September this year, I think it's true that nearly every media outlet in the whole of this country, every media organisation ran with the same headline story on the 18th of September and it was this story that the government was an overhaul of divorce laws in England and Wales. An overhaul of divorce laws. So where previously really firm reasons, I think, had to be given in order to secure a divorce, that from this point on, a policy of what was going to be called no-fault divorce, that policy was going to be pursued. No-fault divorce. Did you pick up on this? Am I the only one? I don't think so. Maybe on the 18th of September you saw these headlines. If so, maybe you'll remember the response of our culture and society to this new government policy. Basically, most people said, well, about time too. You know, we live in the 21st century. We were told a time where the laws should reflect changing ideas about divorce. A time where laws should reflect that divorce is kind of commonplace, it's almost expected. A time where, well yeah, our views on marriage should be reflected in laws. The view that marriage is not the institution it once was. This is what we were told well this morning as we turn back to this on the mountain our series here This is the matter that confronts us. This is the matter at hand should the church of the Lord Jesus Christ should it take different stance to our society on the nature of divorce you see it do you I Mean is this you know the nature of marriage the nature of divorce is this another area of where you and I should seek to stand out and stand apart from our culture and our country. In short, this is the matter at hand this morning. What is God's view of marriage? What is God's view of divorce? And as I've said twice already, we're going to look today just at two verses, verses 31 and 32. But here I want to draw your attention to three things that we see from these two verses. Three things. The first is this. We see here the error of permissive divorce. The error of permissive divorce. Okay? You're ready for this difficult topic, are you? Okay. Now we all know what's meant by a teaching device to be a teaching aid. Perhaps in church a minister will do a kids talk sometimes and will use a toy. Okay, or a teacher will do something similar. Maybe a university, a university lecturer will seek to teach his students and use a game or a clever little device, something like a teaching aid, a teaching device. Well, do you remember, because it's been a few weeks, hasn't it? Do you remember the device that our Lord is using at this point in Matthew 5? Do you remember his teaching aid, his teaching device? Do you? What is our Lord doing? He is, at this point, to teach you and me the standards of the kingdom of God. He is contrasting himself with the religious leaders at the time. That's the device that our Lord is using, isn't it? That he is contrasting his views on the law with those of the Pharisees. He's done that already. He's done it twice, hasn't he not? Up to this point. that he has opposed the Pharisee's view of murder, isn't he? Revealing that even anger, even anger breaks the law and then he has opposed their view of adultery and revealing to us that wow, even lust is offensive to God. Right, so if that's the device, If the Lord God is teaching us here by way of contrast, then you're with me, are you? What do we need to know? If you and I just are going to understand anything about what Jesus says about divorce, what's the first thing you and I have to grapple with? What do we have to know if he's teaching by contrast? We have to know what the contrast is. We have to know what the Pharisees taught about marriage and divorce. Isn't that right? Isn't it? Well, if you paid close attention to the first reading, I wonder did you pick up on the only grounds that the Old Testament gives for divorce? Did you get it? In Deuteronomy chapter 4, divorce was said only to be permissible if, and here's the word, listen to the word, if indecency could be proved. It could be translated maybe uncleanness, okay? So the Old Testament is saying divorce only permissible if there is indecency and if it can be proved. Now what we have to appreciate is that when Jesus is speaking in the first century world here, you had two groups of Pharisees and they were fighting with each other about what that meant. So you had two groups of Pharisees arguing about what constituted indecency. What does indecency mean? So you ready for the two groups? You gonna follow it? The first is called the School of Shammai. Have you heard of this? You have now. The School of Shammai. These were the conservative Pharisees and they believed that indecency meant unfaithfulness. So you can see the conservative Pharisees saying, it's only adultery. Adultery is the only grounds for divorce in the Old Testament. Okay, now that's one school. You ready for the second school? Listen to me. Listen, this is the school of Hillel. And you have to understand that when Jesus is speaking in the first century, this is the prevailing view. And this is what people believe. This is what Pharisees taught. You ready for it? They believed and were teaching the people of Israel that pretty much anything constituted grinds for divorce. I will give you a couple of recorded instances and it will make you sick. So what was taught at the time was that if a wife grew older or