Mark 10:2-16 - God's Will According to Jesus - October 7, 2018

In the book of James we are told that every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights. (James 1:17) This refers to all good gifts given to all people. He makes the sun shine, the rain fall, the crops grow (Matthew 5:45), he gives life, talents and skills and homes and jobs and health to all people. One of the greatest evidences that God loves all people is that he blesses indiscriminately – even those who reject him and deny his very existence. But there is a difference; and the difference lies in how people receive these blessings. The believer joyfully receives these gifts from God, uses them according to his will, and thanks him for his goodness. The unbeliever refuses to acknowledge the giver of the gift, treats God’s gifts like he has earned and deserved them, and looks for excuses to misuse and abuse them. This is especially true regarding two of God’s most foundational and precious gifts: Marriage and Children. Today we consider Jesus’ own words regarding God’s will for our families.

Mark tells us outright that the Pharisees had come to Jesus with the express purpose of testing him – tricking him into a contradictory or false statement. So we know from the outset that the question is not an honest one. They are hoping that Jesus will either fall on the “liberal” side of the question of divorce – allowing divorce at any time for any reason, or on the “conservative” side – allowing only infidelity as a reason for divorce. They ask: is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife? This is the kind of question that should always set off alarm bells – “is it lawful”? It’s as if they were saying: “Can I get away with this?” Why are you asking? Have you been looking for an excuse to dump your wife? Are you trying to justify your past behavior? Why would you ever ask such a thing?

Jesus sets a perfect example for us by going back to Scripture and answers their question with a question: what did Moses command you? Jesus left them with a lot of material to sift through. Moses wrote what we call the Pentateuch: the first five books of the Bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Rather than giving them the answer, he challenges the Pharisees to consult their own Biblical knowledge and come up with the verse themselves. Many passages in the Pentateuch speak about marriage – which would they choose? Not surprisingly, they choose the loophole, the exception, the one verse that seemed to accommodate their hard, disobedient hearts. Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away.

The Pharisees did what the devil leads many people to do: rip a passage out of context, twist its meaning, and misuse it to justify their own sinful desires. If you read Deuteronomy 24 closely, you see that Moses’ civil law did not legalize divorce – it prevented frivolous divorces and protected the rights of the innocent party (in those days, usually those of the wife). (Deuteronomy 24:1-4) Because if a man sent his wife away – society would automatically assume that she had committed adultery – Moses demanded that the husband provide a certificate stating the real reason – thereby offering her, if she was innocent, protection from being stigmatized and allowing her to freely remarry. Even this was not God’s will, Jesus says, it was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law.

Jesus goes back to Genesis to explain God’s real intention and guidelines for his gift of marriage: 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. Before the Fall; before there was sin; before Adam and Eve and their children had become self-absorbed, self-seeking, self-justifying rebels; before the concept of divorce even existed – God established these guidelines for his gift of marriage: one man, one woman, for life. So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate. Back to the original question. Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife? No!!! They are one flesh joined by God himself and what God has done cannot be undone. Certainly, because of sin on the part of one or both spouses, divorce happens; because of neglect or abuse or infidelity; it may become a tragic and inevitable necessity; sin may shatter a marriage so completely that not even two baptized Christians can glue it back together – but it is never, ever, lawful. It is never, ever God’s will.  

That is how the Law of God always works. It never lets you off the hook. Even when it may appear to be accommodating, when it appears to offer a loophole for sinful desires – it loops right back around and strangles you. God’s law is perfect; there are no mistakes, no errors, no room for improvement. It will never provide excuses for ignoring his will, never provide comfort for those who break it, never provide justification for sinful behavior. It always kills. Always accuses. Always condemns.

The disciples were bothered by this, possibly feeling guilty themselves, and so they ask Jesus about this behind closed doors. But Jesus doesn’t back off. Instead, he presses even harder. 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. Jesus, God’s only, holy, righteous Son, sews the last loophole shut. Getting a divorce with the intention of marrying someone else is nothing but adultery. A legal document doesn’t make it lawful in God’s eyes. Because his will in the Garden of Eden is still his will for people today: what God has joined together, let man not separate. We even make that part of our vows, right? “As long as we both shall live.” Not “as long as we both shall love,” “as long as we both are happy.” Death, not divorce, is the way God ends the union of husband and wife. Anything else is sinful.

