That's the reason God is so careful to tell us about real love...true love...lasting love.He is sensitive to what it is not. "Love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful." (1 Corinthians 13:4,5) He is also sensitive to what it is. "Love is patient and kind…bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends." (1 Corinthians 13:4,7). There it is. That's God's ideal. That is what He would like every home to reflect and practice. But it doesn't always happen. We don't always do what God wants, and when we don't, we sin…..or another way of saying it….we miss the mark!
In the Old Testament, the Bible quotes God as saying, "I hate divorce!" Why? The prophet Malachi tells us why: "It is because the Lord is acting as the witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the Lord made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his…So guard yourself…and do not break faith with the wife of your youth," (Malachi 2:14-15)
Divorce has become so commonplace in our society that many people….even many Christians….think of it as just something that happens…….an unfortunate part of life. But God says it is more. It is breaking a covenant to which He was a witness. It is breaking faith with a partner with whom we have been made one in flesh and spirit. And breaking faith or breaking covenants can only bring unhappiness and difficulty and unpleasantness and hardship. This is why divorce brings pain to God. This is why He hates divorce.
By the time Jesus came to the earth, people had gotten too smart. They thought they had found a way of having their cake and eating it too. They thought they could divorce one partner and marry another easily. And without doing much harm emotionally or spiritually. Wrong! Jesus said that from the beginning God had made them male and female and intended for them to be "one flesh…no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate!" (Matthew 19:5,6)
He went on to say that we should not divorce for just any reason. "I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery." (Matthew 19:9). The decision to divorce is a serious decision, which affects people and affects God. That is why it is so important that we encourage our teenagers to date smart and eventually marry smart! To find someone who shares the same spiritual values and goals that they do.
If your family has already experienced divorce or is going through one right now, no one but you knows the special and individual pain that is felt. But please understand this. God loves each of you. As in all human failures, God hates divorce, but he loves the divorcee. God wants the very best for your family. God wants love, forgiveness, peace, and understanding to consume your relationships. And He wants you to be able to recover and live your life for Him successfully.
So ask God for the wisdom he "gives generously to all without finding fault." (James 1:5). And pray to Him about your feelings and the special needs of your family. He loves you, He cares, and He will answer in ways you do not expect.