What Jesus Did : Mark 10:9 - God Joined
by Phil Ware
God Joined - Mark 10:9
"God has joined those two people together. So no person should separate them." (ERV) Full TextKey Thought
God has the power to make two people one. Marriage is not about a wedding, but about a man and a woman entering into a covenant relationship with God. God is the greater party in the covenant. The man and the woman give their highest allegiance and commitment to God when they marry. There will be times when their spouse will unfortunately disappoint them or let them down. But, God wants them to remember that their highest priority is not treating their spouse as he or she deserves, but as God would have them be treated. Honoring God in the way they treat each other is the key to marriage as God sees it. God wants husbands and wives to understand that breaking a marriage apart is an offense against God—he is the one who makes couples one and the one with whom they enter into covenant relationship. God hates covenants made with him to be broken.
Today's Prayer
O God, please give your people a deeper appreciation of what it means to enter into covenant with you when they marry. I worry about all the money we spend on wedding ceremonies when there is so little appreciation for the covenant relationship that begins when a couple is married. Help me, O God, to be a covenant-keeper and a person who encourages others to be loyal to you and the covenants they make with you. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Today's Verses in Context
Then Jesus left that place. He went into the area of Judea and across the Jordan River. Again, many people came to him. And Jesus taught the people like he always did. Some Pharisees came to Jesus. They tried to make Jesus say something wrong. They asked Jesus, "Is it right for a man to divorce his wife?" Jesus answered, "What did Moses command you to do?" The Pharisees said, "Moses allowed a man to divorce his wife by writing a certificate of divorce. " Jesus said, "Moses wrote that command for you because you refused to accept God's teaching. But when God made the world, 'he made people male and female.' 'That is why a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. And the two people will become one.' So the people are not two, but one. God has joined those two people together. So no person should separate them." Later, the followers and Jesus were in the house. The followers asked Jesus again about the question of divorce. Jesus answered, "Any person that divorces his wife and marries another woman is guilty of sin against his wife. He is guilty of the sin of adultery. And the woman that divorces her husband and marries another man is also guilty of adultery."-- Mark 10:1-12 (ERV)
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