Prayer
Briefly prepare your heart in silence, and ask the Holy Spirit to awaken your sense of anticipation that God is about to speak to you through His Word.
Then, before you read, I invite you to pray this prayer:
Almighty God, in a world of human brokenness and imperfection, Your Word reveals Your perfect will for us. Help me to embrace Your will and live in step with it all my days. Amen.
Reading
Even the language the religious leaders used showed their misunderstanding of God’s heart for marriage. To them, in a case of “uncleanness”, Moses “commanded” that a certificate of divorce be written. Jesus, however, highlighted that the Law of Moses “permitted” a divorce in very limited circumstances and provided a method for divorce to happen in a less harmful way. There is a big difference.
God always desires that a struggling marriage should be healed and restored. When this does not happen and a marriage utterly breaks down, leading to one spouse divorcing the other, the Lord’s will is for both spouses to treat one another justly.
That was the heart behind the requirement for a certificate of divorce. In a world where women were economically dependent on men, had very few rights, and were often discarded by their husbands for the flimsiest reasons, the certificate of divorce was commanded as a means of protecting the divorced woman from an utterly hopeless future. With a certificate of divorce in hand, the woman could show when she had been divorced for a flimsy reason, and her chances of remarriage and economic security vastly improved. Without such evidence, it would always have been assumed that she had been unfaithful, and potential suitors would avoid her.
That was why the Law of Moses provided for divorces in limited situations and, whenever they happened, also commanded that a certificate be provided to the woman to ensure that justice was done.
Of course, as we saw yesterday, Jesus commands His disciples to treat their marriages as profoundly sacred. He expects us to do everything in our power to heal and restore our marriages when they are struggling. That’s why He sets the highest standard and only “allows” for a divorce in cases of sexual unfaithfulness. But when the hardheartedness and brokenness of humans leads to a divorce, Jesus expects His disciples to treat their ex-spouse with godly fairness and justice.
In our day and age, the norm is throwaway marriages. Jesus calls His disciples to be profoundly different! In our day and age, it is quote normal for ex-spouses to behave harshly and cruelly toward each other. Jesus calls His followers to be profoundly different!
Contemplation
Please take time to ponder what Jesus has commanded us. Turn one or more of these declarations over and over in your mind. Keep them in mind throughout the day and live in step with Your King, Jesus.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ:
- I will strive to be profoundly different to the world around me.
- I will treat all people with fairness and justice, even those who have hurt me the most.
Heavenly Father, please give me Your heart for fairness and justice, and help me to live in step with Your ways. Amen.
Dave's Diary 
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