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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Jesus Tackles the Issue of Divorce

# 566 - Today's Du-votional comes from: Mr 10:1,2, Then He arose from there and came to the region of Judea by the other side of the Jordan. And multitudes gathered to Him again, and as He was accustomed, He taught them again. The Pharisees came and asked Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" testing Him.

As soon as Jesus returns to “Pharisee country,” (Judea) they are on him. I wonder how long they schemed to come up with this question designed to turn the people against Jesus?

The question comes from a great debate about divorce among the religious leaders of the day. There were two schools of thought. One school championed by Rabbi Shammai allowed for divorce if a man found something indecent (sexual immorality) in his wife, and the other school, championed by Rabbi Hillel allowed for a divorce if a wife so much as burned her husband's food.

These schools are still with us today. The Hillel school is our own “no fault” divorce laws, and the Shammai school is the exception we make for adultery. These Pharisees are trying to make Jesus pick a side, and no matter what side He picked, He would anger a large number of people.

As we shall see, He picked neither side. He picked God's side in the debate, and what God has to say about the matter of divorce, and remarriage after a divorce will shock many today. It's shocking because we have all become to comfortable with the schools of Shammai and Hillel.

Father, Thy Word is truth. Prepare our hearts to receive it.

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