Look with me again at verse 1.
And he left there and went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan,
and crowds gathered to him again.
And again, as was his custom, he taught them.
So in the structure of Mark's gospel,
Jesus has now officially left Galilee for the final time,
and he is on his way to Jerusalem.
We noted a few weeks ago, Luke, at this point in his narrative,
is using phrases like, his face was set toward Jerusalem,
meaning, not that that's directly where he was going from this point,
but that his mind was on the cross.
His mind was on the purpose for which he came.
And everything that Jesus is doing is moving closer and closer to the cross.
But before going to Jerusalem for his crucifixion,
Jesus made one final tour through the region of Judea,
and then across the Jordan in the area of Perea.
Perea was still a part of Palestine in the day.
You'll remember back when John the Baptist was murdered by King Herod.
It was actually Herod's palace and prison inside the area of Perea,
where John was kept and where he was murdered there.
But though Jesus was getting closer and closer to the cross,
notice that his pattern of ministry doesn't change at all.
What is it that he does?
Everywhere he went, people came to him.
And what did he do?
Well, he taught them.
He preached the gospel to them.
What gospel?
The same gospel he always preached.
The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Repent and believe the good news.
Matthew 19 tells us that at the same time as he was teaching the crowds,
he was also healing the people.
So even as he got closer and closer to his final days,
just before the cross,
Jesus is doing what he always did.
He was steady.
He was faithful.
He was preaching the gospel.
And during one of these occasions of preaching,
he was confronted with a question about divorce.
And Mark records for us some of the details of Jesus' teaching.
But if you're like me,
you come to this point in your reading of Mark's gospel,
and this passage feels out of place,
at least on the surface.
It's like, where is this coming from?
Because we know that Mark's goal,
his purpose in this gospel,
is to do what?
Mark 1.1.
To declare that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God.
That he is the Messiah.
He's proclaiming the gospel through this book.
And then we get to a passage like this,
and it's like this whole discussion of divorce and remarriage
really kind of comes out of nowhere.
Like, why is it here?
And why is Mark,
and then also Matthew,
and then in short order,
Luke,
all included this particular teaching of Jesus?
We need to remember that in this section of Mark's gospel,
it's really kind of a subsection.
Jesus is, of course, moving towards the cross,
but it's zeroing in on his training of the 12 disciples.
He's teaching them not only the truth about his own messiahship,
but he's teaching them the truth of what is real discipleship.
What does it really mean to follow Christ?
What is it that the life of a disciple looks like?
And then we begin to understand,
well, actually,
this lesson fits kind of perfectly in this section,
doesn't it?
Biblical marriage is the foundation on which a healthy family,
church,
and society are built.
Following the disintegration of a marriage
comes the collapse of the home.
Following the collapse of the home
is the devastation of society as a whole.
So God's design for marriage
is not a random piece of teaching,
but it's actually something that every disciple of Christ
must take seriously.
Now, what has Jesus been telling these men?
He's been telling them that they're salt.
And if we are the salt that God uses
to preserve righteousness in the world around us,
to purify the wickedness and depravity
that is all around us in this world
that rebels against God,
if that's our responsibility,
then we have to get this right.
We have to get this idea of biblical marriage,
of the biblical home.
We have to get it right as faithful disciples.
So what we're going to do this morning
is take just a few minutes,
and we won't be able to explore
every possible discussion on this.
It would take us weeks to do that.
We're going to stick as close to these 12 verses as we can,
and we're going to step into a short counseling session with Jesus.
Let's say that we really wanted to find out
what is really God's mind about marriage,
what is really his thoughts on divorce and remarriage,
and how can we be obedient to what he wants?
Well, Jesus gives us a good look at that here, okay?
The first thing I would write down,
if you're keeping notes,
is write down this from verses 2 through 5.
Debating divorce.
Look at verse 2.
The Pharisees came up,
and in order to test him,
asked,
is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?
And he answered them,
what did Moses command you?
And they said,
Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce
and to send her away.
So as Jesus was teaching the crowds in Judea,
these Pharisees approach him with this question about divorce.
Matthew gives us an extra detail
that brings a little more clarity to their question.
Matthew chapter 19 and verse 3.
The Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking,
is it lawful to divorce one's wife?
