thegreatknock

I think I shared this last summer, but as I re-study Ephesians and some related passages (Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 8:13-15, Isaiah 28:16, Matthew 21:42-44, and Romans 9:30-33…check them out!), I came across this poem and thought I’d share it again.  May it bless you all as you think on Him!

O Christ, our chief Stone
   both tested and precious–
Be Thou our standard
   of life and of love!
Break us to pieces–
   then, Spirit, come seal us:
Make us Your dwelling-place
   ne’er to remove!

A Psalm of David.

    1 Do not fret because of evildoers,
         Be not envious toward wrongdoers.
    2 For they will wither quickly like the grass
         And fade like the green herb.
    3 Trust in the LORD and do good;
         Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
    4 Delight yourself in the LORD;
         And He will give you the desires of your heart.
    5 Commit your way to the LORD,
         Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
    6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
         And your judgment as the noonday.
    7 Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;
         Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
         Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
    8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
         Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
    9 For evildoers will be cut off,
         But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.

What the world needs now is a muscular Christian.

With Falwell’s passing, I am especially aware that those Christian leaders we have long known will not soon be with us but will move along. And while I have many times been disappointed or frustrated by some of these leaders, I think instead of the importance for new men to rise as leaders among men, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith, unswerving and called by God. May these leaders, I pray, be strong and very courageous, turning neither to the right nor the left, nor to mere politics nor vain philosophy; but may they walk in the deeps of love and the within the torrent of faith, captured with the truth. May they give all things, all pleasures and notoriety, in sacrifice to that great aim–the salvation of souls from the wrath of God in which they now stand. May they see heaven as their bright treasure and hope, and may they see hell (just as clearly) as destruction and a grief from which men must be turned–how blessed is the man who stands in the way of those being led to destruction! And may these men be humble and care not for the things of this world–O God, keep them from the temptation of women, wealth, and the worship of created things! Only may they be strong and very courageous, a Joshua in these times…

What the world needs now is a muscular Christian.

I finally began my attempt at learning Arabic, as much as possible without living in a foreign land (just yet). The other day I sent about 45 minutes using the Rosetta Stone program for Arabic, and found it extremely difficult as it gave no transliteration for the Arabic words. Left to learn as I could, I was amazed at how well I was beginning to pick out certain symbols in the Arabic words and connecting them to repeated sounds between them. Still, in the end I found a small book at Barnes and Noble to teach me the Arabic alphabet–all 29 letters, including 26 consonants and three vowels, two of which vowels also sometimes act as consonants (smile). The book explained how Arabic uses the consonantal roots to build its words, which has me very excited about learning more…between my analytical side, my love for sounds and words and meanings, and my joy in drawing, this should be a fun adventure…

Okay, I promised that we would take a look at Genesis to see when God created marriage, so let’s go to it.  In Genesis 2, we see a more detailed account of the creation of Man and Woman. 

Genesis 2:18,
21-25 
        Then the LORD God said, “It is not
good for man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”…So the
LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took
one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh at that place.  And the LORD God fashioned into a woman the
rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.
        And the man said, “This is now bone
of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was
taken out of Man.”
        For this cause a man shall leave his
father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they shall become one
flesh.  And the man and his wife were
both naked and were not ashamed.

I think it’s pretty profound that when Jesus was questioned by the Pharisees regarding divorce for any reason, He pointed them (and us) back to this passage.  Why did He do that?

This is, of course, the first marriage.  A few observations: first, when God established marriage, there are three parts listed here in the process of marriage.  First, the man leaves his parents.  Second, he cleaves to his wife.  Third, the two become one flesh.  We might learn a few things from this about the marrying process, but that’s not our main focus here.  I only mention these “steps” because of what we saw previously, in that marriage reflects the relationship between Christ and the Church.  Consider how that relationship follows these three “steps” of marriage: Christ left His heavenly Father to pursue a Bride, and having chosen Her (the Church, His own people), He is joined with Her and becomes one with Her spiritually (John 17:22-26, 1 Corinthians 6:17).  When we mortal men do this on earth, we are, in a sense, reenacting the spiritual reality of what Christ did for us!  How awesome is that?

