| Matthew 19:1 And it
came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these sayings, he departed from
Galilee, and came into the coasts of Judaea beyond Jordan; 2 And great multitudes followed him; and he healed them there. 3 The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? 4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. 7 They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? 8 He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery. 10 His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry. 11 But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given. 12 For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it. |
Mark 10:1 And he arose
from thence, and cometh into the coasts of Judaea by the farther side of
Jordan: and the people resort unto him again; and, as he was wont, he taught
them again. 2 And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him. 3 And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? 4 And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away. 5 And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. 7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; 8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. 9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. 10 And in the house his disciples asked him again of the same matter. 11 And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her. 12 And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery. |
Luke 16:14 And the
Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided
him. 15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. 16 The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it. 17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail. 18 Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery. |
| For a discussion
of the issue of divorce, as it relates to fornication and adultery, see
The
Sermon on the Mount, Part 2, for Matthew 5:31-32. The issue here, beyond that
teaching, is the response of the Pharisees, who sneered at Jesus' teaching.
Good tolerated a lesser standard because of the spiritual state of those
living under the law, but with the coming of the Age of Grace, with the
indwelling Spirit, that would no longer be acceptable. Slavish
adherence to a set of legalistic standards is no substitute for the law of
love, which asks, not what the law says in its detail, but what is the best
for the person involved. The Mosaic law of divorce was suited to the
convenience of men, without regard to what would happen to the woman.
Ending the marriage relationship caused pain and trouble for both partners,
if there was any real commitment involved, but the woman suffered most of
all. As a rule, woman did not own property, and had no means of
supporting themselves. Fornication within a marriage violated the very
heart of a marriage, the bond of love and sexual purity. Any woman who
violated that prohibition of sex outside the marriage bed could not hope for
a good outcome. Now, we have extended the provision to cover husbands
who commit fornication as well; in the tradition of the Jews, there was no
provision for a woman to divorce a man. That is more of a modern
invention. Like Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 7, there are some who choose to remain unmarried, and free of sexual contact, so that they can devote all of their time and energy to serving the Lord. That is not an endorsement of priestly celibacy; nothing in the Bible teaches that ministers of the Gospel should be unmarried. On the contrary, the qualification for bishops, or pastors, in 1 Timothy specifically state that the candidate should be the husband of one wife (1 Timothy 3:2). A wife is a source of support and encouragement for a pastor, and offers a measure of insurance against the kind of unbridled lust seen among Catholic priests over the past several decades. |
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| Matthew 19:13 Then
were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on
them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 15 And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence. |
Mark10:13 And they
brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples
rebuked those that brought them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. 16 And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them. |
Lu 18:15 And they brought
unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw
it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein. |
| Unless we trust Christ and accept his forgiveness with the same unconditional innocence that children trust their parents, and accept whatever is given to them, then we cannot hope to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, to eternal life. This little interlude also emphasizes that, despite the misgivings of some parents, there is no reason that young children old enough to understand who Jesus is cannot receive him into their lives. | ||
| Matthew 19:16 And,
behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do,
that I may have eternal life? 17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. 22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. 23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. 24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? 26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. 27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first. |
Mark 10:17 And when he
was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and
asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? 18 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. 19 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. 20 And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. 22 And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 26 And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? 27 And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible. 28 Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. 29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, 30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. 31 But many that are first shall be last; and the last first. |
Luke 18:18 And a
certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit
eternal life? 19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. 20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother. 21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up. 22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. 24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 26 And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved? 27 And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. 28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. 29 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, 30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting. |
| The real issue
in this passage is priorities; the outcome of our lives depends on what is
most important to us. The young ruler, like the Pharisees, thought he
could attain to eternal life, the greatest prize of all, by keeping a set of
laws and regulations, specifically the ten commandments. This, though,
is will worship, the idea that we can attain salvation through our own
efforts. If this were possible, Christ need never have died for our
sins. What the young man lacked was love, compassion for others, the
kind of love that comes only from God. Those whose god is their riches
have no room for another God in their lives; only God can bring about the
change in priorities needed for such people to find Christ. They can
never make the necessary changes through their own efforts, and neither can
any of the rest of us. Peter's concern came out of a misguided expectation that following Christ would mean great material rewards for him and for the other disciples once the Lord founded the earthly kingdom they all expected to see. Many Christians take the same view, insofar as reaping material benefits is concerned. Some who tithe literally expect great financial reward for their investment; others preach the so-called "prosperity gospel", and boast of the material possessions they have accumulated. The promised rewards in this life may indeed be material, but, if so, these are for God's use in furthering his work, not for us to indulge our lusts. The rewards may not be material at all; who can put a price on inner peace and contentment? The hard part is often ignored; along with the rewards, in this life, comes persecution. Most aren't willing to accept this as the price of material blessings. |
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