Now some of us might think we’ve dodged a bullet in this sermon. “I’ve never been divorced,” “I’ve never remarried,” “I’ve never had an affair – in fact, right now at least, I’m pretty content in my marriage.” Before you imagine that the 6th commandment doesn’t apply to you, remember that Jesus also said I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:28) Paul said wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord…husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. (Ephesians 5:22, 25) God also commanded, right at the very beginning of time, that according to his will a man will leave his father and mother – that is, a couple will make their commitment public and will fulfill any requirements of the government BEFORE they begin to live together as one flesh. (Genesis 2:24) No one here has obeyed the 6th commandment perfectly. Maybe now it’s beginning to sink in how terrifying God’s Law really is. Standing in front of God’s Law is like standing in a room where all the walls are closing in. God’s law is a hammer that crushes even the hardest of sinful hearts. (Jeremiah 23:29) It leaves no room for loopholes, excuses, or self-justification. By it, no one will be declared righteous…rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. (Romans 3:20) And so a secondary lesson is that we should not go around asking questions like is it lawful, because if you have to ask, you already know the answer, and the Law is not going to help you.

Is there any good news today? Yes! In Ephesians chapter 5, Paul quotes God’s institution of marriage from Genesis and applies it in a remarkable way: this is a profound mystery – but I am talking about Christ and the church. (Ephesians 5:32) This whole discussion about marriage is not, in the end, about us working to make our marriages perfect – it’s about the only perfect marriage: between Christ and his bride, the Church. Christ is the one who left his Father and mother at the cross – he was forsaken by his Father and gave his mother to John (Matthew 27:46; John 19:26-27) – to be united to us – through the blood and water that flowed from his head and hands and feet and side. (Ephesians 5:25-27) We could spend weeks studying marriage and tips and tricks for a successful marriage – but we won’t, because, in our hands, marriage cannot, ever, save us. But there is a marriage that does save. There is one union that cannot be broken – not by sin or death or divorce (Romans 8:39). It’s the marriage of Christ and his Church. Christ proposed to you in Baptism, when he sealed you with his name and his blood. In his holy supper he comes to you again and again and again to tell you how much he loves you – to the point of dying for you to forgive your sins. All of Scripture is his love song to you – assuring you that you are precious to him and that he is preparing a home for you in heaven. So if you fear God’s wrath over how you’ve handled marriage in the past, don’t look to the Law for justification – look to Christ. Bring all of your sins and abuses, all of your lust and hardness of heart – bring it here, lay it at Jesus’ feet and trust that he has taken it all away – leaving you without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. (Ephesians 5:27)

Our Gospel ends with little children. That’s fitting since children always, always, always wind up getting hurt the most by the sin of divorce. Parents were bringing their children to Jesus so that he could bless them. But the disciples rebuked them – the parents – for bothering Jesus and for the noise, distraction, and (possibly) the mess their children were making. From the disciples’ perspective, what value did children have for Jesus and his kingdom? How could they support or advance his mission of achieving earthly power and glory? Still today some resent the presence of children in God’s house – seeing them as nothing more than a distraction, a nuisance, a drain on resources who need more time and effort than they are worth.

That’s not how Jesus sees them. He was indignant. He lashed out at his disciples: Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Who would Jesus rebuke for keeping his children away from him today? Do we parents understand that they aren’t really our children, they belong to God – who has commanded us – especially us fathers – to bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord? (Ephesians 6:4) More importantly, do we understand why Jesus commands us to bring his children to him? He loves them, he wants to feed them with his Word, forgive their sins, bless them and save them. Why would anyone want to prevent Jesus from doing so? Only someone whose heart is filled with unbelief that would look for loopholes, excuses and justification to keep children from Jesus.

And there’s a big, important lesson for us in those little, insignificant children. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them. In this whole section, the only ones who Jesus doesn’t reprimand and scold, the only ones who he freely welcomes, the only ones who come to Jesus having nothing to offer – are the little children. Not the Pharisees. Not the disciples. The babies. They are the perfect picture of what it means to believe and receive the kingdom of God. Not because they’re sinless or “innocent” (they’re not, they’re born guilty – Psalm 51:5). It’s that they realize their helplessness, don’t presume to do or give anything to Jesus, and are content to receive everything as good gifts from him. Only when we give up all our attempts to please God by our own works – and stop searching for ways to justify ourselves – and instead, receive Jesus’ gifts of forgiveness, life and salvation like little children will God welcome us into his kingdom.

May we all be like little children. May we always recognize that God is the giver of every good thing, joyfully accept the gifts he gives us and use them according to his will. Especially his gifts of marriage and children. Amen.