So, last Sunday we looked at a portion of the Sermon on the Mount
that challenges us to go deeper than the externals of
religiosity. Actually, I think it is more than a challenge, Jesus
commands us to go deeper. So, if you are in worship and you are
still holding a grudge, go and make up with that person and then
come back to worship. Don't murder. It's a good idea. But as Peterson
translates it in the Message, "anyone who is so much as angry
with a brother or sister is guilty of murder." These are demands
that cannot be faithfully followed in our lives without a
transformation of the heart.
And right smack dab in the middle of this teaching Jesus talks
about divorce which I find fascinating. Did one of the disciples
have an issue with divorce? I am sure that was an
uncormfortable moment especially after hearing Jesus talk about
lust. Aw -kward!
I know there are many who are dealing the potential of divorce or its aftermath. So, let me give a shot at the meaning of this passage in Matthew 5.
Here are some of the rules for marriage in Jesus' day that will help put things in perspective.
1. Wives were property. Don't blame Jesus. That is the way it
was.
2. That is why this passage is addressed to men. It is also why it
begins with "Whoever divorces his wife..." (Notice that teaching
about lust is addressed to men as well. No comment.)
3. A man could divorce a woman but not the other way around.
4. A man could give his wife a certificate of divorce for anything
at anytime. If you didn't like dinner or if she smelled funny
you could divorce her. Sounds like the ancient version of no
fault divorce. See Matthew 19.
Take a moment and ask yourself, "How would that fly in our
culture?" Well, it wouldn't. So imagine how Jesus might have
felt about it. It was legal. From outward appearances no one
could fault a guy for divorcing his wife as long as he gave her a
certificate of divorce. But again, like adultery and murder
etc., Jesus has a deeper concern - the heart. The ideal that
Jesus is shooting for is a relationship where a husband loves his
wife and commits to her and chooses to love her despite her
faults or how he is feeling at any given moment. And the
opposite is true as well for women. Jesus is challenging a low view of marriage in that culture -even among religious people.
This is not the only passage that speaks of divorce. Paul says
in 1 Corinthians 7 that if a christian and a non-christian are
married and the non-christian wants to split then that is
sufficient grounds for divorce. However, the christian shouldn't
be the one to initiate the breakup.
It is tempting to become legalistic about all of this. But that would miss the point. Jesus is getting to matters of the heart. When the heart is right (this requires a
supernatural transformation) then painful things like divorce are
less likely to happen.
Maybe that is why this teaching is sandwiched between a warning about
lust and being honest. Deal with those issues and you are dealing with
the marriage relationship itself.
In the end, no one knows the pain of divorce better than those
who are divorced. That is why God dislikes divorce so much - for
the same reasons you do and more. It is not our intention to
divorce when we marry and neither is it God's intention. But God has deeper reasons.
The big question divorced people have when reading this passage
is "am I an adulterer?" Maybe (see Jesus' exception). But no
more than I am an adulterer if I dwell on a lustful imagination and feed it,
or no more than I am a murder when I wish ill will on someone
else. I think most people, if honest, would be guilty of one or
both of these moral failures. So join the club!
The important thing is to be aware of the condition of your
heart. You can't change the past. When you ask for it, God gives you
grace that covers past failures and you get to start again. And
it is the same grace that begins to change your heart because you
cannot do it yourself.
So start again. Clean slate. New. Forgiven. That is God's grace and love offered by the one who is committed to you!
Ok, for those who did not see the video on Sunday or did and want to see it again here it is. Please don't confuse this Jesus with the real one. Vintage 21 church created it. I love their creativity.
See you Sunday!
