Date: Sunday May 16, 2021      Scripture: Mark 10:1-12 Title: The Truth About Marriage and Divorce – Part 1

 

Link: Region around the Sea of Galilee

Contents

Introduction. 1

Outline. 2

Focus on Marriage. 2

The Question. 4

Rabbinical teachings on Divorce – two schools of thought. 6

The Test. 6

God’s view of Marriage. 9

1. Marriage is Established by God. 9
2. Marriage Cannot be Redefined. 9
3. Marriage is Between a Husband and a Wife. 10
4. Marriage Is For life. 11

 

Introduction

This morning we come back to the Gospel of Mark. Mark chapter 10 and we're going to be in Mark chapter 10 verses 1 through 12 here this morning.  And as we come to God's Word, we know – when we understand that God's Word has the answers for every area in our life, right? Every area. Sadly, many Christians today look to the culture around them to answer their questions or to justify what they think is right. But we want to know what God has to say. As His children we submit to Him and we believe that His Word is sufficient. Which means His Word has the answer for every area of our life. And our topic here this morning in Mark chapter 10 is the topic of divorce.

 

Divorce has affected our world. But it has also affected the church in tremendous ways. In a recent Barna study, the divorce rate in America is 25%, one in four Americans either are divorced or have been divorced in the past. The sad thing is, that the rate in the church is exactly the same. 25% of practicing Christians and Evangelicals either are divorced or have been divorced in the past.

 

An article from Barna Research says, among both groups, that is practicing Christians and Evangelicals (I don't know what the difference is with them but that's what they say--there's two groups there) -- practicing Christians and Evangelicals, 1/4 that is 25% -- have been divorced as of 2016 data. Compared to that very same number among all adults. Goes on and says so, although those with strong religious convictions are more likely to be married, they are also just as likely to have experienced a divorce.

 

In another article I read it talked about the divorce rates … how the divorce rates are on a decline. Why? Why are they on a decline? Because people aren't getting married anymore. The article said another reason that divorce rates are declining is there are simply fewer marriages to split up. The number of unmarried adults is at a record high of 20%. According to a 2014 Pew Research Center report. In 1960, 68% of 20 somethings were married. 68%.  In 2008, that number was only 26%. It's declined. People aren't getting married anymore.

 

But all of this just goes to show that there's much confusion about marriage and divorce, both in the world and also in the church. And it's only getting compounded since the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that's legalized same sex marriage in all 50 states. It's the very issue of marriage that has devastated our country and our world. Satan has been on the attack against marriage. And he's done a great job. Why? Why would he attack marriage? Because of the implications that marriage has on all of society. If you destroy marriage, then you destroy the family. If you destroy the family, then you destroy society.

 

We know that God instituted marriage all the way back in the garden with Adam and Eve, right? That's where God instituted it. And ever since then, Satan has been attacking. Because he knows of the utter chaos that results when people are confused about marriage.

Last week we saw Hannah and Penninah -- two women married to one man. And we saw the trouble that comes from this polygamous relationship. Because that was not God's design. God did not design it for one man and multiple women. What was God’s design? Marriage is to be between one man and one woman for life. That's why we make our vows before God at the altar when we are married and we say till death do us part, right?  

 

Outline

What I want to do this morning is I want to talk about marriage and divorce. Because although the heading in your Bible might say “Jesus’ teaching about divorce” or it might just say “teaching about divorce” or just divorce even.  Jesus also teaches us about marriage in this passage. And so what I want to do this morning is I want to give you some background on divorce, and then teach you what God's Word says about marriage -- before we then go on and tackle what Jesus says about divorce. And so this passage here, this message here, is going to be broken up into two parts. We're going to talk about marriage here this morning and then next week we're going to come back and we're going to talk about divorce. Two parts.

 

Focus on Marriage

We need to focus on marriage here this morning because I believe it's important for us to understand what God says about marriage first. So that way we can then better understand what God's view is of divorce.

 

Look at Mark chapter 10 and verse 1 with me. Look at what it says there.