And then he adds,
for any cause.
That brings some clarity to the question.
They weren't necessarily asking about divorce as a practice in general.
What they're asking the Lord is,
can a man divorce his wife for any reason
that he wants to divorce his wife?
Are there stipulations?
What can we do and what shouldn't we do?
And the question was related to an ongoing dispute
that was prevalent in this particular day among the Jews.
The dispute had to do with what made divorce permissible.
And it's interesting the way Jesus responds.
He doesn't automatically go to answer their question.
The first thing Jesus does,
as he often did,
was he asked them a question.
But why?
He says,
well, what did Moses command you?
Is that because he didn't know?
Of course not.
But Jesus asked these questions
to draw things out of people, didn't he?
What's he drawing out of these Pharisees?
The true intent of their heart.
Because then he got directly to what they were trying to get at.
And that was this debate that was so common.
It's centered on various interpretations of Deuteronomy chapter 24.
In fact, if you're keeping notes,
I would write that in the margin.
You can look at this later.
Deuteronomy chapter 24, verses 1 through 4.
This is what the debate centered on.
It's the only passage in the Old Testament law
that deals with divorce directly.
Let me read these four verses to you.
Let me read these four verses.
who took her to be his wife.
Then her former husband, who sent her away,
may not take her again to be his wife
after she has been defiled,
for that is an abomination to the Lord.
And you shall not bring sin upon the land
that the Lord your God has given you for an inheritance.
This is the passage that the debate was over.
But most of those four verses,
they were in agreement on.
It's not hard to figure out what Moses was getting at
once the divorce was final,
and he was giving instructions there.
What the debate focused on in particular
was the very first verse,
that if a man found some indecency in her
and gave her a certificate of divorcement,
and then it carries on.
What they debated is,
well, what does that word indecency actually refer to?
And there were two schools of thought in Jesus's day.
First, there was a rabbi named Shammai.
So there was the Shammai school.
The Shammai school took a stricter approach to this passage,
and it defined indecency as an offense
that is in the realm of sexual misconduct,
but comes just short of adultery.
Now think about this.
Adultery in the Mosaic law was punishable by death.
Everyone agreed on that.
Everyone knew that that would be the end of a marriage
if that were to take place,
because it would be the end of the life
for one of the parties that were involved.
So it's not referring specifically to adultery.
It had to be something just short of that.
So the Shammai group said,
well, it must be something in the realm of sexual impropriety
that doesn't quite reach full-on adultery,
but it's at least headed in that direction.
Perhaps exposure in some way
or a flirtatious personality with other men
or signaling that they are available in some way.
The Shammai group said,
well, that's really the only way
that divorce would be appropriate
and that this certificate should be provided.
Well, there was a second school of thought.
This was from Rabbi Hillel,
and it was the liberal approach
that actually took the exact opposite approach.
They defined indecency in the widest possible manner.
And even an excerpt from the Mishnah in this time says
that Rabbi Hillel taught
that even if the wife spoiled a dinner for her husband,
that was reason enough for him to find indecency in her
and to divorce her.
Now, some of you are laughing
because it's just kind of funny, isn't it?
But that was in their Jewish guidelines.
This guy was saying,
even if you don't like the way she cooks,
that's enough to find indecency,
therefore you can divorce her.
And then there was another extreme wing
of the Hillel school.
It's also recorded in the Mishnah.
One man said,
actually, indecency can be defined as
seeing another woman that is fairer than your wife,
and that's enough to find indecency in her,
therefore you can divorce her
and pursue the other woman.
This was a common debate in Jesus' day.
This is what the Pharisees were trying
to drag Jesus into in this moment.
And as usual, the crowds are coming to Jesus.
The Pharisees are coming for Jesus
because they're not asking this question
to gain any kind of insight.
What they're actually trying to do
is turn people against the Lord.
Think about it.
If he were to automatically jump into the debate
and take a side,
he automatically excludes a portion of people
that are probably in the crowd that day.
He turns people against himself.
That's what they were trying to get him to do.
Because he's in the region of Judea and Perea,
that's the place where John the Baptist was murdered.
Perhaps Herod is still in the area.
Maybe what they were trying to do
is get him to take the stricter approach
in what he was saying
in order that they could pull the Herodians into it
and could actually have him imprisoned
just like John was imprisoned
for speaking against Herod's marriage.
