Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    From $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Is Divorce a Sin?
    Is Divorce a Sin?
    Is Divorce a Sin?
    Ebook109 pages1 hour

    Is Divorce a Sin?

    By Lonnie w Bennett

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Is divorce a sin?

    Millions of people across the world have suffered through a misinterpretation of Jesus' statements regarding divorce. Faulty translations and ignorance of Jewish culture have led to a mass misunderstanding of the Bible's true stance on this topic.

    This book is designed to offer salve for the wounds

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBennett Books
    Release dateSep 15, 2020
    ISBN9780983779148
    Is Divorce a Sin?
    Author

    Lonnie w Bennett

    About the Author Lonnie W Bennett is a successful businessman, a former minister, counselor, missionary, educator, and Bible College president. He is also the husband of a wonderful woman, a father of six great kids, and a grandfather of 20.

    Related to Is Divorce a Sin?

    Related ebooks

    Relationships For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • UNLIMITED

      Why Marriage Matters

      Apr 5, 2024

      Why Marriage Matters
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Letters To The Editor

      Jul 30, 2021

      Dear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to [email protected] for a chance to be featured – please try to ke

      7 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Letters To The Editor

      Dec 30, 2019

      Letters To The Editor
      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Letter To The Editor

      Mar 16, 2020

      My working environment is non-Christian and I work very hard with long hours every day. After a few months, through the mighty and powerful work of the Holy Spirit, I started a prayer group at our workplace, but I have been doubting if this is the pl

      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Ask Val

      Oct 25, 2024

      Ask Val
      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      7 Quirky ‘Doctrines’ DEBUNKED

      Oct 28, 2022

      Jesus said that the truth sets us free. But the opposite is also true: Lies put us in bondage—even if the lies are spoken from a pulpit by a sincere minister or a Christian celebrity. In my international travels, I’ve sat in countless meetings and he

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      How Should We Respond To Celebrities Coming To Christ?

      Dec 30, 2019

      If you’ve been following the news lately, you will have noticed a significant wave of celebrities who are turning to Christ. In what is referred to as a massive spiritual movement, the sinful city of Hollywood is turning more and more stars away from

      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Fatherhood Above The Sun

      Mar 8, 2024

      Fatherhood Above The Sun
      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Women Of Grace

      Oct 21, 2019

      Many who read the above scripture are usually quick to grab the promises of prisons shaking, stubborn doors opening, and chains falling away. However, upon deeper study of this scripture, it is evident that the “Suddenly” in verse 26 was a direct res

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      THE WAR FOR OUR YOUTH Why creation still matters

      Dec 30, 2019

      We’re being told by public education systems, universities, media, some parents, and unfortunately many church leaders, that parts of the Bible are not relevant anymore and that we need to reinvent God’s word. So, with this situation, in order to und

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Marriage That’s Happy and Lasting

      Jan 4, 2018

      A Christian Science perspective: We can all realize and express God-given qualities such as love, joy, and selflessness.

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Letters To The Editor

      Sep 24, 2021

      Dear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to [email protected] for a chance to be featured – please try to ke

      7 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      “Lord Heal Our Nation”

      Sep 23, 2022

      “Lord Heal Our Nation”
      7 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Family Policy Institute Celebrates 11 Years

      Aug 19, 2019

      Errol Naidoo is one of the most effective Christians that I have ever encountered. He is passionate about God’s call on his life, he is driven to inform Christians of the issues that are facing us, and he is bringing the truth of God’s word out in So

      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Ask Val

      May 20, 2019

      Ask Val
      2 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Is Divorce a Sin?

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Is Divorce a Sin? - Lonnie w Bennett

      1. Marriage in the Patriarchal Age

      TO COMPREHEND the culture of the first century, we need to understand a little about the two religious periods that preceded it.

      The First One

      This one lasted some 2600 years, is called the Patriarchal Age. It began with Adam in Genesis and ended with the giving of the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai. In that Age, God dealt primarily with one family, and through that lineage came his Son, born into the world to bring salvation to humankind.

      That Age, as well as the one that followed, had particular rules and laws that governed its people.

      The Second One

      This period began with the giving of the Law by God to Moses, so it's called the Mosaic Age. In that Age, God dealt, not with just one family, but with one nation, commonly known as Israel. Again, those people had different laws and a religious system that varied entirely from that of the former Age.

      To get a clear view of the issues, we need to look at the Biblical teaching on marriage, divorce, and remarriage in both these periods. What does God have to say about marriage in the Patriarchal Age? The answer is found here, in Gen 2:24:

      ♦

      "For this reason, a man will leave

      his father and mother and be

      united to his wife, and they will

      become one flesh."