 

“Getting up, He went from there to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan; crowds gathered around Him again, and, according to His custom, He once more began to teach them.” (Mark 10:1)

 

Stop right there. Now notice it says getting up. Getting up.  Getting up from where? Where was Jesus getting up from? Well, if you remember a couple weeks ago when we were back in Mark chapter 9, He was getting up from the house in Capernaum because He was sitting down in the house in Capernaum when He was teaching the disciples, and He was teaching them about the cost of being a disciple. The seriousness of being a disciple of Christ. He taught them about humility as well. And He was there in this home in Capernaum.

 

Capernaum was in the region of Galilee, up north of the Sea of Galilee. Link: Map of Israel at the time of Jesus.

 

And Jesus now leaves Galilee, and He goes south to the region of Judea. Jesus is now finished with His ministry in Galilee and did they receive Him there in Galilee? They didn't. They rejected Him. So He moves on, no longer ministering in Galilee.  In fact, Jesus goes down to Judea and He spends about six months there. Mark doesn't tell us what Jesus did during this time in Judea. Mark doesn't tell us about the six months that are spent there, but Luke and John do.

 

So if we were to study the Gospels, the other Gospels of Luke and John, we would get to see what Jesus did as He went from Galilee down to Judea and spent six months there. But Mark doesn't tell us about that -- Mark skips over that time. And Mark goes on to tell us about this teaching that Jesus had -- noticed what it says there -- beyond the Jordan. And so He goes from there to the region of Judea, and then beyond the Jordan.

 

Where is this region beyond the Jordan? This is the region to the east of the Jordan River. The Jordan River, which is the area that we would call, the region, we would call Perea. This is Perea. Now Judea is His final goal. That's His final destination. Jesus wants to get to Judea because what city is in Judea? Jerusalem.  Jerusalem is there in Judea, and Jesus is going to go to Jerusalem. And what's He going to do in Jerusalem? He’s going to die. He’s going to the cross.

 

But for this time, before He goes to Jerusalem, before He goes into the region or back in the region of Judea, we could say. Jesus is out beyond the Jordan and He's teaching the crowds there. He spends some time in Perea. And notice the crowds gather around Him again. Notice that -- there's crowds that are gathered around Him there. Where did these crowds come from? Who are these people?

 

Well, if you study the history and what's going on there, the Passover is coming, which Jesus is about to enter into Jerusalem as the Passover lamb. He is going to go into Jerusalem for Passover and He is going to die as the perfect spotless lamb -- He is going to die on a cross for the sins of all who would believe in Him. It's Passover time.

 

And during Passover, Jews would come from all over Israel from all over the region, and they would come and gather together at Jerusalem. And so you have these Jews that are all the way up in that northern Galilean region that Jesus left. These Jews are up there and they would begin to make their journey down to Jerusalem to go to Passover. And so they're heading down towards Jerusalem. And as they're heading down, they see Jesus there. So what did they do? Stop and listen. Let's see what Jesus has to say.

 

Why would the Jews be in Perea? If you were to look at a map you would see that Samaria butts up or budgets up against the river the Jordan River there. And what the Jews would do is they would go to the east of the Jordan River and make their way down to Judea, because they would not go straight down through Samaria. Why? Because they hated the Samaritans. They didn't like them. The Samaritans had intermarried with Gentiles, and so according to the Jews -- to those that were full-on Jews, they looked at the Samaritans and said they're just half-Jews. We're not going to even walk on their territory, we'll just walk around it.

 

And so as they walk around it to the east of the Jordan River, they would then come through before they could get into Judea and go to Jerusalem, they would come through this region called Perea. Which is where Jesus is and where He's teaching these crowds.

 

The Question

And so He's there beyond the Jordan in Perea. And this crowd has gathered around Him, as was His custom, He once more began to teach them. He's teaching them. But look what happens in verse 2.

Look at verse 2.

