|
RenewingMinds
|
Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage
A Trans-Dispensational Viewpoint
Key to a doctrinally-sound, Christian position on the subjects of marriage, divorce and remarriage is an understanding of the balance between the union and covenantal (contract) natures of the institution of marriage.
The subject of marriage has root in God's dealings with Adam and Eve in the Garden as recorded in the first book--Genesis--of the Old Testament. As a Divinely-instituted, earthly arrangement between a man and a woman, marriage has existed throughout all of recorded human history. Consequently, both Jesus' and the Apostles' teachings must be understood within the backdrop of this history and in the context of both the Jewish and Greco-Roman cultures in which they spoke. Jesus said, "The people of this age marry and are given in marriage" but marriage would cease in the "age to come". Despite Scripture's progressive nature of revelation and the uniqueness of the message found in the Pauline Epistles, biblical marriage has never ceased to be a covenant institution.
Some Christians view marriage exclusively as a contract, while others limit their understanding to references found in the New Testament. Whether intentional or unintentional, denying the broader historical perspective on these subjects will cause one's views to be distorted.
For example, the Apostle Paul speaks in his Epistles of the eternal and indissoluble nature of the relationship between Christ and his Bride--the Church. While he at time draws parallels, he nowhere suggests that these two attributes extend to the institution of earthly marriage--which would contradict the teaching of Jesus.
The emphasis in Paul's teaching is that Christ and His Bride serve as a model of love and loyalty--for husband and wife, respectively. Husbands are entrusted with a position of headship (Ephesians 5:23) and should love their wives as Christ loves the Church (Ephesians 5:25). Wives should acknowledge this headship (Ephesians. 5:24) and so render respect and loyalty in those things which lead to godliness (Colossians 3:18, I Peter 3:1,2).
Due to the believer's identification and union with the Lord Jesus Christ and the indwelling Holy Spirit, the union of two born-again believers creates the possibility for jointly "walking in the Spirit" and the expression of marriage as God desires it in this current age. Manifestations of love, faithfulness, repentance, and mercy are to be expected from Christians, but are never guaranteed.
Due to the personal and often painful nature of the subject, a diversity of opinion as well as confusion circulates amongst Christians. However, we are happy to announce that Dr. David Instone-Brewer has recently published his scholarly research on these difficult subjects. Dr. Brewer is a Baptist minister and Research Fellow at Tyndale House associated with Cambridge University, United Kingdom. In DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE IN THE BIBLE - The Social and Literary Context, 2002, Eerdmans, (also available online) he has done a particularly fine job in addressing the complexity of the issues and is helping clear away confusion. Chapter headings are:
The Ancient Near East - Marriage Is a Contract
The Pentateuch - The Divorce Certificate Allows Remarriage
The Later Prophets - Breaking Marriage Vows Is Condemned
Intertestamental Period - Increasing Rights for Women
Rabbinic Teaching - Increasing Grounds for Divorce
Jesus' Teaching - Divorce on Biblical Grounds Only
Paul's Teaching - Biblical Grounds Include Neglect
Marriage Vows - Vows Inherited from the Bible and Judaism
History of Divorce - Interpretations in Church History
Modern Reinterpretations - Different Ways to Understand the Biblical Text
Pastoral Conclusions - Reversing Institutionalized Misunderstandings
Not only does he deal with what the Bible teaches, he also addresses the various erroneous interpretations that have plagued the Church for millennia. Each chapter is extensively documented and ends with a concise summary. For example, Chapter 11 ends on this note:
The message of the NT is that divorce is allowed but should be avoided whenever possible. Divorce is allowed only on the grounds of broken marriage vows, and the decision to divorce can be made only by the injured party. A believer should never break the marriage vows, and should try to forgive a repentant [emphasis ours] partner who has done so. If divorce does happen, remarriage is permitted. All this would be obvious to a first-century believer, but the meaning of the text was obscured at a very early date due to ignorance about the Jewish background after 70 C.E. Modern Church practices can be easily adapted to this insight because our marriage services still preserve the four biblical grounds for divorce in the marriage vows.
The Church should now be humble and admit that a great mistake has been made. Too many generations of husbands and wives have been forced to remain with their abusing or neglectful partners and have not been allowed to divorce even after suffering repeated unfaithfulness. The Church should not continue in a false teaching because Christian tradition should not be regarded as superior to the teaching of Jesus and Paul.
If you feel you understand all there is to know, we recommend that you allow Dr. Instone-Brewer to challenge your views on these critical subjects. Please visit his website (www.instone-brewer.com) and explore his several online publications. Hardcopies are also available online or through a local Christian bookstore.
Insightful Comment from Conservative Leaders
Dan,
I've been keen on
Instone-Brewer's work for a few years and have interacted a bit with him via
e-mail. His work brought together my dissatisfaction with various
"conservative" exegeses of the relevant divorce/remarriage passages, my
frustration with not being able to provide really defensible Biblical counsel to
Christians in these situations, and a lurking sense that we conservatives were
damaging the integrity of marriage (and the lives of our hurting brothers and
sisters) while we supposed we were defending Biblical marriage. As I read
and re-read Instone-Brewer's work, I felt a tremendous sense of intellectual and
emotional release as everything came together and "clicked" in his superb
application of the literal/historical/grammatical hermeneutic to exegete and
apply these difficult sections of Scripture.
In my mind Instone-Brewer
has demonstrated an unshakeable case. All the "i's" are dotted and the "t's"
crossed. His work proves an interesting challenge and embarrassment to those
defending a "conservative/Biblical" view of divorce and remarriage by REALLY
applying a rigorous, literal/historical/grammatical hermeneutic...a truly
conservative approach to Scripture. The reinsertion of historical back
into the hermeneutic is the key that Instone-Brewer uses to unlock what the
Bible teaches on the subject at hand. He lets the chips fall where they
will, with no preconceptions, and they fall in surprising and, to many, utterly
foreign places! When I mention some of the historical details necessary to
understanding the texts at hand I sometimes get this utterly blank and stupefied
look from other pastors and teachers.
Every thinking, Scripturally
conservative Christian should have his booklet and the full book, and no pastor
should open his mouth on the topic until he has wrestled with Instone-Brewer's
work. There is just too much at stake in the lives of the people we counsel.
Superb scholarship.
[signed]
The "no divorce under any circumstance" position, piously held in many conservative churches, actually diminishes the sanctity of marriage. By not allowing the persistently and deliberately covenant-violating party to be sanctioned and the innocent party to be freed, the sanctity of marriage is undermined. This aspect was well understood in the OT times and by Jesus and the NT apostles and church.
[signed]
A Personal Word
Both my wife and I have been born-again Christians for several decades and both of us have suffered the failure of marriage as Christians. We have always believed that marriage should last a lifetime, both before and after experiencing the tragedy of divorce. However, we both made a two-fold discovery. 1) A husband or wife cannot absolutely ensure the integrity of their spouse, and 2) the subjects of marriage, divorce, and remarriage are not simple.
Much has been written by way of commentary regarding the qualifications for leadership as laid out in 1 Timothy chapter 3 and Titus chapter 1 by the Apostle Paul. Christians and Christian churches are divided over whether divorced men can assume roles of leadership, some believing that the divorced are automatically disbarred from ministry. Some Christians have suggested that we remove our website from the Internet on account of our divorced and remarried status.
We present this Internet ministry and the Letters of Appreciation as evidence that our Lord does not turn His back on believers who have suffered divorce. If we can be of help to you, please contact us.
Mail this page to a friend- SEATED
- ASCENDED
- RAISED
- BURIED
- CRUCIFIED
