Divorce and Remarriage

Christ's Message to American Christians

by Roger Hertzler

Jesus states in Luke 16:18, "Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery." In Mark 10:11, 12 He says similarly, "Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her. And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery."

Few subjects were discussed by our Lord as much as the subject of marriage, divorce, and remarriage. Yet the average unbeliever looking at the American church today would have to conclude that Jesus said absolutely nothing about this subject! There is essentially no difference between the world and the church in regards to the frequency of the divorces and remarriages that occur.

Both the teaching of Jesus and the teaching in the epistles make it clear that divorce is wrong, and should seldom if ever occur among His people. If divorce does take place, however, it is always wrong for the divorcee to remarry while the former partner is still alive. Such an action, according to Mark 10:11, constitutes adultery against the former spouse.

The apostle Paul confirms this in two separate passages by writing, The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord (1 Corinthians 7:39). For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man (Romans 7:2, 3).

How much wreckage could have been avoided if Christians had stayed true to Christ's teaching? More, no doubt, than what anyone could possibly imagine. The devastation that has occurred because of the plague of divorce and remarriage is incalculable. The injured spouses, the suffering children, the juvenile delinquencies, and the escalating crime rates are all fueled by the explosion of this practice during the last 50 years.

The church of Jesus, which should have been standing as a fortress against this evil, has instead given way to it completely. Only eternity will tell how many souls will be lost as a result of this horrible compromise by the professed body of Christ.

God says in the book of Malachi that he hates divorce. His will is that it would never happen, especially among those who claim to be His people. In the not-so-distant past, divorce actually was relatively rare in this country. Part of the reason it was rare was because remarriage after divorce was severely stigmatized. Once remarriage became an acceptable option, however, the number of divorces increased exponentially.

This epidemic has grown so quickly that we have now reached the point where there are nearly a million divorces filed in the United States every year. Most of those who do get a divorce will eventually get remarried. And most of these remarriages will occur while the former spouse is still living.

The professed church of Jesus Christ has entered into this deception wholesale. Very few are the church leaders who are speaking out against divorce and remarriage at all. Fewer still are the pastors who bravely refuse to marry someone who has previously been divorced. And almost nonexistent are those who teach that true repentance for divorced and remarried couples will mean to separate themselves from these adulterous relationships.

Most conservative Christians would rightly conclude that a homosexual couple, even a married homosexual couple, would need to repent of their relationship and separate from each other if they want to become followers of Christ. Yet we have somehow concluded that the only thing necessary for a divorced and remarried couple to do (if anything at all) is to repent of the ceremony but then go on living together just as though they are not committing adultery against anyone. By making this compromise, we as Christians have effectively given up our right to call homosexuals to true repentance.

What shall we do then? How exactly is God calling us to repent from this our wickedness? How does He want us to deal with all the mixed-up situations created by the vast number of divorces and remarriages occurring today?

Let me put it as simply as I can. If you are married today, and either you or your spouse has an ex-spouse who is still living, your current marriage is an act of adultery against that person. True repentance means to get out of your adulterous relationship, ask the forgiveness of those you have wronged, and live in celibacy from this day forward. By taking this courageous step you will be lifting up a powerful testimony for truth and holiness and striking a mighty blow against the kingdom of Satan.

Most will react to this proposal by rejecting it immediately as utter nonsense. "How cruel and unloving you are," they will say. "A merciful God would never ask me to do such a thing." If that is how you respond, then I guess I must simply leave this issue between you and your God. Please keep in mind, though, that if this message I am writing is true, then it would have been cruel and unloving on my part not to have told you. Keep in mind also that God is a God of love, and if this really is what He is asking you to do, then it is for your eternal benefit and not for your harm.

Others will respond to this message by saying, "There is probably some truth to what you are saying, but I think there are some exceptions we need to consider." If this is your response, then I'm sure that this short message won't be enough to convince you otherwise. But let me ask you, before you travel down that road, to please consider where the "exception" road has taken us. It is by making exceptions that American Christians have eventually gotten to the place where Jesus might as well have not said nothing about divorce and remarriage. There simply is no noticeable difference in practice between Christians and non-Christians.

So to those of you who have ears to hear: listen to the words of Jesus, read the words of His apostles, and respond in humility to what God is asking you to do. Not for your happiness or for the happiness of those around you, but for the reputation of our God. We have brought awful blasphemy to His name by this wickedness of ours, and only radical repentance will do anything at all to restore to Him the glory He deserves.

If you are willing to consider that this might possibly be a message from the Lord, and would like to take a more detailed look at this subject, then I invite you to click here. This will take you to an online book entitled "Dear Pastor".