So don't take this passage
as if the Pharisees are actually trying
to learn Jesus' opinion.
They don't actually care about that.
In fact, Mark tells us.
They came in order that they might test him.
They're trying to destroy him,
not actually gain any kind of insight.
And then look at verse five.
This is how Jesus initially responds.
Jesus said to them,
because of the hardness of your heart,
he wrote you this commandment.
No, Jesus says.
Moses didn't write that
so that you could find
whatever reason possible to divorce your wife.
He wrote that as a protection for the wives
because of the hardness
and the rebellion of your own heart.
Deuteronomy 24, 1 through 4
isn't meant to condone the practice of divorce.
That's not God saying that he gives approval
to the ending of marriage.
It was given as a means of protection
because there were going to be a lot of wives
who inevitably were going to be mistreated
in this process.
Think about it.
Some were saying,
just because someone else is prettier,
just because someone else cooks better,
that's enough for you to abandon this woman,
for you to send her away,
which would have radically altered her life.
If her parents were dead at that point,
she literally has nothing,
no place to live,
no source of income,
all of her security is gone,
and there's a huge group of people
saying that that's okay.
And God, knowing the hardness
and the rebellion of the hearts of these men,
adds a law in that would provide
some type of protection for these women.
So Jesus' first step here
was to insist that the debate itself was wrong.
They were debating the wrong thing
about Deuteronomy 24.
Instead of trying to determine
how easy it is to divorce their wives,
they should have been thinking about
why the law was actually given
in the first place.
But they'd gotten distracted.
So Jesus reminds them,
that's there because of your hardness of heart,
because of your sin, that's there.
So we see the debate of divorce.
Secondly, look with me at divine design.
Divine design.
Jesus goes on from there
and he begins to explain
a biblical approach,
a godly approach to marriage.
Verse six,
but from the beginning of creation,
God made them male and female.
Therefore, a man shall leave his father
and mother and hold fast to his wife
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two,
but one flesh.
So instead of appealing
to the popular positions
of the other rabbis,
Jesus neither fixated on the law,
nor did he fixate
on the opinions of others.
He appealed to God's intended design
for marriage
as a creation ordinance.
Did you notice that?
Jesus doesn't go back to Deuteronomy
as he deals with this.
He goes back to Genesis
as he deals with this.
And immediately,
he reminds the people gathered there that day
that marriage is not man's idea.
Neither is marriage simply a social construct.
Marriage is God's idea
and it is by God's design.
It was instituted by him.
It was designed by him.
Therefore, our thoughts on marriage
and divorce and remarriage
must be governed by God's intention
in establishing marriage
in the first place.
So Jesus doesn't go back
to Deuteronomy 24.
He goes back to Genesis chapter 1
and Genesis chapter 2.
And he quotes two verses there.
The first one is Genesis 127.
So God created man in his own image.
In the image of God,
he created him.
Male and female,
he created them.
And then he quotes Genesis 2.24.
Therefore,
a man shall leave his father
and his mother
and hold fast to his wife
and they shall become one flesh.
So much can be said about these verses,
including the fact
that God's design for marriage
is both heterosexual
and monogamous.
God set the boundaries
of this institution,
not man.
He determined that marriage
must be between a man
and a woman
and it must be exclusive
to that particular man
and woman.
So then beginning there
and following all throughout
the scripture,
all notions of homosexuality
and polygamy
are perversions of God's design
and they issue only
as a result of our sin.
But Jesus' main point
in quoting these verses
is not just to establish
heterosexual monogamous marriage.
His main point
in quoting these verses
is to show God's intention
for permanence
in the marital bond.
And he says,
because two people
become one flesh.
One flesh.
It's not merely a reference
to the sexual relationship
within marriage.
It relates to the whole human existence.
Marriage,
two people unite
in every facet of life.
It's not two individuals
functioning within a social,
construct,
but marriage
is the unique
one flesh union
that is superior to
and unlike
every other relationship
in life.
Those of you who have children
remember the experience
of holding your children
in your arms
for the first time
after their birth.
And in that moment
you feel something
unlike you've ever felt before.
