Divorce Is Not A Sin According To The Bible
Divorce was common during biblical times, but God allowed divorce because of man’s sinfulness.
Divorce is a legal process, not a spiritual one. It’s not sinful to end your marriage in a court of law; it’s blasphemous to commit adultery, abuse your spouse, or leave them penniless after an ugly divorce battle that drags on for years and costs you hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.
So what constitutes grounds for divorce? As with most things, there are no hard-and-fast rules because each situation is different. However, Matthew 19:3-9 tells us about a couple who had been married for many years without having children together—a legitimate reason for divorce under Jewish law (Deuteronomy 24:1). However, also note that Jesus did not say that every case would be granted; instead He told this particular couple “not everyone can accept this teaching.”
God Hates Divorce
God hates divorce. He hates the pain it causes, the loss of purpose it causes, and the loss of covenant it causes.
Sadly, there are times when God commands us to do something we don’t want to do—but we must obey Him anyway. For example:
- We have no choice but to go through childbirth (1 Corinthians 7:9-10).
- We have no choice but to pray in faith (James 1:6).
The Issue Of Divorce In The New Testament
In the New Testament, divorce is not mentioned at all. The only time Jesus referred to marriage and divorce was when he was asked whether a man was lawful to divorce his wife. His response was that if a man divorces his wife and marries another woman, then they would both be committing adultery (Matthew 5:31). The apostle Paul also addressed divorce in 1 Corinthians 7:10-16 where he discussed how Christians should relate to one another in marriage, singleness and widows/widowers. He stated that because of their new life in Christ, believers are called upon to remain single if they do not have the gift of sexual self-control (verse 27). If, however, there is sexual immorality due to an unbelieving spouse, then separation from that spouse may be warranted depending on the immorality between them (verse 15).
Jesus And Paul On Divorce
Although Jesus and Paul had different stories, they agreed that divorce was allowed. However, neither of them encouraged it; rather, they emphasized that divorce should only be considered in extreme circumstances. For example, Paul wrote to the Corinthians and said:
In my opinion (which may not be the same as yours), I don’t think God would want us to get married just so we can get divorced later on down the road if things don’t work out between us or if we find someone else who is more attractive than our current spouse (or vice versa).
I believe that marriage is supposed to last forever—and if you ask me what I think about people who get divorced because their spouse cheated on them or something like that… well… I’d say those people are wasting their time being married in the first place!
Can You Ever Get Remarried After A Divorce?
God hates divorce, but he does not hate divorced people. He loves us and wants us to be happy. That’s why he allowed Moses to write down the laws for Jewish marriages and divorces that would be in effect until Jesus came (Marriage).
When Jesus was asked about remarriage after a divorce, he said: “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and whoever marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery” (Luke 16:18). This is important because it tells us that God allows divorce–but only under certain circumstances. It also tells us that remarriage after a divorce is sinful if you are still married to your first spouse!
Paul gave instructions about remarriage for Christians: “Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent for a time so that you may devote yourselves to prayer; then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control” (1 Corinthians 7:5). This means that if one spouse feels like Satan is tempting them, then they should consider getting back together with their ex-spouse for some time before deciding whether or not they want another relationship with someone else…
It Is Not a Sin to Divorce, but It Is Against the Will of God. You Should Seek to Reconcile the Situation Wherever Possible.
This is not a sin if you have biblical grounds for divorce and remarrying.
The Bible says that God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16). But in another passage, Jesus says, “Whoever divorces his wife except for sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery” (Matthew 5:32). The reason why God hates divorce is that he loves marriage so much that he wants us all to be married forever! Jesus said, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and they will become one flesh.” (Mark 10:7).