unattractive in her husband's eyes, that constituted indecency. That's what was being taught. Another one, another recorded instance, that if a wife burnt her husband's food, ruined the meal, The people of Israel were being taught that constituted indecency. That was grout for divorce, aging, kukeri. So wait a minute, before we get to the Lord Jesus Christ, you can see, can you not, what we have to deal with. What did scripture mean? I mean, you think about it, don't you? These are the Pharisees, the religious elite, and they are teaching this permissive, liberal, lenient, widespread view of divorce. They're teaching it, they're basing it on the Old Testament, on Scripture. So what did Scripture teach? Well, to answer that, I want you to do the work with me, okay? Will you do this? Will you turn back to that first reading just for a split second, please? So it's page, I think, 165. I try to listen up when Reverend Perkins read it out. I think we're at page 165. It's Deuteronomy 24, and it's just the first section. Okay, Deuteronomy 24. the Old Testament teaching, God's law on divorce. Now, when you get there, this is what I want you to see, right, and it's very, very important. I want you to see this, that far from this permissive, widespread attitudes in the law to divorce, that the Pharisees claimed. I want you to see that everything in this short section of Scripture is there to delay divorce, to put people off divorce, to put it on the back burner, right? Now, I just want to point you to three C's. The first one is the construction of this section of Scripture. So look down, even the boys and girls, they can stop their worksheet if they want, and they can have a look at it. Because everyone, I want you to see how many times the word if is used here. Just look at the construction here. Look for the ifs. So God says here in Deuteronomy 24, when a man takes a wife and marries her, and if she finds, and then later on, and if she goes and becomes another man's wife, and then later on, and if that man dies, do you see it? There is this litany, there is this plethora of conditional clauses there, if, if, if, if, if. Do you see what's going on? Do you see why that is? The Old Testament there is portraying divorce as the very last resort. Last stop, last resort. God's saying, only if this criteria is met, and this criteria, and this criteria, only if this criteria, this criteria, this criteria, only then should divorce even be thought about, contemplated. You see it? Second C I want you to look at is the actual command. What do you think the command is? What do you think's going on there? Is the command just about what you've got to do if you want to divorce your wife, if you're a man in the ancient world? Do you know what? If you look at it really closely, you will see that there's only actually one command given there, and it is this, that if a man divorces his wife, he is not allowed to remarry her. In the Mosaic Code, in the Old Testament, if a man divorces his wife, he is not allowed to remarry her. Now this morning, I ask you, you've had your coffee, I'm sure, and you're awake and you've prayed up and you've come in here. I ask you to put on your thinking cap. Why is it that God would forbid remarriage? Do you see why God would forbid remarriage? He is getting that husband to think long and hard before he even begins to contemplate divorce. It is to ensure that this does not happen, that the husband thinks, oh well, I'll divorce her. She's annoying me. She's getting old, her cooking's not great, I'll divorce her and I can always take her back. You see? And it's to ensure that the husband does not divorce her, take her back, divorce her, take her back, divorce her. So what does God do? What does he do to ensure that divorce is on the back burner, to ensure that it's out of sight? God forbids remarriage. And then, the third, the last of these C's, I want you to notice and think about the certificate here. Did you pick up on that? You must have picked it up in the second reading of Matthew 19. Did you? In fact, almost always when the Pharisees talk about divorce, they always talk about the certificate. They just fixated on the certificate. It's like they think, basically, you can do anything, you can divorce, it doesn't really matter, as long as you get the certificate, you know? Just get your hands on the certificate. And again, I turn it over to you this morning. Come on, think with me, people, please. Why does God demand a certificate in divorce in the ancient world? Can you answer that? I mean, how would you answer that? Why does God insist upon a certificate? What do you think? Yes, it's to protect women. Now in the ancient world, they're not just cast off, they have a certificate. They can prove that a former marriage has ended. But it's more than that. Why a certificate? to put men off divorce. Think about it. Now they need a certificate. Now they have to go through all these judicial proceedings. Now they have to go to court, man. Now they have to get witnesses that can prove uncleanness and indecency. Oh no, they've got to deal with lawyers. You know, they've got to go through the whole court system. What a pain in the neck. Do you see the point or not? In a word and a truth, I think this speaks really loudly to London and our culture in the United Kingdom. The Pharisees in the first century had it wrong and God never allows, never