You sense a love
for something
that has never even known you,
that has done nothing
for you
and there's a uniqueness
to that relationship.
But I am not one flesh
with Ashlyn and Harper.
As much as I love them,
as much as I care about them,
as unique as our relationship is
as father and daughter,
it will never be anything
like my relationship
to Julie.
Why?
Because in marriage
God takes two people
and makes them one.
It's not merely an agreement.
It's not a living situation.
It is something supernatural
that takes place
in those moments
as God
brings this union together.
And this union
is never
meant
to be severed.
that's Jesus' point.
In fact,
it was only
after sin
entered the world
that divorce
was even a possibility.
It's never something
that pleases the Lord.
And he goes on
to say it
in verse 9.
What therefore
God has joined together.
Now wait a minute,
I thought that
Julie and I were married
because
I
pursued her
and I wooed her
and I did all the things
that you're supposed to do
and she
was convinced
in some way
and we hurried up
and got that taken care of.
We got that contract signed
so we could lock her in.
Isn't that why we're married?
Isn't that what makes us married?
Well no,
that's not what Jesus says actually.
Jesus says
it's not Jared and Julie
that have brought
this union together.
He says
what God has joined together.
God has done this work
in your marriage.
God has done this
one flesh action
and he says
therefore
what God has joined together
let no man separate.
God designed marriage.
God sovereignly unites
two people together
in that bond of marriage
and it's not for man
to destroy
the work
that God has done.
That's Jesus' point here.
Start arguing over
what's
permissible
when it comes to divorce.
Moses only wrote that
because of your sin.
Start worrying about
God's design in marriage
Jesus says
and what God
has brought together
no man
should separate.
James Edwards
insightfully writes
on this verse
Jesus endeavors
to recover
God's will
for marriage
not to argue
about possible
exceptions to it.
His opponents
ask what is permissible.
he points
to what is
commanded.
Before we move on
I want you to notice
something in this exchange
between Jesus
and the Pharisees.
I want you to notice
how they both
use the phrase
amen.
Amen.
Not amen
but a man.
Verses 2 and 4
the Pharisees use it.
Look at verse 2.
And the Pharisees
came up in order
to test him
and asked
is it lawful
for a man
to divorce his wife.
And then again
in verse 4.
They said
Moses allowed
a man
to write
a certificate
of divorce
and to send
her away.
There's a clear
sense of superiority
even in the way
that they think
about the issue
isn't there?
In their minds
their wives
were lesser people
meant only
to service
their desires.
And if they failed
to do so
these men
considered them
disposable.
So when they
come to the conversation
with Jesus
all they're concerned
about is what
they can do
as husbands
to find an out
should they find
the indecency
that they want
to get out of
in marriage.
But then notice
how Jesus uses it
in verses 7 and 9.
Look first
at verse 7.
Therefore
a man
shall what?
Leave his father
and mother
and hold fast
to his wife.
And again
in verse 9.
What therefore
God has joined
together
let not
a man
separate.
So then
Jesus here
puts the
responsibility
of preserving
and protecting
the marriage
squarely
on the shoulders
of husbands.
Do you see that?
They thought
I'm superior
to my wife
therefore
whatever displeases
me about her
I have the power
to get rid of her
and to pursue
something different.
And Jesus says
no you've actually
got the responsibility
to hold this together.
This is on you
husband.
He insisted
that it's first
man's responsibility
to forsake
father and mother.
To do what?
Hold fast.
Not look
for the loopholes
but to cling
to her.
The King James
as I have it memorized
in the book
of Genesis
says cleave.
To cleave
to her.
To grab her.
To hold tight
to her.
To never let her go.
This is on us men.
He insists
that that responsibility
falls to us
and then he declares
that no man
should endeavor
to separate
what God
has brought together.
Men
the responsibility
of preserving
and protecting
our marriages
falls on us
and shame on us
if it's our wives
that are the ones
fighting to keep
things together.
What did God say
in Malachi chapter 2?
For the man
who does not
love his wife
but divorces her
says the Lord
the God of Israel
covers his garment
with violence
says the Lord
of hosts
so guard yourselves
in your spirit
and do not
be faithless.
What do we discern
from Malachi's writing?
