"Some Pharisees came and tested him [Jesus] by asking, is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife? What did Moses command you? he replied. They said, Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away. It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law, Jesus replied. But at the beginning of creation God made them male and female. For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So, they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate. When they were in the house again, the disciples asked Jesus about this. He answered, anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery." - Mark 10:2-12
Very often I find myself writing about issues that I suspect will make some readers uncomfortable, but my hope is that it will provoke your thought and reflection on the realities of living in a fallen world. Divorce is an all-too-common event, in our culture in particular. When I tell people that Martie and I have been married for what will be 53 years in January, many reply - "wow, that is uncommon these days, or words to that effect.
In the United States, "when it comes to first marriages, 43% (eventually) are dissolved. Second and third marriages actually fail at a far higher rate, though, with 60% of second marriages and 73% of third marriages ending in divorce." - Legal Advisor article (Revealing Divorce Statistics In 2024) In case you are wondering, divorce rates among Christians are not much better. Recent surveys and studies suggest that approximately 20 to 25 percent of Christian marriages end in divorce, with higher percentages reported among millennials and younger generations of believers.
The woman at the well.
"The [Samaritan] woman said to him, Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water. He told her, go, call your husband and come back. I have no husband, she replied. Jesus said to her, you are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true. ... The woman said, I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us. Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he. .... Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, He told me everything I ever did." - John 4:15-18, 25-26,39
Notice Jesus did not say to the woman that she needed to be restored to her first husband. Although divorce is destructive to the very fiber of marriage and family, it is not the unpardonable sin for which there is no forgiveness. I will leave that to your own study if you are so inclined to pursue it.
Given that one exception to the possibility of forgiveness by God's grace, we should not consider our sins to be OK so that grace might abound.
"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?" - Romans 6:1-3
I am quite certain that Jesus had an admonition for the woman at the well, just like He had for the adulterous woman.
"When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness but have the light of life." - John 8:10-12
If you will indulge my alliteration - after we sin, there should be recognition - remorse - repentance and reconciliation. "Stuffing" our sin by quenching the Spirit does not get us a "pass" from God. You may fool your friends but not God.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation." - 2 Corinthians 5:17-19
Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.
By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone
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