Divine Divorce Part 3: Jesus Does Not Condemn You
Difficult decisions
First, we live in a fallen world that bears little resemblance to the paradise God created. Moreover, due to our separation from His Spirit, we often make decisions based upon what feels good at the time. Sometimes we choose wisely, sometimes we do not.
In the Old Testament, personally meeting God was dangerous. Often times, if you did not approach the Lord just right, you died. However, now that Jesus Christ has paid the price for our sin, once we accept Him as God’s Son and repent, we can approach God’s throne freely and without fear of rejection – or death.
The point I am making is that we do not live in the Old Testament according to the Law of Moses. We live in a New Testament era defined by grace and forgiveness of our sins. Some believers make a fundamental mistake of thinking that somehow the harsh judgment of the Old Testament was a good thing and superior. They decry “sloppy Agape” and others over reliance on grace.
You do not want to meet the God of the Old Testament
However, nothing could be further from the truth. Not one of those who believe in their own righteousness would actually want to meet God’s Old Testament persona. If they did, self-righteousness would evaporate and so would they. Stacked up alongside anyone else, they would not even be a hair breadth taller when measured against our Lord’s Holiness.
Only the blood of Jesus Christ saves us and makes us acceptable to God. It is His sacrifice alone, and His righteousness given to us, that covers our sinful ways, allowing us entrance into heaven. None that accuse us of sin is any better in the sight of the Most High than anyone else whose righteousness falls short of His glory.
Secondly, we all do the best we can given the situation we are in. It may not look like it sometimes, but generally, we all try to do the right thing. Even if we don’t, if others knew why we acted the way we did, they too might not judge so harshly. Some make snap judgments about situations and motivations of others lacking any real understanding of what is truly going on.
Jesus did not condemn
This is particularly true when it comes to Divine Divorce. In this case, like the woman caught in the very act of adultery, people take up stones without so much as a thought about what may be taking place in our lives. In their eyes, you have broken the law of holy matrimony, therefore you are the enemy of all that is good and proper. You must be made to repent or, if you do not, shunned as a sinner.
I tell you of a truth, as it was in the days of the first Christians in Israel, so it is in our day and age. Those who judge us do not keep their own law. They look down on those who are caught in very difficult situations, yet they have all manner of work around to their own rules when it suits them. The church has produced a generation of Neo-Pharisees who have made the New Testament into another bondage through falling away from the actual heart of it.
When it comes to Divine Divorce, no man or woman undertakes it lightly. Those who really care about their relationship with Jesus struggle, sometimes for years, to make sure that separating from their current spouse is the right thing to do.
When God leads
It is likely that up to one-third of current marriages in the Christian domain are not the will of our Father. These are mismatches that were entered into without God’s permission and have, in fact, severely limited their usefulness in God’s kingdom. Within this one-third, there are legal marriages that are so detrimental to one or both of the parties involved, that God not only allows for, but leads people to break their earthly contracts with each other.
Of this smaller group, many stay in terrible situations simply due to social pressure. The truth is, that even of those marriages that God does want to annul, only a few ever find the courage to do so. Then, when these people are at their most vulnerable point, clergy, friends and sometimes even family, persecute them as heartlessly and cruelly as Jewish families shunned their own flesh and blood in the first century when the chose Jesus.
Light reveals what is already in darkness
In conclusion, in the coming move of Tabernacles, Divine Divorce will be a real phenomenon. Just like Israel left Egypt, people who follow the Holy Spirit will leave error and embrace freedom. Those who are Neo-Pharisees will see this as proof positive that this amazing move of His Spirit is of Beelzebub. However, all that will be happening is that God is cleansing His temple and returning it to what it was originally meant to be – His house. When the Holy Spirit comes to His people, it will uncover the rot and the error that has been hidden underneath a crusted legalism for millennia. It is a correction that needs to take place and that can’t happen within the present structure of the church.
One final thought: You must pray and get God’s permission to divorce. It is between you and God and no one else. While there is wisdom in a multitude of counselors, still you must hear God’s voice personally.
Amen.
Dear Connections,
Why do I not give more scriptural references when talking about Divine Divorce? After all, would it not be proper to have clear scriptural proof if I am going to consider it?
While there is a lot of scripture that clarifies the situation about divorce, those embedded in church doctrine will never see it. It is kind of like the Baptist minister that tells you that the tongues you are speaking, as he hears them, are of the devil. There is literally nothing you can do to convince him otherwise.
Holy Matrimony is just such a doctrine. It says there cannot be a dissolution of any marriage except for certain situations that are delineated by your particular church. The very words on the pages of the Bible must conform to their doctrine and not vice versa.
Interpreting scriptures through our natural minds is what got us into this “marriage at all costs” error in the first place and therefore, appealing to reason is not what is going to get us out of it.
In the coming move of Tabernacles, we will be led of God’s Spirit in ways that we never considered possible. One of these areas will be in who we marry. The union between and man and woman was meant, in the beginning, to be a direct leading of God according to His will and not our own choice. Therefore, in the restoration of all things, our present relationships will be either accepted or modified according to His will. That which is spiritual cannot be accessed through our natural minds.
Big hugs and lots of love,
Michael
One third seems conservative. I would say at least half of Christian marriages are not God’s will. Many Christians cannot hear the voice of God or sense his leading and direction. How did they choose their partner?
