14 Jan - Mark 10

Today’s reading for the Tattoo Church Reading Plan is Mark 10. This one has some controversial topics but let’s address them:

1. Jesus talks about the “D” word, divorce. Before we step into it let me say that Jesus makes it clear that God loves you no matter where you have been and ALWAYS wants to have a relationship with you. That being said there are things that God says he desires for us to do and some things he desires for us not to do. Most often these things are to be done or not done in order to keep our relationship with God and others healthy.
2. Now, the Pharisees asks Jesus if it is ok for a man to divorce his wife. Sounds like a simple question right? Well, for them it was not. They knew that at that time in the Jewish faith there was a serious argument among leaders as to what are the proper grounds for divorce. Some said it could be done if a wife did something “unpleasing” to her husband. The definition of “unpleasing” was sometimes as simple as burning her husband’s food. Others leaders said if the wife did something “indecent” the husband could divorce her. Again, the definition of “indecent” could be as simple as letting her hair “down” in public. Jesus made it obvious on numerous occasions that he hated these stupid religious arguments.
3. You might be asking yourself, “what about the wife?!?!” I totally agree but the reason the wife isn’t given any reason to divorce her husband has to do with the customs of that day. Only the man could divorce the wife. Sucks, yea but it’s the way it was. Interestingly, the actions Jesus took while on earth made it clear he was all about women and men being equals. So maybe this is another reason Jesus gives the answer he does to the religious leaders.
4. So these religious leaders were just trying to get Jesus into a spot where people would get mad at him. Jesus knew this and turned the tables on these clowns again. He responded with telling them that God never intended for there to be any grounds for divorce when a man and woman married.
5. Later his disciples asked him about it again and Jesus tells them in an even clearer way that God did not ever want divorce to be an option. Jesus tells them if someone divorces and marries again they commit adultery. In the Jewish religious system adultery was punishable by death. So in essence Jesus was saying the only way out of marriage is death.

There are other things we could have talked about but we wont ever shy away from tough topics. God does not like divorce because he hates the pain it causes everyone involved. The reality is that divorce is something that does happen in our society, more often than is healthy probably, and God wishes it wasn’t the case because he does not want to see people hurt. If you have been divorced God loves you and wants you to be loved. Please do not feel like you’ve done something God will not forgive. If you are in a marriage do everything you can to keep that relationship healthy and honoring to God. If you are considering marriage then I hope this encourages you to prayerfully consider who you will spend your life with.