While marriage was given to a
man and a woman for their mutual benefit, the primary purpose
of the institution of marriage was to illustrate the relationship
which the Lord Jesus Christ has to His Church and vice versa. Though the marriages of men and
women are quite imperfect, as we can readily observe, the marriage
of Christ to His Church has no such imperfections. The hardness
of man's heart is demonstrated in many ways as men continually
seek to pervert the way of God. It is according to that hardness
that we see an institution which was limited according to God's
purpose for it to men and women, now diverted from its proper
use to include unions between men and men, and women with women. This is a stark reminder of the
wickedness which dwells in men by nature and is a manifestation
of the judgment of God upon mankind. The greatest of the imperfections
of human marriage, however, is seen in the acceptability and
even seeming inevitability of divorce as a means of overturning
a proper marriage. Divorce was not meant to be a
convenient and satisfactory option for those who enter into a state
of marriage and then grow weary of one another. Rather, it was
because of the hardness of men's hearts that the Lord permitted
divorce under Moses' law in the first place. Men and women alike
will make all sorts of excuses in order to justify divorcing
their spouses. Practically any excuse will do
when a person is bent upon that outcome, and hardly any counsel
otherwise will prevent it. There is no doubt that some of
those excuses have a ring of validity to them. Yet the children
of God are called upon to shun the example of the world and
to follow the steps of Christ in all things. If there has ever
been a person who had a valid reason to divorce his spouse,
it would be the Lord Jesus Christ. His bride has disrespected him,
disregarded his teaching, committed adultery with many lovers, and
been generally unthankful. Yet he has remained faithful
to her and has never cast her off, even laying down his own
life for her while she was determined to be his enemy, and even despised
his many overtures of kindness. The Lord raised up the prophet
Hosea to illustrate his own love and utter devotion to his elect
bride. He sent Hosea down to the house
of Diblaim and commanded him to take unto himself a wife who
was a harlot and the daughter of a harlot. Hosea knew exactly
what she was when he married her, and she ceased not from
her whoredom even though he was faithful unto her. Even while
she engaged in her harlotry and doted upon her many lovers, Hosea
never ceased to secretly provide for her benefit, supplying her
with corn and wine, oil and money. He did this even though he knew
she attributed this supply to those who lay with her. Not only
did she credit these illicit lovers with supplying her needs,
but she also used Hosea's gifts for pagan worship. Yet in all
of this, Hosea never ceased to cherish his bride, nor in any
wise to diminish his faithfulness and provision for her. Even when
he was directed by the Lord to remove his provision from her,
it was so that her nakedness might be uncovered and her whoredoms
be revealed. In like fashion, the Lord manifests
His love for His bride, as He is pleased to convince her of
her barrenness apart from Him. For the Lord would have His bride
to find all of her delight in Him, yet she cannot until she
is made fully aware of her innate corruption and wickedness. Thus,
even as he uncovers her nakedness, his tender mercies are extended
to her, and he means it for her good. The tender mercies of the
Lord are revealed unto those whom he has loved with an everlasting
love, as he brings them to the very end of themselves in repentance,
causing them to recognize their depravity, and revealing to them
in no uncertain terms their own bondage and slavery to sin. The Lord has brought His bride
out of slavery with His own blood. He has delivered her from her
whorehom and made her completely clean in His sight. And such
were some of you, but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified,
but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the
Spirit of our God. For He hath made Him to be sin
for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness
of God in Him. If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at 4the4 at windstream.net.