“Some Pharisees came up to Jesus, testing Him, and began to question Him whether it was lawful for a man to divorce a wife.” (Mark 10:2)

 

Jesus is there teaching these crowds and the Pharisees come out to see Him. They go out to Jesus. They hear He's out in Perea teaching the crowds and they want to go out and see Him. Why? Why did the Pharisees come out?

1. Well, first they want to test Him. They want to test Him. Jesus is still popular. We've talked about the popularity of Christ during these days, right? As there would be thousands of people that would gather around to come and listen to Jesus teach. He's popular. His crowds are gathered around Him and they want to turn the crowds against Jesus. That's what they're doing. And that's why they come out to test Him, let's go out there and let's put Him to the test because we want to get the crowds against Him.

 

2. But secondly, they also come out to Perea because that was the region that was ruled by Herod Antipas. Hey now, follow along with me here. Herod Antipas--remember him from back from Mark chapter 6. Herod Antipas was an evil man who had taken his brother's wife, Herodias, to be his own wife. Remember that? Herod divorced his wife and had encouraged Herodias to divorce his brother, Phillip. So that he could then go and marry Herodias.

 

But what happens? John the Baptist comes. John the Baptist comes along. And what does he do? He confronts Herod. He confronts Herod on this and what was Herod's response? Throw him in jail. Put him in prison. He wanted to kill him, but he was afraid to kill him because he knew how much the people respected and honored John the Baptist. So he says OK, fine, not going to kill him, we'll just put him in prison, lock him away. Lock him up. 

 

But, Herod has a birthday party. Remember this? Herod has a birthday party and Herodias’ daughter comes and does a dance before Herod and he likes it. And so he tells Herodias’ daughter, he says, I will give you anything you want, whatever you want, it's yours.  Herodias daughter then goes and consults with her mother. And what does Herodias want? John the Baptist's head. Bring me his head on a platter.

 

And what was that all over? It was all because John confronted Herod about his illegitimate and adulterous marriage with his divorced wife Herodias. That's what it was all about. It was all about this issue of divorce and marriage. That was the whole issue.

 

But if you remember back from Mark chapter 3 in verse 6, the Pharisees --they were already attacking Jesus. They were against Him. And where did they go? They went to go be with the Herodians. Listen to Mark chapter 3 in verse 6,

“The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.” (Mark 3:6)

 

They didn't like each other. Pharisees and Herodians didn't like each other because the Herodians followed Herod Antipas. They were followers of him. The Pharisees didn't want to follow Herod Antipas, so they didn't like each other, but they have a common enemy. And what do they do? They join up.

Jesus becomes their common enemy. And the Pharisees come with the Herodians so that they might destroy Jesus.

 

And up to this point, they've been conspiring with the Herodians. And now Jesus is in the territory of the Herodians, right? He's there in Perea with them. So the Pharisees come out and they make their attack against Jesus and try and nail Him. What's their question about? Verse 2

 

“Some Pharisees came up to Jesus, testing Him, and began to question Him whether it was lawful for a man to divorce a wife.” (Mark 10:2)

 

Now why this question? And there's lots of things they could have come up and talked to Jesus about, right? Why this question? Well, what happened to the last guy?  Did it go well for him? It didn't did it.

His head was cut off. Let's get Jesus talking about divorce and marriage. And then Herod Antipas will hear about it. And what will the result be? Just the same as John the Baptist. That's what they're thinking. And if they can get Him to openly confess and disagree with Herod on this issue and with the rest of the Jewish people...as we will see...then they know that Jesus would be in deep waters with Herod.

 

Rabbinical teachings on Divorce – two schools of thought

Now it's helpful for us to understand what the rabbis had taught concerning divorce, so that we can see how these guys would be pitting Jesus against the rabbis and ultimately pitting the people against Jesus, because that's what they're trying to do as they test Him.

 

Many rabbis in these days taught that divorce was permitted in almost every circumstance. What were the grounds for divorce? Well, there were. Two schools of thought. Two schools of thought.

