AV 16
One Woman Man
“An overseer, then,
should be … the husband of one wife.”
(1Tim 3:2)
We live in a disposable, microwave society, and
unfortunately, the propensity to ‘dispose’ of one’s spouse (by divorce) is
becoming the normal standard, even among those with a religious
affiliation. Divorce is being used as
the ‘escape hatch’ in relationships between husband and wife, ending what is
supposed to be a legal and binding commitment to one another. Let me stop here, and state emphatically, I
am not against divorce per se, and I do not believe that our Creator is
either. There are instances and
circumstances where divorce becomes the only
option, such as in a case of severe spousal abuse, and there is no
condemnation to those who have gone through such an event. What I am addressing is the trend to ‘remove
and replace’ with a newer, better model, completely
voiding any commitment that had been made to the original mate. Brethren, this is wrong, and our Elohim is not pleased with it.
The Creator’s blueprint for marriage is so totally
awesome, it is worth studying. From the
beginning, Elohim’s desire was for the joining of one man with one woman,
lasting for the lifetime of the two (see Mark 10:1-1-9; Mat 19:3-6; Gen
2:24). Neither one was to engage in any
type of pre-marital sexual relations or fornication; they were both to be pure
on the day of their marriage. With the
act of consummation, both the man and the woman would shed blood (yes, there is
blood in a man’s semen), making this marriage covenant a blood covenant, one
that should never be broken. To place
that type of commitment on the marriage relationship portrays to us the
seriousness of this covenant, one that we recognize is also symbolic of our relationship with our King, who has
already shed His blood.
Yes, I have been divorced. My first husband was extremely abusive, and
there were two separate instances where he tried to kill me. Divorce was the only option for me. My current marriage is more than 26 years at
the time of this writing, and I am beyond
thankful for my husband. However,
there were several different subjects that were discussed before we ever agreed to marry, with divorce being one of
them. The agreement was made between the
two of us that divorce would never be
an option, that we would diligently
guard and protect the relationship we have, and take whatever problems we might
have to our Father for mediation. I can
truthfully say, that to this date, we have never fought or argued.
Yes, we have had disagreements; however, because of the relationship that we have, and because of the Elohim that we serve, we choose to not allow those disagreements to
become a source of offense.
The qualifications for a congregational leader
include that of a commitment in a marriage, and let me also include the
requirement of this marriage to be between one woman, and one man, NOT two persons of the same sex. I do not necessarily agree that a divorce
would disqualify one for a leadership position; however, I do believe that the
cause of the divorce should be researched, and determination should be made
from there. To put an individual in a
leadership position that goes through spouses like tissue paper does NOT bring honor and esteem to our
Father, and sends the wrong message to the body of Messiah.
“Now
to the Sovereign of the ages, incorruptible, invisible, to Elohim who alone is
wise, be respect and esteem forever and ever. Amĕn.” (1Tim 1:17)
“For
this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife, and
they shall become one flesh.”
(Gen 2:24)
©2021
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