approves of a lenient, widespread, permissive attitude to divorce or as Jesus said in Matthew 19, God is not pleased ever with divorce. He permits it on occasion because of the hardness, the wickedness and the evil of the human heart. We see the error of permissive divorce. Second thing that we see here though, in these two verses, is the extent of a divine decree. If you're visiting this morning, we've got a few visitors this morning, it's lovely to have you here. But if you're here, I wonder what you think is going on right now. If you're not used to church perhaps. Perhaps you think that what's happening here is that we are considering Christianity's view of divorce and marriage. There's lots of different ideas out there in the world, but we're just thinking about what Christianity has to say about marriage and divorce Maybe some in here think we're actually in something. It's a wee bit more narrow than that. Do you think that you're actually thinking? Well today these people are considering what one particular church has to say about divorce lots of ideas about marriage and divorce in the Christian Church and this just now is just what I think and or what London City Presbyterian Church thinks, or the eldership. Maybe you think, that's what we're doing now. Do you think like that? If so, would you do this? Would you please look at the first few words of verse 32? Matthew 5, verse 30. Just look at the first phrase. There, Jesus says this. He says, but I say to you, but Now do you see what that is? Do you begin to feel the weight and the gravity of that? Jesus saying, but here's what the Pharisees put, but you have there in front of you an authoritative pronouncement from the Son of God. Like this morning, right now, we are not thinking about what Christianity says, we're not just thinking about what I think about marriage, we're not thinking about London City Presbyterian Church. Before you, in your hands, in His Word, you have an authority, think of it, an authority of pronouncement on the nature of marriage and the nature of divorce, and it's coming from the Almighty and Eternal Gods. It's not something graveyard, it's the way of this. So what do you want to know? What do I want to know? I want to know what Jesus says about marriage, about divorce. Now there's a few things we could do. What we could do is just summarise what Jesus says to you and to me here. Now what Jesus does, you could say, if you want to summarize it, he contrasts himself with the Pharisees. Did you notice he makes one exception? There's an exception. And then what does Jesus do? He rules out divorce for his people. Is that an adequate summary? Contrasting himself with the Pharisees? There is a clause, an exception. And then he says to you, Christian friend, no divorce. no divorce. We could summarize this but I'm your minister and I'm your pastor and I know that this is an active issue isn't it? I mean in the world that we live in just now and in this city An issue like divorce, it's not adequate for us just now to just summarize it and move on. We have to look at some of the detail of what Jesus says, and there are two details, just two that I want you to notice here. For the first one, I want to play a game with you. You gotta humor me, okay, just for a minute. And there is just one rule to this game. Wait for the rule for this game. You are not allowed to look at your Bible. I'm going to preach in the island of Lewis in a couple of weeks. I will not be saying there, don't look at your Bible, okay? And I will never say it to you ever again, don't look at your Bible. But for this game, and just for a second, don't look at your Bible, right? So you're looking here, no cheating, no cheating. And here's the game. I want you to remember, try and remember, don't cheat, no peeking. What was the detail of what Jesus says here? Don't cheat. Don't look down. What does Jesus exactly say about divorce? What does he say? Did you get it or not? Don't look. I can see if you're looking. Now would you agree with me here that he contrasts himself with the Pharisees, he's got an exception, and then he says this. Now don't look, but look at me. Does he say, If you divorce a person, if a man divorces a person, that man becomes an adulterer, that he commits adultery. Is that what Jesus says? Is it? If you divorce someone, then you... Look at it now. Look at verse 32 and see that he does not do that. Do you notice how Jesus actually focuses on the repercussions for other people? of divorce. He doesn't actually specify here, although he does in Matthew 19, he doesn't specify that the one who pursues files for a divorce, that that person commits adultery. It's obvious that that is the case from what Jesus says. But do you notice what he does? Look, first of all, he focuses on this divorced woman. The divorced woman, I mean he assumes it's the ancient world, she will remarry and because her first marriage is not lawfully dissolved before God, what does Jesus say of that divorced woman? That she is forced to commit adultery. Then look at it. then Jesus focuses on a new husband. And it's kind of, in a sense, he's kind of like this innocent party, isn't he? But do you see it? Because of the illegitimacy of his new wife's previous marriage, the divorce there, this guy too, he's rendered an adulterer. Friends, do you see it? And do you recognize why divorce is so utterly