 

1. The first one was the school of Shammai. The school of Shammai. The school of Shammai was a very strict school that allowed for divorce, divorce only in the case of adultery. That was it. Adultery --and they allowed for divorce. Anything else, no? You cannot get a divorce.

 

2. But there was a second school of thought called the school of Hillel. The school of Hillel. This was a very liberal school. And this this school taught, Hillel taught and allowed for divorce for any reason. And this was the most popular view amongst the rabbis and amongst the people you could get divorced for any reason.

 

In fact, we even learn about some of the reasons from some extra biblical resources. What were they?

• If a woman burned a meal, divorce her.
• If she spoke to another man, divorce her.
• If she was unfertile. Divorce.
• Another Rabbi, Rabbi Akiva, taught that a man could divorce his wife if he found another woman better looking than her.

 

Pretty much for any reason, you just come up with a reason, divorce her. That was a school of Hillel. And that's what the Pharisees taught. That's what the Pharisees believed. And that's what all the people believed as well.

 

And in Judaism, only the man could initiate the divorce. And once he was divorced, then the rabbis taught that he had the right to remarry whomever he wished. It's up to you. And so these are the two schools of thought that are going on at this time in Israel in Judaism.

 

The Test

And the Pharisees come to ask Jesus where He stands on the issue. Where do You stand Jesus? They want him to pick a side. Pick a side and cause division, right? Because they know that that's what would happen. If Jesus picks a side, the people are going to divide, the crowd is going to be divided and many of them are going to turn against Him. And word is going to get to Herod, and Herod's going to hear about it and what's going to happen?  Off with His head-- just like what happened with John the Baptist.

 

But how does Jesus respond? Look at verse 3.

“And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?” (Mark 10:3)

 

Where does Jesus go? He doesn't go to the teachings of the rabbis. Where does He go? To the Word of God. He goes right to the Word of God. That's what He's getting at when He says Moses. The writings of Moses. It's the Pentateuch. The first five books of our Bible. Those are the writings of Moses. And Jesus says, what did Moses say? What did Moses command you?

 

I mean, these Pharisees are there. They're supposed to be the experts in The Law. They should know the answer to this question, right? In fact, if you look over at Matthew's account of this interaction that happens here, Matthew tells us that Jesus responded. “Have you not read?” (Matt 19:4)

Come on guys, don't you read your Old Testament Scriptures? You're experts in The Law. Now what did Moses command? Did Moses ever command divorce? No, he didn't. He never did.

 

Jesus is pressing them on this issue to see if they actually know the Scriptures. These Pharisees had believed the school of Hillel. And they just had this casual attitude towards divorce. But do they actually know the Word of God? How do they respond?

 

Look at how they respond in verse 4. Look at what it says there.

They said, “Moses permitted a man TO WRITE A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE AND SEND her AWAY.” (Mark 10:4) (Deut 24:1-4)

 

Now what are the Pharisees talking about here? The Pharisees are actually quoting Deuteronomy chapter 24 verses 1 through 4.

 

And as one commentator says about that passage in Deuteronomy 24, “it neither mandates divorce nor sets out legitimate grounds for divorce.” In fact, to help us understand, turn over in your Bible to Deuteronomy chapter 24. Deuteronomy 24. I want to read through these verses to help us understand what Jesus is getting at. Deuteronomy chapter 24 starting in verse 1, it says this.

 

 24:1 “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 indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house, 2 and she leaves his house and goes and becomes another man’s wife, 3 and if the latter husband turns against her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her to be his wife, 4 then her former husband who sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife, since 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 gives you as an inheritance. (Deuteronomy 24:1-4)

 

Now what's going on here in this passage? What is Moses saying here? Does Moses ever command divorce? He never does. Notice in verse 1 “when a man takes a wife and marries her.” What's Moses implying here? Divorce is going to happen. And Jesus tells us, why did divorce happen? Because of the hardness of the people's heart. But Moses never commands divorce. He never affirms divorce. In fact, what Moses is trying to do here is to push people away from divorce, because look down at verse four.

