Divorce & Remarriage - God's Design? (part 2)

Divorce
On the subject of divorce, most people would have heard of Malachi 2:14-16 where God says He hates divorce. In this passage, He also asked his people not to break faith with their spouse because He made them one in flesh and spirit. In 1 Corinthians 7:27, 7:10, married couples are instructed not to separate from each other, it asks that those who are married not to get a divorce. Matthew 19:6 shows that divorce is against God’s will. Jesus said clearly in Matthew 5:32 and Matthew 19:9 that adultery is the only acceptable ground for divorce. So not getting along, incompatibility or other problems shouldn’t be valid reasons for a divorce.

Many think abuse is a valid reason for divorce. I personally know someone who was in such a situation and was encouraged and supported to go through the divorce process by her church friends. This seems to be a difficult situation, and many Christian counselors would have said that under that situation, it’s ok. I found this issue difficult before, but as I looked into the scriptures, I saw many were persecuted. Ok, you could argue that they’re persecuted for their belief and not applicable in this case. But what about the slaves? Some of them suffered mistreatment from their masters. But they were asked to submit to their masters whether they are good or harsh (1 Peter 2:18). 1 Corinthians 7:28 warns us that those who marry will face many troubles in this life. Jesus also said that there will be troubles and persecution in our lives, but He has overcome the world (John 16:33). He also says we’re to rely on His strength and wisdom and not ours. In James 1:2-4, it says that we will face troubles of many kinds, but to treat those as opportunities for growth and tests that mould our character.

It’s mind boggling to learn that the divorce rate among Christians is higher than non-Christians. According to statistics, in the US, divorce rate within the church is 60% versus 50% among non-Christians. In Australia, 1 in 3 first marriages end in divorce and 1 in 2 second marriages end in divorce. If the only allowance in the Bible for divorce is marital unfaithfulness, and if the high level of divorce we see in our churches today is a result of that, we are in serious trouble. If the high divorce rate isn’t because of that, is it then because of our ignorance, disobedience to God’s commands or something else? Either way, as Christians, we have reasons to be greatly concerned. If we’re no different and in this case worst than the world that we’re trying to witness, you’ve got to ask why even bother to be a Christian, since our witness is powerless and only serve to turn people away from Christ.

Marriage isn’t unlike adopting children into our family. But when things don’t work out as well as we hoped, do we abandon our adopted kids? Divorce is like abandoning our family because we don’t get along with our brothers and sisters or have difficulties with our parents. Marriage relationships are often said to be a mirror of God’s relationship with the church. Is the church today then being pure and holy and acceptable to her bridegroom?