God hates divorce
and he expects
that men
would be the ones
working
to preserve
and protect
their marriages
and this doesn't
absolve
our wives
from their part
but I do believe
that men
will face
the greater judgment
in this.
Bottom line
is God
hates divorce
and as his disciples
so should we.
What God
has joined together
let no man
separate.
Thirdly
discussing
remarriage
discussing
remarriage
we've seen
debating divorce
we've seen
divine design
and then finally
with the disciples
in verses 10
through 12
we see discussing
remarriage
and in the house
the disciples
asked him again
about this matter
and he said
to them
whoever divorces
his wife
and marries
another
commits adultery
against her
and if she
divorces her husband
and marries
another
she commits
adultery
those are
shocking statements
who of us
would ever think
that that would be
the accusation
brought against us
for an unbiblical
marriage
divorce
and remarriage
but that's what
Jesus tells his
disciples
we won't go into
it now
but it's clear
that the 12
had largely
adopted
the view
of the culture
around them
in fact
in Matthew's
account
they're so
alarmed
and shocked
by Jesus'
statement here
that they say
well
it's probably
better to
never get married
and Jesus
corrects that
view as well
but in their
minds it would
be impossible
to live that
way
how could you
live in a
lifelong
monogamous
relationship
the disciples
are thinking
so influenced
by the culture
that they're
surrounded by
and yet I think
this is the
reason that the
gospel authors
include this
teaching on
divorce
because Christians
must be faithful
to God's
design
if we aren't
who will be
how will God
be glorified
in his
design for
marriage
and the
family
and the
home
and the
church
and society
at large
if disciples
ignore
his command
in marriage
so the
conversation
inevitably
turns later
in the house
to the issue
of remarriage
after divorce
has taken
place
not only
did Jesus
teach that
divorce
in general
is a sin
but that
those who
remarry
are guilty
of adultery
against their
former spouse
there's three
things I want
to note here
just to bring
some clarification
first thing
is this
Jesus'
references
to divorce
in verses
10-12
relate to
divorce
for unbiblical
reasons
such as the
Pharisees had
earlier
argued
he's not
saying that
every possible
divorce
is unbiblical
despised by
the Lord
and therefore
you are in
adultery
if you
remarry
that's not
what Jesus
is saying
he's referring
back to what
the Pharisees
said
is it okay
for us
to divorce
our wives
for any
reason
and Jesus
says
no
and if you
do and
you remarry
it's like
committing
adultery
against your
wife
okay
that's the
first
clarification
the second
clarification
I want to
make
is that
it's worth
noting that
read marriage
I don't
believe
puts a
person
in a
perpetual
state
of adultery
I don't
think Jesus
is saying
now that
you're
married
you're
locked
in as
an adulterer
for the
duration
of this
marriage
I think
he's
referencing
a single
action
in the
beginning
of the
marriage
relationship
I think
that's
what Jesus
is dealing
with here
not this
perpetual
state
where if
you've
been
remarried
you're
just
an
adulterer
forever
I don't
think
that's
what
Jesus
is
saying
he's
talking
about
a single
action
therefore
it wouldn't
be God's
desire
then
for you
to absolve
yourself
of some
kind of
guilt
by divorcing
again
that wouldn't
be what
God wants
I don't
think he
abused
the adultery
in that
way
and the
third
thing
is this
suppose
one is
divorced
for
unbiblical
reasons
but remains
single
I think
according
to Jesus
and then
again
according
to
the
apostle
Paul
to
the
Corinthian
church
that
individual
should
not
pursue
marriage
again
unless
it's
with
their
first
spouse
who
also
remains
single
let me
read you
this
from
1 Corinthians
7
verses
10
and
11
Paul
writes
to
the
married
I
give
this
charge
not
I
but
the
Lord
in
other
words
this
is
what
the
Lord
taught
Jesus
taught
while
he
was
on
earth
the
wife
should
not
separate
from
her
husband
but
if
she
does
she
should
remain
unmarried
or
else
be
reconciled
to
her
husband
and
the
husband
should
not
divorce
his
wife
what's
Paul
getting
at
well
if
you
do
divorce
you
need
to
stay
single
if
at
least
the
divorce
was
for
an
unbiblical
reason
you
don't
need
to
pursue
it
again
that's
what
the
Lord
was
teaching
his
disciples
as
well
where
we
get
to
at
the
end
of
this
divorce
and
remarriage
are
serious
issues
and
we
don't
need
to
take
a
casual
approach
to
them
we
need
to
treat
them
the
way
that
Jesus
treated
them
and
we
need
to
discern
what
the
Bible
has
told
us
now
to
conclude
I
want
to
recognize
just
three
important
notes
here
in
relation
to
the
whole
topic
as
we
talk
about
it
again
we
could
take
weeks
to
talk
about
this
and
there
are
lots
of
questions
that
come
up
and
!
