‘When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went down to the region of Judea east of the Jordan River. Large crowds followed him there, and he healed their sick. Some Pharisees came and tried to trap him with this question: “Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife for just any reason?” “Haven’t you read the Scriptures?” Jesus replied. “They record that from the beginning ‘God made them male and female.’” And he said, “‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.” “Then why did Moses say in the law that a man could give his wife a written notice of divorce and send her away?” they asked. Jesus replied, “Moses permitted divorce only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended. And I tell you this, whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery—unless his wife has been unfaithful.” Jesus’ disciples then said to him, “If this is the case, it is better not to marry!” “Not everyone can accept this statement,” Jesus said. “Only those whom God helps. Some are born as eunuchs, some have been made eunuchs by others, and some choose not to marry for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.”’ Matthew 19:1-12(NLT)
‘Then God told Noah and his sons, “I hereby confirm my covenant with you and your descendants, and with all the animals that were on the boat with you—the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals—every living creature on earth. Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth.” Then God said, “I am giving you a sign of my covenant with you and with all living creatures, for all generations to come. I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth. When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life. When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.” Then God said to Noah, “Yes, this rainbow is the sign of the covenant I am confirming with all the creatures on earth.”’ Genesis 9:8-17(NLT)
We’ve been talking about marriage and how we should serve each other as husband and wife for the past four days. You’re probably thinking I’m off my rocker for including this strange Genesis 9:8-17 passage. No, I didn’t type it wrong or mean to get that other Genesis passage about how Eve is Adam’s help meet, though it’s certainly true. Here’s why I wanted you to read that passage from Genesis 9. I want you to be reminded of God’s promises, and not only His promises, but His covenants. We don’t really talk that much about covenants these days, but we should. It has everything to do with our marriage and even Jesus dying on the cross for our sins.
In our passage found in Genesis, we’re post-flood, and God is making a covenantal promise to Noah and his sons that He will never again bring a flood that would destroy the earth. That the sign of a “bow” in the sky will be His continual reminder of this promise. He will not break this covenantal promise.
Alright, now we fast forward and are in Matthew 19 where we’re talking about divorce. A sensitive subject, for good reason and I’m not intending to answer any questions about remarriage or anything of that sort; that’s most likely a question for your own pastor. What I want to talk about is covenantal love and our vows. Now, our vows are important, but your love extends far more than those words ever could. I would encourage you to not get bogged down by checking off your vows to make sure you always complete that promise to take out the trash. The bigger vow and promise you made on your wedding day is to love your wife for better or worse, till death do you part.
Our modern day marriages have ruined these words. They aren’t promises; they’re just something we say at weddings. If it doesn’t work out, oh well, I’ll get ‘em next time. I want you to consider for a moment, again, the picture of the relationship between Jesus Christ and the church. Christ is bound to the church. Now, think of all the times we as Christians have not exemplified the church in an amazing way. Whether it was secret sin or public sin, we actually fail pretty often on our side of the bargain. Jesus seems to be doing all of the leg work in this relationship and, well, that’s exactly the point. We’re always failing and Jesus is always forgiving. It’s all up to Him. We’re completely dependent upon His grace and mercy.
You did not marry your wife because you thought cleaning the house or eating dinner might get easier because you have some help now. You did not marry her because your family thought it was time to get married. You did not marry her for a tax break. You married her because it glorified God. It’s going to be hard to stay faithful and love each other for the rest of your lives. Nothing reveals that Jesus is so much better than seeing how much we fail. We fail Him all the time, and He forgives us without second thought, but it’s so much harder for us.
Your marriage is a covenant, and it is not intended to be broken. You aren’t intended to separate the moment things get hard. I pray that Christians would break the trends and not have just a slightly less divorce rate when compared to the rest of the world, but that we might have more fulfilling and more Christ-honoring marriages that point back to God’s covenantal promises.
Stay Uncommen.
Uncommen Questions::
1.How do our marriages glorify God?
2. What does covenant mean, and how can it apply today?
Uncommen Challenge:
Have a fulfilling and Christ-honoring marriage.
Scripture References:
Matthew 19:1-12
Genesis 9:8-17
from As One