Hey Laura,
Perhaps you’re right. At any rate though, we should allow those who make mistakes, intentional or unintentionally, to repent and remedy their situation without persecution or intimidation.
Big hugs,
Michael
I think you’re right.
I’ll tell you how I “chose” my earthly spouse, who I refuse to call “husband” as he’s been anything but a husband to me.
I married within our tiny little denomination…I married one of “our boys.” I was a virgin, almost completely inexperienced with guys at all. Never thought anyone I liked would like me back, thought I was average and uninspiring and better settle for whatever came along. I was told internal beauty was superior to external beauty (which IS true) so many times by my mother that I supposed I had no external beauty you see…she never tried to help me maximize what I had to attract the right man…not outwardly, and not in how I interacted with them either (so few feminine skills…I was the older of two girls and was raised as the boy in our house). I was told that BEING the right person was more important than FINDING the right person. That if I could just BE the right person, anyone would basically do, so long as it is one of “our boys.” You don’t want to marry “outside” after all (and outside for us is pretty much anyone…our denomination is tiny and they consider everyone in Christendom that’s not us in error…course you can “bring someone in” but that involves arguing with other Christians who believe differently rather than telling people that don’t know about Jesus…always gave me cognitive dissonance that).
So anyhow when some man did look at me and seemed to want me, I jumped on the chance. I THOUGHT I was doing God’s will. I did it all “right” after all. I was a virgin. I married “in the faith,” I did what my elders in the church counselled me to do (years later I can say that the vast majority of these counsellors are divorced). I took my vows seriously too…that whole holy matrimony thing. I spent 30 ish years with this man, believing he was a believer and really trying. About 20+ years in I began to notice a pattern of abuse (not physical but every other type) that had been going on since before the wedding (but I didn’t find out about its origins until after the wedding). I gave him one more chance because that was a period of faux reform…he goes through that every so often as they all do. But once I saw that it was yet again fake, I emotionally checked out. Still living in the same house, but as roommates. Trust has been wrecked to such an extent that him just cheating would be minor compared to the trust issues we have. They go far beyond mere adultery.
I have come to see this as a spiritual journey. Yes, I did some things wrong…I tried my best but there were things I didn’t know and so didn’t do. I could try them now…but given my life span I don’t see how I could trust him again in the time I have left. I don’t think God wants me to either. I’ve prayed several times to God to show me His compassion for my spouse and his enablers… so I can forgive, so I can be like Jesus. Each time, I get an answer…within a few days, a cluster of three more obvious evidences of his cheating or abuse…three things that can’t be interpreted any other way. If it was just once I prayed and was answered that way, or just one thing each time, I might not be sure it’s God. But at this point I’m pretty sure. I even said to God that I’m done praying that prayer because His answers are too stressful 🙂 so I’m going to assume it’s the same until He shows me differently. But I have come to see it as a journey…you can do everything “right” and it still all goes to poo. So now I have compassion for so many I wouldn’t otherwise. Now I’m not an insufferable “if you just did things right/ my way it would all work out” person like some I know…I could be them, if all had gone beautifully. I’m sure I’d say those things too. So I’ve learned to even thank God for these situations…I believe they are preparing me for something better.
But anyhow. That is how/ why. We THINK we’re following God, only to find out later that all the counsel/ advice was just to make sure “our boys” had someone to marry. I prayed back then, but not from the heart…I knew I was doing what God wanted to just wanted Him to rubber stamp it. And He did for a short bit. Thanks to Him for giving me what I wanted so I could learn… I trust that this will help me be better and more understanding and more skillful and mature when He unites me with my Divine Mate. 🙂
Dear Anon,
Thanks for sharing your testimony and explaining things so well. I think your point about “spiritual journey” is very correct. I remember when I used to go on long hikes, I would mistakenly think that I had gotten further than I had, only to see the next hill come into view. I did get to my destination, but it was a bit harder and took more time than I anticipated.
For myself, what I have come to understand is that we all go through various difficult things in our life – that is the nature of living in a fallen world. It is, though, how we deal with them that determines our real progress. Sometimes I have made big course corrections in my life that cost a lot, but the fact that I was open to hear God’s voice allowed Him to help me do better and ultimately be more effective in His kingdom.
Keep up the journey, the place you are going is really wonderful!
Big hugs and lots of love,
Michael
So love the discussion on evangelizing via unconditional love. I’ve felt led to do that with someone and I also keep thinking I’m not doing enough, not saying enough… yet I also know that if I did I’d lose the person. By being patient and letting God do His thing, I feel like progress is being made. And I do feel this is what God wants. I pray all the time for this person, and I do believe the person is on God’s heart. Maybe there are bigger movements than I can see, too. But I trust that God has the person on His heart. Anyhow…I talk to God about it frequently but DO feel led this way. I’m glad I’m not the only one. It almost feels cowardly…but then it also feels like just the thing this person needs. I’m constantly asking God to make sure to show me if it’s just cowardice on my part or what the person needs…
Really appreciate this discussion and what you’re doing on here.
Dear Anon,
Thanks for you comment. If you are doing what God is putting upon your heart at any given moment, then you are in His will. God is merciful and patient and therefore, if that is what He is leading you to do and be, that is great!
Big hugs and lots of love,
Michael