There are NO BIBLICAL GROUNDS for
divorce! Jesus NEVER gave anyone the right to get a divorce! This is
clear from Matthew 19:8, “He saith unto them, Moses because of the
hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from
the beginning it was not so.” Jesus condemned all divorce!
If you'll carefully read Matthew 19:9 above, Jesus isn't giving anyone permission to divorce. Jesus is simply saying that a man is not to put away his wife; but if she runs off with another man, then he is free to remarry, and she is the guilty party for causing adultery. This is clear from the Scriptures.
To understand this Scripture better, keep in mind that a divorce causes two sins. One sin is the divorce itself. It is a sin to file for a divorce! There are NO Biblical grounds for divorce, which I will prove to you in a moment. The other sin is that a divorce causes adultery in remarriage. So if you divorce your spouse, you will be guilty of breaking your marriage vows, and of causing adultery if either of you remarry. That's what Jesus meant. Divorce is a horrible sin.
Jesus clearly stated in Mark10:2-6,9, “And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him. And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away. And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female ... What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.”
Jesus, in no uncertain terms, taught that marriage was forever ... “What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.” I could not in good conscience be a lawyer, or a judge, who makes a living divorcing people. God says in His Word, the Bible, that no one is to ever separate a husband and a wife.
Most people who file for divorce attempt to claim that Jesus allows for divorce in situations of adultery; but that is not what Jesus taught. What about all the other sins that one's spouse may commit? Does that provide a grounds for divorce? No, not according to the Lord. Jesus taught in Matthew 18:22 to forgive, 70 times 7. Divorce is the sin of hate, unforgiveness and hypocrisy. So many people are woefully ignorant of the Scriptures, just as Jesus said:
Matthew 22:29, “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.”
God's power can save your marriage, if you will trust God and not quit.
I am appalled at the number of so-called “Christians” and “churches” that meddle in people's marriages today, helping to break up the family by recommending divorce, helping the wife escape her husband, and taking sides. The Scriptural approach is to either mind our own business, or help the troubled couple as a COUPLE (because God sees them as ONE). Oftentimes, in-laws will only side with their son or daughter, which is sinful. This has caused many divorces. The Scriptural approach is to help BOTH of them, for they are ONE in God's eyes.
The same is true of ministries, that are much more inclined to help their own members, and forget about the husband that may not be a member (or vise versa). Before God ever created children, a family, a church, or a government—he instituted the marriage! No church should ever do anything to encourage, nurture, support, or cause a divorce. To do so is horrible sin!!!
If
adultery were Biblical grounds for divorce, then consider what Jesus said in
Matthew 5:27-28, “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time,
Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh
on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his
heart.” So according to
Jesus, a man is already an adulterer if he lusts upon a woman. This
gives every wife the Biblical right to divorce her husband on the grounds of
adultery, if he ever admits to being lustful towards another woman.
If adultery is Biblical grounds for divorce, and a man is already guilty of adultery if he lusts on another woman, then his wife should have a right to divorce him. To deny this is to say that adultery of the mind is not as bad as adultery of the flesh. Jesus clearly taught that they were both equally sinful. Obviously, Jesus was not giving a wife permission to divorce her husband if he commits fornication.
Here's another thought, and I want you to think about this. This is especially for those of you who believe that adultery is Biblical grounds for divorce. What about murder? If your wife kills 10 people, would that give you Biblical grounds to divorce her. You can't show me such grounds for divorce in the Word of God! God NEVER gives anyone permission to divorce their spouse if they commit murder (or many other horrible sins).
It is ridiculous for anyone to claim the right to divorce on the grounds of “adultery,” when that same spouse could commit murder and you'd still have to remain married to them. Jesus never gave anyone permission to divorce. Let us never encourage anyone to get a divorce, because all marriages are sealed in Heaven. Whether you were married in a church, at city hall, or on top of Mount Everest... your marriage vows (promises) were to your spouse, and to God ... “'Til death do us part.”
END
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Leading the pro-family movement since 1972 — Get Informed!
"Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD..." -Malachi 2:17
Divorce is a sin! Don't upset God by saying it's not.
"...Let not the wife depart from her husband... and let not the husband put away his wife." -1st Corinthians 7:10,11
Happily Married (streaming audio Windows Media sermon by Pastor Jeff Owens. Download.)
Marriage and the Character of a Martyr (streaming media MP3 sermon by Pastor Jeff Owens. MP3 Download | Real Audio Download)
"Anyone can live with Anybody if they can learn to be a Nobody." —Dr. Tom Williams
"For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself."
—Galatians 6:3