Matthew 19
COMMENTARY:
: 7 They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? (647 “divorcement” [apostasion] means dismiss, let go away, send away, divorce, repudiation, or bill of divorce. People have not changed.)
DEVOTION: There are always those who want to question God. There are always those who want to find a way around the laws of God. It is not wrong to ask questions of God, as long as, they are not already answered.
Here we have the Pharisees testing Jesus regarding the issue of divorce. They ask if it is all right to divorce your wife. Jesus says that when God created one man and one woman, HE gave the command that they were to leave and cleave to each other. The parents were to be left behind but still honored. They were to become one flesh. They were no longer considered two people but one in the eyes of the LORD.
The Pharisees then brought up the fact that Moses wrote about divorce. He gave the ability to the children of Israel to put away a wife. They asked “why,” and Jesus gave them an answer.
Jesus addresses a question by the Pharisees regarding marriage. The answer was that the people had hard hearts. That has not changed over time. People today still have hard hearts when it comes to staying married to the same person for a lifetime.
We are a selfish people. We want what we want when we want it. Both men and women who claim to be Christians still have the sin of selfishness in their life. They have to fight it on a daily basis. If they don’t fight it, they become selfish. Once they become selfish they want a change in their relationships. They think that another person will love them more or better. This is a lie of Satan.
All relationships take work. Marriage takes work. It is not easy for two people to live together without having problems. God has given us the ability to go to HIM for strength in all areas of our life. HE can strengthen our ability to love our spouse, if we let HIM.
Husbands are to help their wife in all areas of responsibility. That means that they need help with the children, housework, and other responsibilities. Most women work today in the home or outside the home. A husband can’t come home and sit. He can’t come home and make a mess and think that it is the wife’s responsibility to clean it up. Help is necessary.
Wives need to show their husbands respect and love. Many men are going through a hard time today because of the difference in the job market. Some men are out of work. Some men are earning less than their wife. All this can affect a marriage.
None of these things are reasons for divorce. The passage only gives one reason for separation. However, even that can be forgiven by the spouse. We are to be a forgiving people.
One of the problems we face today is that many of those who are attending Church are from divorced homes. They have never had a good example of a Christian marriage to follow. Some of them receive advice from their parents who are divorced which in most cases is not good advice. If someone marries an individual from a divorced home it means that there is going to be more baggage then those who come from homes where both parents are together. This is not always the case but it seems to be true in most cases. Can these individuals overcome their upbringing in a divorced home? This can only happen if they allow the LORD to give them strength and courage to ask for help from those who are living in a Biblical marriage. Only if they don’t allow their upbringing to be an excuse for not changing to what the LORD would have them do. The LORD promises victory to those who follow HIM!!!
What would the world think if all those who claimed Christ stayed in one marriage all of their life? Do you think that would have an influence in our society? We need revival in our marriages. We need husbands who are willing to help their wife. We need wives that are willing to honor their husbands.
In HIS statement HE makes it plain that God created a male and female for the purpose of marriage. It was a man and a woman. Biblical marriage is only between a man and a woman. This marriage makes the two people one flesh. This marriage requires that the couple leave their parents and live on their own.
We are a stubborn people. If something or someone upsets us – we get rid of it. Marriage is entered into with thoughts that if it doesn’t work – we can get out of it easy. The Pharisees taught the same thing in Jesus’ days. God wants one man to marry one woman and live together for all of their lives. Until death do they part.
Is divorce an unpardonable sin? NO. We need to reach those who are divorced but our teaching should be that marriage is for a lifetime. The only one who wins in a divorce is the lawyer. The ones who lose the most are the children. The two parents are being selfish in most cases. Please pray for the marriages of all to last for a lifetime.
CHALLENGE: Help someone who is struggling in their marriage. Pray for the marriages of those in your world.
:12 For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it. (2135 “eunuchs” [eunouchos] means an unmarried person who has taken a religious vow of chastity, celibate, one who is by nature incapable of begetting children, or chamberlain.)
DEVOTION: Singleness is something that we talk about all the time when we are not married. Many individuals who are single want to be married. Some think that if they reach the age of thirty they are too old to get married and start wondering what to do with their life. Some are just satisfied with their life as a single.
Jesus explains that some are meant to be single. Some are made single by someone who has influence their life. Others are single because they want to spend their time serving the LORD.
Jesus also says that some people can’t handle being single. It is better for those individuals to marry rather than to burn. Each individual has to make a decision regarding marriage. Once you are married it is for life. It is hard work to stay married to the same individual for all of your life. Men and women are from different planets. God states that the only reason there is divorce is because of the hardness of heart.
Our life in Christ is to be a pure life. It is not easy in the world we are living in because of all the temptations we face each day but we have power from above to face the temptations because HE never send more than we can handle our way. That is a promise from the LORD.
CHALLENGE: If you are single use that time to dedicate yourself to serving the LORD fully and HE will honor your decision.
: 13 Then were there brought to HIM little children, that HE should put HIS hands on them, and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. (2008 “rebuked” [epitimao] means reprove, to admonish or warn forcefully, command, scold, censure, chide, or express strong disapproval of someone.)
DEVOTION: Children are a blessing from the LORD. Many in our society don’t think children are good for them. We have many who would rather have an abortion than raise children. This is not pleasing to the LORD if they end a life. They could give them up for adoption. There are options for those who are pregnant and don’t want the baby. Ending the life of the baby is not an option a believer should take.
