Day 34: Jesus defends marriage
Today’s passage is on a very painful subject. You might have experienced divorce in your own family, or maybe you worry that your parents could get divorced. Divorce is so painful because marriage is so precious. As Jesus explains, when a man and a woman marry, God makes them “one flesh.” So, divorce is like tearing your body apart.
Jesus was in Galilee, where He grew up, but now He goes down south to Judea. As we’ll see in the next few days, He’s heading to Jerusalem. Who meets Him in verse 2, and what do they ask?
Jesus responds with a question. What does He ask them?
How do the Pharisees answer Jesus’ question?
In Jesus’ day, it was easy for a man to divorce his wife, and it was really hard on the woman and her children if that happened because they likely depended on the man for their food and housing.
Why does Jesus say that Moses allowed divorce (v. 5)?
What does Jesus say happened when God first created humans (v. 6)?
What comment does Jesus add to the quote from Genesis in Mark 10:8–9?
Jesus is quoting from the first chapter of the Bible: “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27). Next, He quotes from the second chapter, when God makes the first woman out of the first man’s side. The man says, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” The author of Genesis adds: “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh” (Genesis 2:23–24).
In our culture today, many people see marriage as mostly about two people coming together to make each other happy. So, if the relationship stops making one of the people happy, it makes sense to them to end the marriage. But Jesus has a different view. Who does Jesus say joins people together in marriage (v. 9)?
As we saw on Day 7, the apostle Paul explains that marriage is a signpost to Jesus’ love for us. He says that husbands are to love their wives just like Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her on the cross.
If marriage, at its best, is a picture of Jesus’ love for us, how seriously should we take marriage?
If marriage, at its best, is a picture of Jesus’ love for us, how does that help us see that getting married is not the point of our lives, but Jesus is?
In verses 11–12, what does Jesus say happens if someone gets divorced and marries someone else?
In Matthew, Jesus says that it’s okay to divorce your wife or husband if they have cheated on you (Matthew 19:9). Some people get abandoned and don’t have a choice. Others are abused by their husband or wife and have to leave. But Jesus is clear that marriage makes two people one and that breaking up a marriage is incredibly serious. This is hard for us to hear, as so many Christians today have divorced. Many of Jesus’ teachings are hard for us to hear, as they call out our sin. But Jesus also loves sinners. In John, Jesus has His longest conversation with a woman who had been married five times and was now living with a man she wasn’t married to (John 4:1–26).
If your parents are married, pray that God would help them be a picture of Jesus’ love for His church. If they are divorced or never got married to begin with, pray for God’s help and healing for them.