 

Look what it says there, “then her former husband who sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife.” (Deut 24:4) Look if you divorce a woman, she's gone forever. That's what he's saying. You can't go back and take her back again.

 

• She's the mother of your children. Yep, I know that. She can't be your wife anymore.
• She was my first love. Yep, I know that.
• She's the love of your youth. But if you divorce her you can't take her back again. She's gone.

 

Because what are the women going to do? If a woman receives a certificate of divorce, guess what she needs. Somebody to provide for her and for her children, right? So what's she gonna do? Go find another husband. And Moses is saying, look, if you do that, if you send her away in divorce, you can never have her back.

 

Because with Hillel (and all that they were teaching there) it was just loosey-goosey, right? Divorce whenever you want. If you don't like, she burns your meal, yeah, just get rid of her. Maybe later on, yeah, sure, maybe take her back again, you know, and just whatever seems good to you…

 

But Moses is saying here he's not commanding divorce. He's saying if a divorce happens you can never take her back again, which means you better really, really, really consider whether you want to divorce this woman or not. You better think long and hard about this. Because God is serious about divorce. And God is serious about marriage.

 

Because how did God institute marriage? For what? For life. For life. Between one man and one woman. For life. And so Moses never commands divorce. In fact, they even say back in Mark chapter 10, the Pharisees say that Moses permitted a man to write a divorce. Moses never even permitted it. Moses just said if this happens, here's the stipulations. You can't have her back again.  Moses is trying to detour them from -- push them away from divorce. Look, you don't want to divorce her. Because you can never have her back.

 

But the Pharisees take this passage in Deuteronomy 24, and they use it to justify their view of divorce.

Jesus says that Moses wrote that in Deuteronomy because of the hardness of their hearts. Notice what it says in verse 5. Jesus said to them because of your hardness of heart, he wrote you this commandment. It's because he knew the hardness of the people hearts and that they were going to desire and want to divorce their wife. But Moses doesn't command divorce. Moses doesn't even allow for divorce. Moses is trying to push them away from divorce. You don't want to do that.

 

But they use it. The Pharisees use it to justify their view of divorce. Now it looks like Jesus acknowledges that passage in Deuteronomy 24 as a commandment at the end of verse 5. Look what he says at the end of verse 5.

 

“But Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.” (Mark 10:5)

 

But as one commentator says, it does not mean a commandment to divorce the wife, for there was no such commandment. It refers to the restrictions Moses laid down in permitting a divorce. The only command is found there in verse 4. Let me read it again to you.

 

“Then her former husband, who has sent her away, is not allowed to take her again to be his wife.“ (Deuteronomy 24:4)

 

That's the command. You see that? That's the command. And Moses does give that command to push them away from divorce, and so when Jesus says Moses wrote you, this commandment, He's not talking about a commandment to divorce your wife. God never commands divorce. Never. 

 

In fact, Malachi 2:16 says “for I hate divorce, says the Lord, the God of Israel.”

 

That's God's view of divorce. He hates it.

 

God’s view of Marriage

What God does command is marriage…He commands marriage. Which is what I want to spend the rest of our time talking about. Let's look and see what Jesus has to say about marriage.   Look at verse 6.  In verse 6, Jesus goes back to Moses and then quotes Genesis 1:27 and he says,

6 But from the beginning of creation, God MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE. 7 FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER, 8 AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH; so they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” (Mark 10:6-9) quoting Gen 1:27 and Gen 2:24

 

Jesus takes the Pharisees and all those who were there, this crowd that's gathered around Him, all those who are listening, He takes them back to the beginning.  And He tells them what marriage is. And so let's look at these four verses here. And see what Jesus has to say about marriage. 

 

1.    Marriage is Established by God

The first thing that He says here is that marriage is established by God. Marriage is established by God. Notice in verse 6 Jesus goes all the way back to the beginning of creation when God made Adam and Eve. He made one man and one woman in the garden. And it was there that God established what marriage is to be…between one man and one woman. You didn't create Eve and then more women after that. He didn’t tell Adam take your choice, however many you want. No, He put there Adam and Eve, and He brought them together and He said, this is what a marriage is to be. Between one man and one woman. And He established marriage from the very beginning. And man cannot come in and change it. No man could come in and change what God has established.

