From Eliyahu
Consider this:
Here is something you don't hear
every day. My friend Roy, and his lovely wife, Judy, celebrated their 66th
wedding anniversary last week! I'm sure we all want to congratulate them on
their long and loving marriage together. They are truly an inspiration and
an amazing example of marital success! This is no accident, but is the
outcome of a steadfast faith.
Marriage and divorce are, of
course, linked. However, each of those two words evoke completely opposite
reactions from the other. Marriage is usually associated with feelings of
anticipation, love, joy, happiness, togetherness, family and future. The
other word is the "D-word" that most of us would rather not need to say or
hear. Yet, the D-word happens way too much in our modern world, bringing
with it a list of negative feelings and consequences that I would rather not
even list, let alone talk much about. In the perfect world that the Creator
made, there was no D-word. Our Creator never wanted anything so horrible as
that to mar the beautiful and perfect world that He had made for us to live
in. Sadly, it was the rebellion of humanity that created all of the monsters
that have been killing us ever since - including the D-word.
About the statistics: We've
already learned that the D-rate in Eden was zero. Not so in the world today.
Many people live strange lives these days, with traditional marriage
less common, and Biblical marriage even less common than that. This makes
hard data on the subject difficult, if not impossible, to accurately
collect and calculate. Beyond that, experts don't all see the data the same.
Some actually say the rate has dropped, while others say that after all data
is included divorce is increasing.
A rather surprising development showing
up in the data concerns what is sometimes called "gray divorce." In the
past, couples who stayed married into their golden years expected to be
married "till death do us part." Now, the number of single older adults is
growing, with the divorce rate for 50- to-70-year-olds having more than
doubled since 1990. As if that isn't bad enough, “late life” divorces are
predicted to triple by 2030.
Here at Tsiyon we have had some
mature members and partners who have experienced the heart-break of gray
divorce. One man in his 70s
told us that his elderly wife wanted to find more excitement in her life, so
she left their home and divorced him. In another case, a former Tsiyon
member who represented herself as strong in the faith, left her husband of
many years, took on a lesbian partner, and began an entirely other life as
part of rainboo world. This sudden change was shocking, but was also a
reminder that we all must be fighting the fine fight to endure on Yeshua's
narrow way.
These examples and many more, including people of every age group, reflect
the selfishness and moral breakdown that is driving the rapid deterioration
of the culture around us.
By contrast, the 66th year
anniversary of Roy and Judy reminds us that the Scriptures offer a way of
faith that leads to life-long blessings. |
 
Marriage, as our Heavenly Father
created it, was intended to be the very heart of human society, so you would
think everyone would know what a marriage is. In the 21st Century, that turns out as not being
the case. For example, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary
marriage is defined as "the state of being united as spouses in a
consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law." I'm
pretty sure when saying "law" they are not referring to the Law of the
Creator Who invented marriage in the first place. In the pages of
His Book the parameters of His marriage institution come
through loud and clear. Not even SCOTUS has the authority to change one iota
of His definition of marriage.
This leaves us in the strange
situation in which one word - marriage - actually seems to mean at least two
different things. Is that confusing? It is meant to be confusing, being as
it is, from the father of confusion. Actually, when you apply the truth of
the Scriptures to this, the confusion soon gives way to clarity. The word
marriage actually means what the Creator says it means, and cannot be
changed, any more than He can be changed. Since the world has no authority
over what God has created, the contrary definition of marriage from the
world is simply one more lie to be ignored, like any of the many other lies
the devil is using to deceive and destroy mankind.
Does that make me a bigot for
telling the truth? A lie on top of other lies does not make any of the lies
into the truth. I will not be intimidated by an ugly word used against me to
silence me or to negate the Biblical truth that I stand on. If I were to do
that then I would have nothing to say of any value to Him or to you.
The very point of marriage is to
be a sanctified relationship - set apart by the Creator Himself to
accomplish His purposes through a given marriage. While there may be many
other kinds of relationships established among and between consenting
adults, only when the Creator is at the center of a covenant relationship
between a man, a woman, and God Himself, can that relationship be defined as
sanctified, Biblical, marriage.
Yeshua reiterated the sanctity
of marriage in the portion of Scripture often called "The
Sermon on the Mount." Yeshua also spoke about related issues, including
lust, adultery and divorce. While not pleasant issues, these are issues
where we need to know and understand His mind on these matters. You may have
read these verses before, but I assure you, when we consider them in the
context of those times, and Yeshua's perfect teaching from the Torah, all of
this becomes fresh and new. While people often feel intimidated by these
subjects, I think you will find His real message on these topics brings righteousness,
freedom, joy and peace.
Join us for our live-stream broadcast tonight,
July 16, at Tsiyon.Net
at 8 PM, Central for this amazing episode of Yeshua's Narrow Way.
You will learn that many people who should have known better in the 1st
Century Jewish religion, whom Yeshua spoke to, were wrong about marriage and divorce. Fortunately
for us, Yeshua was not afraid to tell them where they went wrong, and
Matthew was not afraid to write it down for us. Come and join us tonight,
and benefit from that eternal truth.
In His Name,
Eliyahu
Tsiyon.Org
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