31 “Now it was said, ‘Whoever sends his wife away is to give her a certificate of divorce’; 32but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Matthew 5:31-32
The Well Off refuse to be unjust.
Divorce is a sticky subject in the church. And it was no different in Jesus’ day. I won’t try to handle it all here. I’ll only handle the topic as Jesus talks about it in the context of the Sermon on the Mount.
Divorce in Jesus’ Eyes
Jesus’ pronouns in this passage are vital. The male is divorcing. The female is being divorced.
In this time and culture, females could not divorce. And if they were divorced, they were damaged goods. They were not able to fend for themselves. Divorced females were left to depend upon others. All the while, the male moved on with their life.
So Jesus is speaking against males who divorced females just for the convenience of it all. Leaving these females down and out.
Jesus did NOT come down on those who were divorced by someone else out of convenience. Actually, he did the opposite. He brought Light into the darkness of using religion to break our vow of marriage. He was the Salt to defend those who could not defend themselves.
Jesus puts something bigger than divorce in play by his teaching.
Divorce because you think the other person has nothing left to offer you is unjust.
The Well Off in God’s Kingdom will go out of their way to prevent being unjust.
Everyone is Unjust
The Well Off are ones who have the Values of God’s Kingdom. These Values mean certain things are never on the table. Being unjust is one of these “never on the table” things.
Let’s bring this home. All have sinned. Every sin is injustice.
Every…
Lie
Cheat
Adultery
Stolen item
Broken vow
Envious heart
has someone on the other end who was treated unjustly.
This breaks the heart of The Well Off when they see it in the world.
This breaks the heart of The Well Off when they see it in their own life.
No one is exempt from being unjust to someone else. We solve our injustice two ways…1) The religious way by finding loopholes in Scripture on why I can do what I did. 2) The Well Off way by craving a righteousness only Jesus can give.
Jesus brings everyone to recognize we’ve all impacted others in this way. And those who break over their sin and crave something greater are those who are inside the Kingdom of God. And those who find religious loopholes are not a part of God’s Kingdom.
Break Over Injustice
You live in a world where people will do anything to anyone in the name of convenience. However, you crave a greater righteousness. A righteousness that refuses to be the initiator of injustice, no matter how it impacts your life.
Be on who breaks over your sin. Not just because you sinned against God, but because your sin causes injustice in other people’s lives. Then, you be a champion for those who break over their sin. Go out and defend those who break because of what others have done to them.
Prayer: God, make me see how I cause injustice through my sin. Break me over the injustice I cause.
Subscribe below to receive a 1-minute email linked to a 5-minute blog designed to refuel your soul by Hearing & Following Jesus.