abhorrent? Because not only does it violate God's work as he brings two people into the same yoke before him, but what is this? Why is it so abhorrent? Because our divorce leads other people into sin. We want divorce, we pursue divorce, we filed for divorce. It leads other people, the people around us, into iniquity and the transgression of God's holy law. I said two details. The second one, I mean, come on, you know where I'm going. We've got to deal with this exception clause, do we not? Here, no game, all right, no game. Please look at verse 32. Make sure you get very carefully the wording of the exception that Jesus spells out. Do you see it, verse 32? He says to us, no divorce, no divorce, except, on the ground of sexual immorality. What I think is important to appreciate is how contentious that little phrase is. Jesus there does not use the normal word that you would expect for unfaithfulness. He doesn't use the normal word. He uses a different word, Greek word porneia, meaning usually translated kind of fornication. And so can you guess, as wise people, can you guess what a lot of the Christian church does? Jesus doesn't use the normal word. What does the Christian church do? It makes the very same mistake as the Pharisees. and so much of the Christian church takes this exception clause and tries to stretch it out and tries to get this little exception to cover so much to try and portray a permissive, liberal view of divorce. But you are wise, are you not? And you can see the error with this. What is the context we're dealing with? We are dealing with a marriage relationship. So I ask you, what is sexual immorality? when we're dealing with a managed relationship. It is unfaithfulness. It is unfaithfulness. These Greek words are not precise, and it is very, very clear here that what our Lord has in view, this exception clause, is marital infidelity. The exception is adultery. And when we see it like this, do you not agree with your minister right now that actually, although this is kind of detailed, and we're bouncing back and forward, Old Testament, New Testament, talking about Greek language, that actually we're left in a really, really straightforward place. That even in this world, even in this society we're in, where there's really low view of marriage, what is the standard of the kingdom? What is it? Outside of adultery, outside of the later biblical exception of diversion, what is our standard? That divorce is impermissible to the people of God. Isn't that what we're faced with this morning? How can we get around that? How could we ever get away? Divorce is prohibited by the Lord. It is prohibited by God. Do you want it starker than that? Do you need it starker than that? Friends, do you not remember what we heard in Malachi? God hates divorce. It is impermissible in the kingdom of God. So we've seen the error of permissive divorce, the extent of a divine decree, and then we close with a third thing, and that is the end of the marriage bond, or if you like, the goal of the marriage bond, or the purpose of the marriage bond. We have to, though, given the real weight of the subject matter this morning, we have to at least give some attention to some concrete application this morning. And I am so frustrated really frustrated pulling my hair out all week because Harrison and I, Reverend Perkins and myself and a few others, we've been talking about preaching at LCPC and you know how long should a sermon be and I sort of try to lay down all these laws and then I'm so frustrated that I don't have more time this morning to give to this. It's so important and if We have more time. I would speak to the people who are single or unmarried, the people in this room who are thinking, oh, this is totally irrelevant to me. And I would plead with you and more time to see it's not irrelevant to you. Because you don't know what's around the corner in your life. You don't know if you're going to be married in five. You have no idea. And it's relevant today. Because you know what should be an ongoing, active part of your life? You should be praying daily for the married couples at London City Presbyterian Church. And if we had more time, I would also speak to those who are really happily married. Like the people who are sitting there thinking, no problem, none of this is relevant to me. We're so happy. Everything's beautiful. I would say to you, don't be naive. Do not think that your marriage is above and beyond problems. And again today, ensure that you set in stone some firm spiritual disciplines in your home to guard against future problems. Oh, to have more time to deal with that. But we don't. So this is what I want to do. I want to speak to those who are listening on the internet, those who are watching, and those in this very room just now. for whom this could not be a more active and life issue for the many people connected to our congregation who are going through troubles in their marriage. And what I want to do in just a word is remind you of what your eternal and gracious God is doing right now today through the troubles and the difficulties in your marriage. God is at work, and I want to remind you of what he's doing, and it's just in a word, three things in a word. The first is this, and this is such a beautiful thing, that in the troubles in your marriage right now, The Lord God is molding you into the likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ right now in the troubles in your marriage Molding you into the likeness of Jesus. See we all know don't we the new testament team and marriage. Do you know it? The ephesians 5 and colossians 3 and so forth if you know it fill in the blanks for me just for a second humor me again fill in the blanks Wives are told submit to your husbands submit to your husbands. What's the reference as to? The Lord. Yeah, we've got it, don't we? We know it. What's the next bit? Guys, you should know this. Husbands, love your wives. What's a reference point? What's happening? As Christ loved the church. So do you see what's going on? Do you see not only the reference point, but the goal and God's purpose in marriage? Listen to me, marriage is the crucible that God is using you, using rather, to refine you into the image of His Son. Think about it, He's taken the troubles in your marriage, you're going through that, the arguments, the problems, all the difficulties, all the hardship, all the trials, and what's He doing through all that? He's changing you, giving you attention there, moulding you into the likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Second thing that God is doing. He is using your marriage right now to illustrate to the lost something of the gospel. And we always talk about that. I've done a few marriages at LCPC, and I think every single marriage that we've done in here, I've mentioned the same thing. God is using marriage to illustrate something of the gospel. Think about it again. What does God do right at the start of Scripture? What does He do? He institutes this relationship. God sets His stone Marriage at the beginning. Why? What is it for? We see it's for the flourishing of humanity and it's for the raising of kids. There's more, isn't there? There's more. He institutes marriage to illustrate his own covenant commitment to you, to his people. He enshrines marriage, puts this ordinance, institutes this relationship. Why? To point people to his own covenant commitment. So do you see what that means for you? If you're going through real hardship, even coming here today did not involve an argument and shouting match. Do you see, if you persist with this, if you continue in commitment, what do you do? You point people to something of the love of God. And then I end with this. Isn't it exciting? Isn't it? God changing us through marriage. God pointing people to his love through marriage. And then the last thing. God is also, through your troubles, reminding you of a perfect marriage that lies ahead. We, again, all know in this congregation that there's an inclusio in Scripture, there's brackets in Scripture, that it begins and ends in the same way. How does the Bible begin and end? With a wedding. It begins in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve being wed in the presence of God. How does your Bible end? It ends with a wedding. It ends with the bride of Christ, the church, being presented to her groom in perfection. It ends with a wedding. Don't you see what that means? If we respond biblically, faithfully to all this strife and all the hardship in our marriage, what will God do by grace, even through the troubles, He will remind you, Christian friend, of what is ahead. Through the troubles in marriage, through the tears in marriage, He will remind you that through the blood of Jesus, through our Savior dealing with your unfaithfulness, what lies ahead for you? A time where you will enjoy a perfect marriage in glory. A time ahead of you where there will be no argument and there will be no abuse, a time where there will be no arrogance at all. And so I have a suggestion for us as a congregation. I suggest that we not talk about divorce anymore. I suggest that instead we, from this point onwards, regard divorce as a swear word at London City Presbyterian Church. And I suggest that we move from here, we go out into the world, and we resolve to treat our spouses with renewed faith, love, care, and commitment. Why? Not just for your sake. Not just for my sake, not just for their sake, not just for the sake of the kids, but all for the glory and the honor of the one who has dealt with our unfaithfulness. All for the glory and the honor of your coming marriage partner. All for the glory of the Christ. Let us pray. Lord our God it is when we are face to face with Matters like this that we see so clearly our sinfulness that we are not to treat marriage in the way that our world treats it, we are not to treat it with disdain, that we are not to ignore marriage, but we are to have such a high view of it in line with what our Savior teaches us in your Word. We are here today so grateful for the fact that you are a God of forgiveness, that through our errors with marriage and divorce and in relationships with other people, that we can come to you and you are a God who extends forgiveness to us through the Lord Jesus Christ. And we are thankful that as a church, you are active today through our troubled marriages. Help us to rest in that, Lord, that you are molding us through these things in the likeness of your son. You are displaying something of your covenant commitment, and you are reminding us that one day we will be with Christ, and it will be perfect. Lord, we long for that day, and we thank you that it is coming soon. And we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.