Another observation is that when God gave marriage to mankind, He did not give it only to His people Israel–rather, He gave it to all mankind.  So when Christ points us back to Genesis, we must understand that the marriage issue (including those aspects which qualify a godly or holy marriage) applies to all mankind.  If God hates divorce, He hates divorce among all mankind and not among Christians only, because marriage as it was given in the Garden, was given to all humanity. 

I’ll mention one last observation before we return to Jesus’ words in Matthew 19 or Mark 10, but this one is especially potent as we progress toward the subject of adultery.  In Genesis 2:25, when it talks about this marriage God established between the first Man and Woman, no ceremony is mentioned.  We know that God understands (better than we do) the usefulness of tradition or ceremony in helping people remember things we are apt to forget, and the Law had many ceremonies and rituals of all kinds–and yet when God establishes marriage, He does not give a ritual.  How, then, is a marriage established? 

Forgive me if this seems too bold (and if some disagree, again, I welcome comments), but I believe marriage is established in the act of sex.  I know, it sounds crazy, but hear me out a few moments more before you move on to your next subscription page (smile).  First, know that I’m not discounting the ceremonies we have today–I think these ceremonies can be an excellent means for accountability as the couple makes vows before their church or community; and, best of all, it may cause them to recognise that their marriage is not a matter of the husband and wife only, but involves also the God who made them both!  On the other hand, these wedding ceremonies can also be very foolish things, for I have witnessed many young men and women for whom the ceremony overshadowed the actual marriage itself.  So caught up in the pomp and glory of the ceremony, they failed to consider the seriousness of the covenant they were making, and some have even failed in the fulfillment of that covenant.  So ceremony may be good or bad.

But let me explain from Scripture why I believe that a marriage is established through the sexual relationship of the husband and wife.  My first evidence is found in Genesis 24:67, a small verse but a useful one for this topic.  That verse says:

Genesis 24:67
       Then Isaac brought her [Rebekah] into his mother Sarah’s tent, and he took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her; thus Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

What do you suppose happened in that tent? (smile)  To me, it seems fairly clear that no ceremony took place–no one else is named for their involvement in the process of Rebekah becoming Isaac’s wife.  No wedding guests here, no party or reception.  Not even a preacher helping them with their vows; I think they needed no help, if you know what I mean.  The two of them had sex, and in this action she became his wife.

Another Scripture follows this idea.  In the Law, God gives very careful explanations for what is to happen when a man sleeps with a woman who is not his wife.  Deuteronomy 22 spells out the various scenarios which might happen and how these are to be handled.  For example, if a man has sexual relations with a married woman, they are both to be stoned; but if he forces himself upon her, only he is to be stoned.  But then in verses 28-29, God commands this:

Deuteronomy 22:28-29
       If a man find a girl who is a virgin, who is not engaged, and seizes her and lies with her and they are discovered, then the man who lay with her shall give to the girl’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall [be] his wife because he violated her; he cannot divorce her all his days.

How does this command make sense?  If the man had sex with a woman who is not his wife, surely he is guilty of adultery, isn’t he?  But here the Law shows us something else: in having sex with the virgin who was not engaged or committed to another man, the man has created a marriage relationship with her.  She shall be his wife because of the sexual union which has taken place and established that marriage.