hypothetical
situations
for us
to
reason
and
we
are
talking
in
more
blanket
statements
here
but
there
are
three
things
that
might
be
an
encouragement
to
you
in
this
the
first
thing
is
this
is
it
ever
okay
to
get
a
divorce
does
the
Bible
actually
provide
allowances
for
divorce
or
are
you
locked
in
no
matter
what
and
now
that
we
understand
and
have
looked
thoroughly
at
God's
design
for
marriage
and
Jesus
approach
to
now
I
think
and
only
now
can
we
look
at
the
exception
clauses
that
are
listed
in
the
scripture
there's
two
of
them
the
first
one
is
this
sexual
sin
in
the
marriage
sexual
sin
in
the
marriage
Jesus
taught
that
sexual
immorality
by one
spouse
makes
the
pursuit
of a
divorce
by the
other
spouse
justifiable
so if
you've
been
divorced
because
your
spouse
was
unfaithful
I don't
want you
to think
that you've
sinned
against
the
Lord
Jesus
made
this
clear
Matthew
chapter
5
verse
31
it was
also
said
this is
Jesus
speaking
whoever
divorces
his
wife
let him
give her
a
certificate
of
divorce
but
I
say
to
you
that
everyone
who
divorces
his
wife
except
on the
ground
of
sexual
immorality
Jesus
says
makes
her
commit
adultery
and
again
in
Matthew's
account
of
this
event
that
Mark
is
dealing
with
in
Mark
chapter
10
Jesus
says
the
same
thing
Matthew
19
9
and
I
say
to
you
whoever
divorces
his
wife
except
for
sexual
immorality
and marries
another
commits
adultery
the
word
there
is
pornea
it's
the
same
word
we
get
pornography
from
and
it
has
a
wide
range
of
meaning
when
it
comes
to
sexual
immorality
and
it
will
go
as
far
as
adultery
and
on
the
other
end
to
just
an
addiction
to
pornography
I
think
all
of
those
things
would
be
included
in
what
Jesus
is
saying
here
and
he's
saying
look
except
on
the
grounds
of
sexual
immorality
and
adultery
you
shouldn't
divorce
your
spouse
so
sexual
sin
in
a
marriage
would
be
one
exception
to
this
but
there's
a
second
one
I
think
that
Paul
deals
with
in
1
Corinthians
7
and
this
is
desertion
by
an
unbelieving
spouse
so
1
Corinthians
chapter
7
and
verse
12
to
the
rest
I
say
that
if
any
brother
has
a
wife
who
is
an
unbeliever
and
she
consents
to
live
with
him
he
should
not
divorce
her
if
any
woman
has
a
husband
who
is
an
unbeliever
and
he
consents
to
live
with
her
she
should
not
divorce
him
for
the
unbelieving
husband
is
made
holy
because
of
his
wife
and
the
unbelieving
wife
is
made
holy
because
of
her
husband
but
if
the
unbelieving
partner
separates
let
it
be
so
in
such
cases
the
brother
or
sister
is
not
unbelieving
spouse
leaves
you
as a
result
of
your
faith
and
commitment
to
the
gospel
then
you
are
free
biblically
you
are
free
from
enslavement
to
those
marital
laws
let
it
be
so
Paul
says
those
are
the
two
exceptions
that
the
Bible
gives
we
need
to
remember
those
we
can't
neglect
them
we
need
to
think
about
them
the
second
note
is
this
just
because
you
can
doesn't
mean
you
should
sexual
sin
permits
divorce
it
does
not
demand
divorce
and
reconciliation
always
needs
to be
the
priority
in our
marriages
what
Jesus
had in
mind
here
when
he
gives
this
exception
on the
grounds
of
sexual
immorality
what
he
had
in
mind
was
a
spouse
who
was
a
serial
adulterer
unrepentant
careless
about
his
sin
desiring
to
pursue
his
own
sinful
appetite
no
matter
what
that's
what
Jesus
has
in
mind
to
the
point
