Some Pharisees came to Jesus with a tricky question about divorce. Can a man divorce his wife for any and every reason (3)? Their intention was to make Jesus offend those who followed Moses’ law. Moses allowed a man to divorce his wife by giving her a certificate of divorce (7, Dt 24:1), and the teachers of the law developed traditions for divorce for “any” reason, such as burning dinner; in fact, anything that displeased a man.
Jesus responded to their challenge by reminding them of the fundamentals of marriage. The institution of marriage was given by the creator God from the beginning for a man and his wife to be united as one. They become one flesh, as a family joined by God (6). Moses’ permission to divorce was not a command but a concession in response to their hardened hearts, and those who divorce according to their feelings would be held accountable for their actions (9).
Even the disciples had a hard time accepting the level of commitment required in a marriage (10). Entering marriage takes faith in the creator God, who put us together as one with his good purpose. This faith is like little children who recognize and trust those who love them (14).
Jul 23, 2026
MARRIAGE BELONGS TO THE LORD
Passage: Matthew 19:1-15
Key verse: 6
NIV
chapter 19
1. When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan.
2. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3. Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?"
4. "Haven’t you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator ’made them male and female,’
5. and said, ’For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
6. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."
7. "Why then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?"
8. Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.
9. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery."
10. The disciples said to him, "If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry."
11. Jesus replied, "Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given.
12. For there are eunuchs who were born that way, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others - and there are those who choose to live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it."
13. Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them.
14. Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."
15. When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.
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Prayer: Father, you are the head of my family. I pray to glorify your name through my marriage, rather than pacifying my own desires.
One Word: The marriage belongs to God