 

2.    Marriage Cannot be Redefined

 

Which leads to our second point. Point number 2 -- marriage cannot be redefined. Marriage cannot be redefined. It is set in stone. Jesus says that it has been this way from the beginning of creation. When God looked at His creation, what did God say? It is what? Very good. Very good. Marriage between one man and one woman was already instituted at that moment -- when God looks at His creation -- and He says now this is very good.

 

God brought the two of them together in marriage and makes this declaration as he sees Adam there with Eve, one man and one woman. They come together in marriage and he says it is very good. Notice Jesus also says at the end of verse 6 God made them male and female. Which means that is what marriage is in God's eyes. That's marriage right there. And it's between one man and one woman.

• Polygamy is not acceptable in God's eyes. It's not.
• Same-sex unions are not acceptable in God's eyes. People will often say today that Jesus never spoke about homosexuality. Yes He did. You want to know where? Right here in our passage before us. He said marriage is between one man and one woman. That's it. Did he talk about homosexuality? You bet he did. He lays it out for us right here. One man and one woman. Which means anything outside of that is wrong.
• Homosexuality, transgenderism, adultery, cohabitation and fornication (having sex outside of marriage) God says it is wrong. It's wrong. And just because the Supreme Court wants to redefine marriage doesn't mean it gets redefined. It doesn't. They are not the ultimate law of the land. They might think they are, but they're not. God's Word is the ultimate law of the land, because God is the King over the land and whatever God says is what is to be. And God has defined marriage as between one man and one woman, and anything outside of that is wrong, no matter what the Supreme Court says. And every one of those people on the Supreme Court who voted for the redefinition of marriage will have to stand before God one day, and they will be held accountable for the decision that they made that impacted millions of people.
• One man and one woman. That's marriage. And no one can redefine that.

 

3.    Marriage is Between a Husband and a Wife

A Third Point. Marriage is between a husband and a wife. Now that may seem obvious. After what we just talked about, marriage is between a husband and a wife. It might seem obvious, but there are many marriages that are controlled by either the father or the mother of the husband or wife.

 

Notice what Jesus says.

“For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother.” (Gen 2:24)

 

The husband is called to leave. Go get away from mom and dad. You're no longer under their roof. He's called to get out from under their authority and the responsibility of his father and his mother. Because his new responsibility is now to who? His wife. That's his new responsibility. He's to take his wife in. And to care for her and to love her and lead her and provide for her. That's what husband is called to do.

 

And while the relationship with the parents is still there, it is now a different relationship. It's no longer the same relationship.

 

As I've learned, and I tell other men who have sons…our job as parents who raise boys (we have four boys) our job as those who are raising boys is to raise them to leave. If you have boys, that's your job. That's your duty as a parent to raise them to leave. God calls them to leave and to cleave -- to get out from under your house and go marry a woman. And care for her and love her.

 

I know many mothers. It might be hard for you to hear this… you want to keep him there. But your job is to raise them up to leave and go be with their wife.

 

Genesis 2:24 says “and be joined to his wife” to be joined there, that word joined in the Hebrew means to cling to or to stick to. They are glued or cemented together and are never to be separated. When God says that he is to be joined to his wife, He's talking about this union that happens where they're glued together, and they are glued together for life. To stick together.

 

And think about the strength of this union between one man and one woman. They are bonded together, cemented together and are never to be separated. In fact, when that separation happens in a divorce, it hurts, right? Anybody that's been affected by divorce…it hurts. And there's a reason why it does. It hurts because there is a husband and a wife who have been ripped apart. They've been torn apart when they were bonded together before, when they were cemented together before. And when you tear them apart, when they are torn apart, it hurts. They're called to be a strong couple united to each other.

