Daily Devotional
Allowance For Divorce

July 24, 2017

People often ask me whether God allows divorce. Here’s my answer.

A physical act of sexual immorality is the only allowance that the Lord Jesus gave for divorce (see Matthew 19:3-9). He did not command divorce, nor did He commend divorce. As a matter of fact, our Lord teaches that restoration and forgiveness is far, far better even in cases of marital infidelity.

I guess the classic example of this is in the book of Hosea. Here was a man whose wife not only committed immorality, but she finally ended up as a prostitute. And yet Hosea went back to Gomer, reclaimed her, forgave her, remarried her, and restored her as his wife in their home. What a beautiful example of what the Lord teaches about restoration and forgiveness. Indeed, this is God’s ideal.

I hear so many foolish excuses for divorce. For example, “Well, I don’t love my spouse any more. Since the love has gone out of our marriage, then we should get a divorce.” That, my friend, is never a reason for divorce and I’ll tell you why. It is not love that sustains your marriage. It is your marriage that sustains your love.

Jesus said, “For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mark 10:7-9).