‘“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!’ Matthew 18:22(NLT)
‘And I tell you this, whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery—unless his wife has been unfaithful.”’ Matthew 19:9(NLT)
‘“For example, a man who divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery. And anyone who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.”’ Luke 16:18(NLT)
‘Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. ‘ 1 Corinthians 6:18(NLT)
‘Now, I will speak to the rest of you, though I do not have a direct command from the Lord. If a fellow believer has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to continue living with him, he must not leave her. And if a believing woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to continue living with her, she must not leave him. For the believing wife brings holiness to her marriage, and the believing husband brings holiness to his marriage. Otherwise, your children would not be holy, but now they are holy. (But if the husband or wife who isn’t a believer insists on leaving, let them go. In such cases the believing husband or wife is no longer bound to the other, for God has called you to live in peace.) Don’t you wives realize that your husbands might be saved because of you? And don’t you husbands realize that your wives might be saved because of you?’ 1 Corinthians 7:12-16(NLT)
‘God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honor— not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways. ‘ 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5(NLT)
‘Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.’ Hebrews 13:4(NLT)
Of course, when we discuss marriage, people often point to biblical exceptions that allow divorce. That is true. There are instances in the Bible when the husband or wife is allowed to divorce. First of all, we need to remember that feeling unloved by our spouse or not feeling love towards our spouse is not one of those exceptions. At the same time, the exceptions themselves need to be viewed in the context of other Scriptures and also in light of God’s heart. They should not be used as an excuse to end the marital commitment.
For example, in the Book of 1 Corinthians, it talks about abandonment as one of the reasons for divorce. It says that if a Christian is married to an unbeliever and the unbeliever wants a divorce, the Christian is permitted to end the relationship. However, if the unbeliever wants to stay in the marital covenant, the believer is encouraged to remain married. In other words, God loves marriage and allows divorce only as a matter of exception.
Another very commonly discussed reason for divorce is sexual infidelity. Of course, this is a very painful situation if one of the spouses fails to stay faithful in marriage. First of all, it is a sin that the Bible says God will judge. We need to stay away from sexual sin and stay faithful to our spouse as much as we can. However, the instances that do involve sexual sin should be treated on a case by case basis. Here are some questions that need to be asked: Is the person consistently unfaithful? Or is this an isolated sexual failure? Is the individual repenting and willing to work things out in marriage? The Bible encourages the affected spouse to forgive. Of course, this is a difficult matter that might require counseling to be fully resolved.
Nevertheless, marriage is a place where we need to practice all of the biblical principles. In marriage, we need to exercise such attributes as love, forgiveness, faithfulness, grace, self-control, and others, to the fullest. Marriage is an example to the world. It is an example to our relatives and friends. It is also an example to the Church. This is where we really live out our salvation daily. Marriage is an example of what true love is.
from I No Longer Love My Spouse