TID #156 Protect Marriage by Restricting Divorce

Published
TID #156 Protect Marriage by Restricting Divorce

What’s up TRC and Friends! Today we dive into Jesus’ instructions on how to seek his kingdom and righteousness with his teaching about divorce from Matthew 5:31-32.

You can listen or watch with the links right here and get a summary below those links for you to read. Thank you for being part of the work!

Marriage is a sacred covenant designed by God to reflect the relationship between Christ and His church. Jesus’s teaching on divorce in Matthew 5:31-32 provides instruction for protecting and preserving marriage while acknowledging certain circumstances where divorce may be permitted.

What Was the Historical Context of Divorce in Jesus’s Time?

In Jesus’s day, divorce had become extremely casual among Jewish men. There were two main rabbinic schools of thought:

The School of Shammai taught that sexual sin was the only valid reason for divorce

The School of Hillel argued that a man could divorce his wife for any displeasure, even trivial reasons like burning a meal

The more permissive view became dominant, leading to women being divorced for reasons as superficial as physical appearance or household duties.

What Does Jesus Teach About Legitimate Grounds for Divorce?

Jesus challenges the casual approach to divorce by establishing these truths:

  1. Marriage was designed by God to be permanent.
  2. Sexual immorality (“porneia” in Greek) is the only legitimate grounds for divorce.
  3. Divorcing for other reasons leads to adultery when remarrying.
  4. The exception clause shows God’s grace for victims of sexual unfaithfulness.

How Does Sexual Immorality Break the Marriage Covenant?

The Greek word “porneia” encompasses a wide range of sexual sin:

  1. Physical adultery.
  2. Other forms of sexual immorality.
  3. Sexual unfaithfulness that begins in the heart and likely leads to other sexually deviant behavior and patterns of sexual sin that violate the marriage covenant.

When “porneia” is engaged in it breaks the one-flesh union God designed for marriage.

What About Reconciliation After Sexual Sin?

While sexual sin provides grounds for divorce, reconciliation is still possible and must be attempted with good counseling from their church.

Life Application

Consider these questions:

  1. Am I taking my marriage covenant seriously enough?
  2. Have I allowed any form of sexual immorality to compromise my marriage?
  3. Am I quick to look for exits rather than solutions when marriage gets hard?

This week commit to protecting your marriage by establishing boundaries against sexual temptation.

If you are unmarried, approach marriage with gravity and ensure if you are looking for marriage that you marry only in the faith.

If experiencing marriage difficulties, seek reconciliation and counseling with your church and other professionals before considering divorce.

Remember marriage is meant to display Christ’s faithful love for His church

The goal is not just avoiding divorce but building marriages that glorify God and reflect His design.