      ♦

      Other than possible direct communication, this verse constitutes the entire recorded instructions these people received about marriage. The absence of more detailed information is surprising and somewhat disturbing.

      We are not suggesting that God didn't care about marriage. Some thirteen hundred years later, Jesus adds, Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate. God certainly has a part in the joining; He instituted marriage.

      Let's be straight forward...

      The simple truth is that, despite all the hype and ceremony of today's weddings,

      gradient line.jpg

      MARRIAGES ARE NOT

      MADE IN HEAVEN!

      gradient line.jpg

      In fact, in His confrontation with the Sadducees, Jesus states that "There are NO marriages in heaven! The Sadducees had a false doctrinal concept that Jesus took pains to correct. They thought they had identified an insurmountable problem that disproved the resurrection from the dead. A certain man, they said, married a woman and then passed away. Each of his seven brothers married her and afterward died. They asked Jesus, Which one was to be her husband at the resurrection?"

      Jesus said, You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. At the resurrection, people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels…"

      ♦

      Direct quote from Jesus:

      "There will be NO marriages in Heaven!"

      ♦

      God left the marriage process as a civil matter to be dealt with down here on earth. You get a legal document called a marriage license, that you sign and register to get married, and another legal document, a divorce decree, that you sign and register to get divorced. You do that to obey the laws of the country in which you live. By whatever name it's called, you must have a divorce decree or certificate of divorce to get out of a marriage. That's how they did it in the Patriarchal and Mosaic Ages, and it's how they do it today. It's an essential part of the legal process.

      The certificate of divorce is mentioned numerous times in scripture and has a counterpart in every culture of every Age. Inheritance issues make that a necessity.

      ♦

      Moses introduced the divorce decree

      because of the hardness of their hearts.

      ♦

      It was the remedy for a bad marriage. God instructs Moses regarding the rules for the divorce and the process to be followed to obtain one. He emphasizes the necessity of the Certificate of Divorce in Deuteronomy 24:1-4. The statements are straightforward and crystal clear. We will examine those verses in detail in the third chapter, where we identify the three elements of the divorce process. Perhaps more sermons should be delivered on these unpleasant truths of the Patriarchal and Mosaic Ages because they stand as precedence to our laws today.

      The Jewish leaders with whom Jesus was contending had a background of polygamy (multiple wives). Biblical research makes it clear that neither these men nor their ancestors had to divorce a first wife to marry a second. They could have as many wives as they could afford.

      Second, there was no such thing as a defined marriage ceremony or even a recommendation for one. There isn't even an example of how anyone got married in the 2600 years of the Patriarchal Age.

      We know that when Abraham wanted a wife for his son, Isaac, he sent his servant to find his wife's relatives to select just the right woman. Rebecca, a first cousin, was chosen, and she returned with his servant to marry Isaac. The scriptures say, Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah. So she became his wife, and he loved her. Genesis 24:67.

      ♦

      The bottom line is that God left it to

      men to decide the method of

      getting married; MAN gets

      to choose the process.

      ♦

      Not only was there no prescribed ceremony in the Patriarchal or Mosaic Ages; but there isn't one in the Christian Age either.

      Who designed the marriage ceremony?

      We have all taken part in a marriage ceremony. Who designed it? Where did it come from? Where do ministers get the information they use in the wedding ceremonies they perform? Surprisingly, it's left to the individual performing the wedding. Both the religious and non-religious performers of weddings design the services they use. If the leader is spiritual, he will use the statements and principles of love, fidelity, and honor found in the Bible. If not, his ideas may come from some philosopher or wise man of his Age. Does that surprise you? It certainly did me. When I was a young minister, someone asked me to perform a marriage. I expected to look somewhere in the Good Book and find the words for the ceremony, but they were nowhere to be found.

      Shocker!

      And, while this seems remarkable, what is more surprising is that there is no record of God objecting to multiple marriages (polygamy) during either the Patriarchal or Mosaic Ages.

      It may come as a surprise that it was normal for a man to have more than one wife in the Patriarchal Age, yet it's true. Even the greatest of our spiritual ancestors had more than one wife.

      gradient line.jpg

      Let's examine the Biblical history;

      it's all there in black and white.

      gradient line.jpg

      Abraham, who is considered the father of the faithful, was the first Patriarch about whom we have much information. His first wife was the venerable Sarah. But after several years, at her insistence, he married her handmaiden, Hagar. Sarah gave Hagar to him as a second wife to have children through her. (Genesis 16:3)

      When Sarah died, Abraham also married Keturah, a third wife, and according to Genesis 25:1-6, he had several concubines as well. So, almost from the beginning, we see multiple wives as a norm for life in that Age.

      Nahor, Abraham's brother

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1