 

Jesus continues on and He says, and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh. They now become one flesh who are united to one another. And this binding that happens is more binding than the first one between the parents and the child. You see that? The parents brought the child into the world, and they're called to care for their children. But you never made a vow before God that you're going to have these children in your home for life, right? At least, I hope you didn't. They shouldn't be. Because that vow for life takes place between a man and his wife. That's where the vow takes place. That's the lifelong vow that happens is in marriage. Between a husband and his wife.

 

4.    Marriage Is For life

 

The fourth point about marriage is that marriage is for life. Marriage is for life. Look at what Jesus says in verse 9.

“What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” (Mark 10:9)

 

Now notice, notice this…who is the one who brings these two together? Who's the one who brings these two together? God is the one who brings them together. And oftentimes we think about this only in a Christian context. As if God only brings two Christians together. But notice Jesus doesn't say that.

Jesus doesn't say, and He brings together two believers. He's talking about the sovereignty of God here, and bringing a husband and a wife together whether they are a believer or not. God is sovereign in that in bringing a husband and a wife together.

 

Why? Because marriage is the backbone of society. Marriage is the backbone of society. That's why marriage is under attack from the enemy. That's why Satan wants to redefine marriage. Because he knows it's what God originally instituted for men and women. Your next door neighbors who are not believers...do you know who brought that man and that woman together? God did. God brought them together. And their marriage has been instituted under the authority of God. God brought them together and His plan will ultimately be fulfilled through the bond of that man and that woman. Whether they're a believer or not, God's plan will be fulfilled through the marriage of that man and that woman. Because God is sovereign over marriage.

 

He's the one who brings them together and that bond that happens is a bond for life. It's a life-long bond. God has joined them together and God will separate the two of them. How? Through death. God will separate them, through death. Listen to Deuteronomy 32:39. It says:

 

‘See now that I, I am He,

And there is no god besides Me;

It is I who put to death and give life. (Deut 32:39)

 

God is the giver of life and God is the one who takes life. God is sovereign and in control of all of it. Job talks about this in Job 1:21, he says,

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away.” [but what is his response?] “Blessed be the name of the LORD.” (Job 1:21)

 

Even understanding the sovereignty of God as He understands over life and death. That God is the one who takes away. He's able to rejoice and say, blessed be the name of the Lord. God gives life and God takes away life, which means He is the only one who has the authority to separate a husband and a wife.

He's it.

 

Listen, God has instituted marriage and He has instituted marriage for life. And He says that no man is to separate what He has joined together. No man is.

Now, are there instances in which God does not command, but allows for divorce? Yes there are. And we'll look at those next week. Will you pray with me?

 

Father, thank You for this amazing time in Your Word in institution of marriage. And Father I pray that we would hold this union high because You commanded it there in the garden. Between the first man and the first woman that You created. Father, I pray that no one, that none of us would be those who try and separate what You have brought together. I pray that You would help us to live sacrificial lives as husbands and wives, that we would love one another, who would care for each other, who would understand and recognize the importance of this union that we have together as husband and wife. 

 

We know that this is a picture of Christ and the church.  Christ is the bridegroom and we as the church of the bride. Help us to reflect that picture in our lives. As Christ loved Himself and gave Himself for us, the church, I pray that you would help us as husbands and wives to love one another and to give for each other, that we would be bonded, united, and we would grow closer each and every day together in this bond with one another.

 

And Father we do pray for those who have been affected by divorce. Lord, many of us here this morning have been affected by it. We know the heartache that comes from it. You know the devastation that comes from it, but Lord, we know that You are a gracious and loving and caring God. And that even through divorce Your grace is still put on display. Your love for us is still put on display. We know that even in that act, Lord that You do not turn Your back against us. But we thank You that You are always there with us through those times.  Father I pray that you would help us to stand upon the truth of Your Word as the culture around us is trying to redefine marriage. God, may we be bearers of the truth of Your Word, to preach it and proclaim it for Your glory alone, we pray in Christ’s name. Amen.