that
a
biblically
healthy
marriage
is
not
even
a
possibility
I
don't
think
what
Jesus
had
in
mind
was
a
single
offense
or
that
he
was
demanding
that
a
single
offense
of
adultery
or
sexual
impropriety
is
enough
to
automatically
hit
the
divorce
button
and
I
think
there
are
Christians
who
are
unsatisfied
in their
marriages
in one
way or
another
and it's
almost
as if
they use
the
sexual
appetite
of their
spouse
as a
reason
to
get
what
they
want
not
because
they're
really
all that
bothered
about
the
impropriety
but
because
they
want
out
of
the
marriage
and
that's
their
reason
but
Jesus
I
don't
think
had
in
mind
here
a
spirit
that
as soon
as you
cross
the
line
you're
done
he's
not
demanding
divorce
he's
only
permitting
it
and
what
he
has
in
mind
is
an
unrepentant
person
and
we
can
begin
to
apply
other
biblical
principles
here
Christians
are to
be
forgiving
people
they're
not
to
be
vindictive
people
and
if a
spouse
sins
but
desires
to
restore
the
marriage
in
repentance
as
hard
as
it
is
I
think
the
hurt
spouse
needs
to
at
least
first
seek
to
forgive
and
reconcile
and
it's
at
this
point
that
we
really
begin
to
allow
the
gospel
to
shape
our
marriages
is
this
not
Christ
approach
to
his
church
when
his
bride
sins
against
him
does
he
cast
us
off
and
cut
us
off
no
he
forgives
so
just
because
you
can
doesn't
automatically
mean
that
you
should
thirdly
divorce
is not
an
unforgivable
!
sin
divorce
is not
an
unforgivable
sin
some
people
view
this
as if
it's
the
greatest
most
devastating
sin
to ever
take place
in a
Christian's
life
and
they
disqualify
them
and
force
them
to carry
the
burden
of this
for the
rest
of their
lives
but
Jesus
doesn't
require
that
it's
not
an
unforgivable
sin
I
don't
think
it
disqualifies
you
from
anything
it
can
but
it
doesn't
have
to
like
every
other
sin
Jesus
paid
for
the
sin
of
divorce
and
if
you've
been
there
you
can
trust
his
forgiveness
he
thinks
no
less
of
your
cause
for
mercy
than
anyone
else's
he
does
not
intend
for
you
to
carry
that
guilt
forever
so
trust
his
forgiveness
and
let
those
around
you
know
of
Christ
forgiveness
Martin
Lloyd
Jones
said
this
he
thinks
it's
so
helpful
he
said
on the
basis
of
the
gospel
and
in
the
interest
of
truth
I
am
compelled
to
say
that
even
adultery
is not
unforgivable
!
sin
it's a
terrible
sin
but
God
forbid
that
there
should
be
anyone
who
feels
that
he
or
she
has
sinned
himself
or
herself
out
of
the
love
of
God
or
outside
his
kingdom
because
of
adultery
no
if you
truly
repent
and
realize
the
enormity
of
your
sin
and
cast
yourself
upon
the
boundless
love
and
mercy
and
grace
of
God
you
can
be
forgiven
and
I
assure
you
of
pardon
I
hear
the
words
of
our
blessed
Lord
go
and
sin
no
more
so
if
you've
been
here
you
can
trust
the
Lord's
forgiveness
you
don't
have
to
carry
this
around
for
the
rest
of
your
life
forgiveness
doesn't
preclude
!
that
come
as a
natural
result
of
divorce
and
remarriage
many
of us
know
that
it
complicates
things
it
complicates
things
for
a lot
of
people
but
there's
no
reason
for
a
repentant
Christian
to
carry
that
guilt
that
God
has
forgiven
and
if
that's
you
I
want
to
encourage
you
for
Christ's
sake
to
joyfully
move
forward
in
faithfulness
to
him
and
in
faithfulness
to
the
spouse
that
he
has
now
blessed
you
with
go
and
sin
no
more