Am I Giving into Contractual Law or Covenantal Law?

"It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery."

Matthew 5:31-32

One of my friends who got married last year got divorce last month. I asked him why did he divorce. He said at a spur of a moment, “There is no spark between us.” Marriage today has become spark business and has knowingly or unknowingly lost the sanctity for which God had created the union of marriage.

Divorce is a problem now, and it was also a problem at the time of Christ. It was a problem that was made worse by the teaching of the Scribes.

This statement is based on Moses’ instructions in Deuteronomy 24:1-4 concerning divorce. No where in this passage is divorce commanded or even recommended. In fact, this passage is a series of conditional sentences ending with the conclusion that the man who divorces his wife cannot remarry her if she remarries and her second husband dies or divorces her.

The Scribes of Jesus’ time had in effect circumvented what Moses had said and had gone back to the practices that brought about Moses’ regulations on divorce in the first place. In fact, the Pharisees had gone so far as to say that Moses commanded divorce. In Matthew 19:7 the Pharisees come and ask Jesus about divorce, “Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate and divorce her?” They had twisted what Moses had said into a command to divorce rather than a restriction and a caution against it.

There were three religious views concerning divorce at the time of Christ. Two of these were very strict, but the third, that of Rabbi Hillel, allowed divorce for nearly any reason at all. It was the most popular view. It even allowed for divorce if the husband just found someone else he liked better reasoning that the current wife would then be unfavorable in his eyes and therefore indecent to him.

Our society is much like that today. If she burns the rotis (bread), then divorce her. If he snores too loud, then divorce him. If you become bored, then divorce and change partners.

Jesus corrects the teaching of the Scribes in Matthew 5:32, and in doing so also contradicts the prevailing view of our own society. “But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”

All this is in contrast to what God says about the nature of marriage. The Scribes regulated it to a legal relationship. Our society has become similar with marriage law now more akin to contractual law and business partnerships than a covenant between a man and a woman to be a family.

In verse Genesis 2:24 the pronouncement of the institution of marriage is made stating, “For this cause a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” Marriage takes place upon the man cleaving to his wife and becoming one flesh with her. The word cleave means “to glue.” And like two pieces of wood glued together, they become one and cannot be separated without permanent damage.

Jesus says here that just because the legal work has been done does not mean that the marriage is over in God’s eyes. Jesus’ correction of the Scribes and Pharisees tells them that all their efforts at self-righteousness are futile. Though they look down on others saying that they are not murderers or adulterers and they take care of the legal paper work in their divorces, Jesus says they are in fact guilty of murder in their hearts because of their hatred, they are guilty of adultery because they lust after other women, and their legal paper work of divorce has resulted in a proliferation of adultery.

What they viewed as righteous divorce and remarriage, Jesus views as serial adultery. Neither religious leaders nor any human government can set the standard for righteousness, decide what's right and wrong, or determine morality. That belongs to God and God alone. The best that we humans can do is to learn what God has declared and submit to it.

This Lenten Season let us pray that we may have the energy, power and dimensions necessary to fulfill the vows we made to our better halves and also to Lord Almighty. Let us also take some time to pray for those who are on the point of divorce in their life or are contemplating a remarriage.

May God help us. God Bless you.