifying the INTENT of the LOM, but also preaching
the coming Kingdom that we are part of (cf. Matthew 4:17, 23 – He was
preaching, “the gospel of the Kingdom”; and Luke 16:16, “The law and
the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has
been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.”)
ii.
Jesus gave 3
considerations:
1.
Whoever
divorces his wife causes her to commit adultery.
He becomes an accomplice.to her adultery.
2.
If she marries, she is
guilty of adultery because in God’s eyes, she is not free.
She is still covenanted to the one she married.
NOTE: What Jesus said shows His regard and respect for women over
what the culture of that time said.
Women were often treated as second class citizens. A divorced
woman back then might be in a dire situation where she could not take
care of herself (work, or be supported) and thus would seek to marry
another just to be provided for (whether God approved or not).
The answer Jesus gives – she is your wife and you ARE RESPONSIBLE to
provide for her. He notes
the man is NOT without guilt if she remarries and thereby commits
adultery (unlawful relations with one other than one’s spouse).
Consider
3.
Jesus gave an exception
to this “EXCEPT for the cause of fornication” (sexual immorality)– more
in a moment.
4.
Whoever marries her who
is divorced commits adultery – or you might say, he is living in an adulterous relationship (which means
it is one that God does NOT recognize as legitimate to Him).
5.
IN ALL of these we can
see the seriousness of the marriage covenant where God is concerned.
6.
This must have been
attention getting as Jesus preached this sermon.
iii.
Because of fornication (sexual immorality)
- The “exception clause.”
Jesus gives ONE reason for which God will recognize one divorcing
(putting away) their spouse and be authorized to remarry – their spouse
has committed fornication.
Why is this exception clause there?
In reality, just as forbidding
divorce for any cause, this shows the sacredness of the marriage
covenant. You are united
(joined) by God and he expects you to remain married and FAITHFUL to one
another.
One guilty of fornication (adultery) has shown disregard for the
marriage bond and God will not hold the innocent party accountable.
The guilty party is to remain unmarried as a consequence of his sin.
iv.
NOTE: Jesus did not say,
one MUST divorce their spouse if they are unfaithful, but that they can.
This is important because of the sacredness of marriage.
c.
CAN you see how serious
it is that we take the act of marriage seriously?
Matthew 19:1-9 gives
further instructions and clarification to this doctrine.
i.
Jesus notes that FROM
THE BEGINNING, God intended marriage to be for life!
ii.
The only reason, Moses
PERMITTED the “certificate of divorce” was because of their hardness of
heart.
iii.
Jesus again repeats what
God intends and gives another observation (a 4th one)
in vs. 9, the one who divorces his wife (for any cause other
than fornication) and marries another is also committing adultery.
iv.
Note also vs. 10-12 –
The disciples realized this was a hard saying and even observed it is
better not to marry. But
that was not the point Jesus was making!
He was emphasizing that MARRIAGE IS FOR LIFE!
And that’s the point of our “exceeding righteousness” – take
everything in your life, including your marriage, seriously!
If you cannot do that, don’t marry! Jesus speaks of “eunuchs for
the kingdom of heaven’s sake.” (vs. 12).
a.
Culture doesn’t change
what God’s word says.
What God says supersedes the laws of the land (what they permit).
This is a subject that calls for objective honesty.
It is such an emotionally charged issue, especially when we
consider that it is possible that one finds themselves in a questionable
or unscriptural marriage.
While we certainly cannot separate emotions from this study and
relationships, we must step back and be willing to ask if God really is
pleased with where I am at AND am I willing to obey Him in all things?
b.
Marriage is intended to
be for life
– one man and one woman.
Romans 7:1-3, Matthew 19:6, etc.
c.
There may be innocent parties – not sinless or perfect, but innocent so far as this topic
is concerned. This is
important to understand.
And it is also important to know that neither party may be innocent.
You may have one or both spouses who are failing to fulfill their
responsibilities in the marriage (cf. Ephesians 5:22-33).
d.
Divorce is a terrible
thing.-
Malachi 2:16 - And this is the second thing you do: You cover the
altar of the Lord with tears, With weeping and crying; So He does not
regard the offering anymore, Nor receive it with goodwill from your
hands. Yet you say, “For what reason?” Because the Lord has been
witness Between you and the wife of your youth, With whom you have dealt
treacherously; Yet she is your companion And your wife by covenant.
But did He not make them one, Having a remnant of the Spirit? And why
one? He seeks godly offspring. “Therefore take heed to your spirit, And
let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth. “For the Lord
God of Israel says That He hates divorce, For it covers one’s garment
with violence,” Says the Lord of hosts. Therefore take heed to your
spirit, That you do not deal treacherously.” (Malachi 2:13-16) (emp.
mine – TT)
We could go on
continually about how terrible divorce is, and anyone who has
experienced it, whether they be a party to the divorce, or a bystander
(children, family, extended family, friends, etc.) knows that.
I am convinced divorce is one of the scourges to our society.
It is one of the reasons,
our families are falling apart and why we are seeing so much turmoil
around us. When the family
unit is broken, so is society.
e.
We do harm in evangelism
because we fail to respect God’s law on MDR. Surveys show the
divorce rate among believers in Christ (so-called Christians) to be
fairly equal to unbelievers, or just slightly better.
Evangelicals emphasize the condemnation of homosexuality,
abortion and other issues by appealing to scripture.
But there is often a blind spot when it comes to MDR.
The world sees the moral inconsistency.
f.
We need to emphasize the sacredness of marriage both in example and
teachings.
We sometimes get caught up in the debate about M-D-R and its
technicalities. And while
that is needed because souls are in danger, we must NEVER forget to
address HOW we can prevent this wretched act – ensure that our children
and congregations are understand what a godly marriage is and how it
works. We need to frequently
emphasize “home and family” and how to deal with troubles.
We need to take our “witness” seriously, if we are present for the
marriage ceremony of a husband and wife.
When we see trouble, do what we can to help them work through it
to keep that marriage intact.
Souls may be in danger (cf. 1 Peter 3:7).
And
thus we see the teaching of Jesus on this subject in the sermon on the
mount. With authority He
taught what God expects of each of us, in every area of our life.
We will continue this study next week.
But for now, is your righteousness governed by God and His word?
Think about it!