MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, AND REMARRIAGE.

MARRIAGE: Marriage is ordained of God and is good and acceptable in His sight. Gen. 2:;18-24. Marriage is to be held in honor and never is the marriage bed to be defiled, Heb. 13:4. By no means should a person that is married commit sexual relations with any other than his or her spouse. To do so is a grave sin. If this law of God was honored and obeyed by all, we would not have the confusion about marriage and divorce that we have in the world today. Even though marriage is a good and honorable thing, it is not a qualification that a person must meet in order to be a good Christian. Paul was a good Christian and he was not married.

DIVORCE: Divorce is not pleasing to God. From the beginning it hath not been God's plan that married people be divorced, Mt. 19:8. God hates putting away, Mt. l9:6; Mal. 2:16. God intends for man and woman to live together in marriage all the days of their lives. If a man and woman does separate, they are to remain unmarried or else be reconciled one to the other, 1 Cor. 7:11.

Jesus has given only ONE reason for divorce and remarriage, that reason is fornication, Mt. 19:9. Fornication is sin regardless of how, why or by whom it is committed. Fornication as is under consideration in Mt. 19:9, is where a partner in a marriage goes out and commits sexual relations with one that is not a partner in the marriage. Husbands are to love their own wives and render unto them their just dues as partners in marriage. Likewise, wives are to love and respect their own husbands, Eph. 5:22,23. The husband and wife are to dwell together and fulfill all the requirements toward one another as God requires. They are not to be separated for any long length of time without due consent on the part of both. This separation is not to be of long duration lest either party be tempted to sin, 1 Cor. 7:1-5. The wife and husband should share bed and board and life with one another steadfastly and faithfully. If this is not done to the best of ones ability, the marriage will be placed in jeopardy.

If a husband or wife fulfills their responsibility toward their mate faithfully and yet that mate goes out and commits fornication, then the innocent party has a right to put such a partner away scripturally. But if the guilty party repents and seeks forgiveness for said sin, then such party is to be forgiven. Upon forgiveness, if the innocent party decides to continue living with such mate, then he or she may do so. But if the innocent party decides not to live with the guilty party after forgiveness, he is not obligated to do so.

REMARRIAGE: The innocent party has a right to marry someone else, that has a right to marry, if he or she desires to do so. Divorce on the grounds of fornication or adultery must be unquestionably established before remarriage is entered into. If a party of the marriage commits fornication without due provocation on the part of the other partner of the marriage, then the innocent party is at liberty, after the divorce is obtained for adultery and the guilty party is put away by the innocent party, to remarry if desired. If the innocent party remarries someone that also has the right to marry, he or she is scripturally married. When such second marriage is entered into and scripturally consumated, the second partner cannot be put away just in order to return to the first mate in the first marriage regardless of the change that might take place in the first partner of the first marriage. The second marriage is for life just like the first one was.

If we love the Lord and want to do His will, we will work very hard to do the right thing about any problem that might arise in our lives. But it is better to work to keep a problem from arising than it is to try to solve such problem after it has arisen. This can be done if we serve the Lord faithfully and scripturally. Many times we get ourselves into an untenable position and then we set about to twist the teaching of the Bible to fit our untenable position. It is wrong to do this. Rather, we should admit our untenable postion and repent and fit our lives to the teaching of the Bible. May God bless us all to seek out His will on all matters and do His will in all matters. Remember, "Let God be true, but every man a liar." WE can be wrong, but GOD is never wrong.

By Jim Sasser

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