Now we find children being brought to the LORD. The parents want Jesus to pray for them. It is important to parents that their children receive a blessing from the LORD on their life. Jesus prayed over them.
The disciples didn’t like to see this happen. They thought blessing children was a waste of Jesus’ time. They tried to get the children and their parents to go away. The church should not have this type of attitude. Children are important to the LORD.
One of the churches I have attended in the state of Washington has adults put their hands on children who are standing for the purpose of leaving the church service to go to children’s church. Once the children are standing and adults have their hands on them there is an adult who prays for the children. After prayer they leave for their own service. This shows the importance of children in this church.
Training our children is the reason we have them. If we are going to train them in the LORD we must set a good example for them. We must pray for them. We must give them Bible lessons that can help them understand what it means to be a follower of Christ.
If our attitude is wrong the children know it. The attitude of the disciples was wrong. Adults can have a real bad attitude toward children and that is a sin.
CHALLENGE: The Bible teaches us that children are a blessing of the LORD and should be treated that way.
: 21 Jesus said unto him, If you would be perfect, go and sell that you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heave: come and follow me. (5046 “perfect” [teleios] means of full age, bring to its end, finished, full grown, mature, complete, genuine, or entire.)
DEVOTION: Here we have a man who thinks he has lived a righteous life. He says that he has kept all the commandments from his youth. He is coming to Jesus to ask HIM a question that he thinks he has the answer. He was probably coming to have Jesus compliment him on how righteous a life he has lived.
He calls Jesus good. Jesus states that only God is good. Why is he calling HIM good? HE wants him to realize who HE is. HE wants him to listen to HIS next statements. HE is going to tell him what he has to do to have eternal life.
What is he going to have to do? He is going to have to give up EVERYTHING and become a follower of Jesus. First, he has to sell all that he possesses and give it to the poor. He has to have no place to go but with Jesus. He has to depend completely on Jesus.
What was his reaction? He didn’t want to give up everything. He wanted to keep him money and possessions and live a good life while in the earth and also be a follower of the LORD. He had a divided heart. Jesus doesn’t like a divided heart.
We sometimes think the same way as this rich young man. We want to have everything. We want to spend some time with the LORD and HIS work and other times with our own habits. We have a divided heart.
CHALLENGE: We need to be single hearted. Our heart must always be serving the LORD. Our heart must always be dependent on the LORD. Let us move on to a fully mature lifestyle for the LORD.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Parents wanted Jesus to pray for their childrenverse 13
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Moses – bill of divorcementverses 7, 8
Ten Commandmentsverses 17-19
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
Creatorverse 4
At the beginning made them male and female
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?
Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh.
What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
Jesus verses 1, 14, 18, 21, 23, 26, 28
Great multitudes followed HIMverse 2
Healedverse 2
Laid hands on childrenverses 13-15
Said: Suffer little children and forbid them
not, to come to ME, for of such
is the kingdom of heaven
Good Masterverse 16
Why call thou ME good? None are good but
one, that is Godverse 17
Told man who thought he kept all the
commandments to go and sell
all that he had and give to the
poor and he would have treasure
in heaven and to come and follow
HIMverse 21
Told disciples: With men this is impossible
but with God all things are possibleverse 26
Son of manverse 28
Sit on a throne of HIS glory
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Godverses 6, 16, 17, 24, 26
God joined togetherverse 6
God is goodverse 17
Kingdom of Godverse 24
All things are possibleverse 26
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Little child brought to Jesusverse 13
Neighborverse 19
Young man had great possessionsverse 22
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Temptingverse 3
Putting away wifeverses 3, 6, 9
Hardness of heartverse 8
Fornicationverse 9
Adulteryverses 9, 18
Good works earn salvationverse 16
Murderverse 18
Stealverse 18
False witnessverse 18
Not honoring father and motherverse 19
Not loving neighborverse 19
Loving great possessionsverse 22
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Cleave to wifeverse 5
One fleshverses 5, 6
Prayverse 13
Forbid not childrenverse 14
Good thingverse 16
Eternal lifeverse 16
Keep the commandmentsverse 17
Honor father and motherverse 19
Love neighborverse 19
Perfectverse 21
Give to the poorverse 21
Follow Christverses 21, 27, 28
Savedverse 25
Forsaken allverses 27, 29
Follow Jesusverses 27-29
Inheritverse 29
Everlasting lifeverse 29
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Galileeverse 1
Judaeaverse 1
Phariseesverse 3
Tempting HIM (Jesus)
Question: Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?
Mosesverse 7
Writing of divorcementverse 7
Disciplesverses 10, 13, 23, 25, 28
Rebuked Jesus for putting hands on little children
Jesus said to them that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven
Jesus said 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 heaven
Asked: Who then can be saved
Told by Jesus that they shall sit on
twelve thrones – judging
the twelve tribes of Israel
Eunuchsverses 11, 12
One came to Jesus and asked
What good thing shall I do,
that I may have eternal life?verse 16
Commandments:
You shall do no murder
You shall not commit adultery
You shall not steal
You shall not bear false witness
Honor your father and mother
You shall love your neighbor as
yourselfverses 17-19
Young man thought he had kept all commandment from his youthverse 20
Peterverse 27
Told Jesus they had forsaken all
and followed HIM
Asked: What shall we have therefore?
Twelve tribes of Israelverse 28
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
Kingdom of heavenverses 12, 14, 23
Eternal lifeverses 16, 29
Treasure in heavenverse 21
Kingdom of Godverse 24
Regenerationverse 28
Christ on the throneverse 28
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