Think about this a moment.  If a sexual union really establishes a marriage, then what light does this shed on adultery and why God condemns it?  Every day there are men and women joining together in a sexual relationship and becoming one flesh, then abandoning that person for another relationship and another union.  Every day!  And when people come together in a sexual relationship, who is it that joins them together and makes of them “one flesh”?  Jesus tells us:

Matthew 19:6
       So they are no longer two, but one flesh.  What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

When two people have sex, God joins them together and they become one flesh: this is marriage.  Jesus points the Pharisees to this reality in order to instruct them about marriage and divorce for just this reason: what God joins together, let man not separate.  And two things are crucial to understand from what Jesus here states.  First, when He states that they are “no longer” two, but are now one flesh, He literally means “no longer.”  This is a permanent condition, as evidenced in the fact that nowhere does Scripture even imply that one flesh may become two again!  What God joins together is fixed together and immutable, friends!  So then, what does this word “separate” really mean?  In fact, the word “separate” (Grk., chorizo) actually means “separate.”  It does not mean “unjoining,” “disjoining,” “breaking,” but only two things being moved apart from one another.  This begins to make sense when one notes that the phrase often translated as “divorce” in Matthew 19 literally means “send away.” 

I propose this: in Matthew 19, the Pharisees ask Jesus if it is acceptable for a man to send his wife away for any reason at all.  Jesus points them to Genesis and the original marriage between a husband and wife, then enlightens them to the spiritual reality: that God joins a husband and wife together, and so those whom God has joined together spiritually ought not be separated, or sent away from each other.  If a husband sends his wife away, in the eyes of God they are still one flesh–their condition as husband and wife does not change even though he sends her away.  Their condition does not change; only their geography changes.  This is the spiritual reality of what God joins together.  This is why sexual relationships are such a serious issue to our Maker.  This is why they ought to be serious to us as well.

There is so much more to say!  But this is terribly long already, longer than I meant it to be.  Again, what are your thoughts?  I am eager for the truth, and if Scripture is shown which points to another truth about sex and marriage than what I’ve shared here, I will be glad for it, and be moved!  But one final note, a note which I will surely repeat again and again throughout this discourse–God has mercy enough to cover all our errors, our stumbling and rebellion, so please know that I speak here nothing of condemnation.  No one reading this should read it as judgment from David Ritterbush, I beg you!  Rather, if as you read this God opens your eyes to something new about marriage and how He intends it for His glory, and if in that truth you feel that heart-tug of remorse that you have not kept the marriage bed pure or have failed to reflect God’s fullness and glory in your own marriage…well then, turn to God and rejoice that He is faithful to all who are His, and that now you know the truth and may rejoice with it, as love compels us to do! 

We will talk more, but hold fast to the grace by which you have been saved, and seek the truth in His Word, friends!

Next I think we ought to take a look at how God created marriage (looking at Genesis 2, the passage to which Jesus points us in Matthew 19), but before we do that, I thought I’d ask an application question from what we just saw.  We see in the Bible that marriage is a representation of the relationship between Christ and the church.  If this is so, why, then, do you suppose that God says He hates divorce?

Malachi 2:13-16
        Another thing you do: you flood the LORD’s altar with tears.  You
weep and wail because He no longer pays attention to your offerings or
accepts them with pleasure from your hands.  You ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD is acting as the witness between
you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her,
though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.
        Has not the LORD made them one?  In flesh and spirit they are His.  And why one?  Because He was seeking godly offspring.  So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.
        “I hate divorce,” says the LORD God of Israel, “and I hate a man’s covering himself with violence as well as with his garment,” says the LORD Almighty.  So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith.

What do you all think?  Why does God hate divorce?

I really believe that to understand divorce and remarriage, we need to start with God’s view on marriage.  I appreciate Leightee’s comment asking if marriage isn’t really something created for God, not merely for us–I think it is absolutely so!  First, because we know that all things were created by Him and for Him (Col. 1:16), including marriage; but also because marriage is so much more than a human relationship.  Let’s look at a few Scriptures…

Eph. 5:31-32
       ‘For this cause a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’  This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.

Paul commands husbands to love their wives and wives to submit to their husbands…why?  Because although this is a terrific mystery, the truth is that their marriages are a reflection of something more awesome: the relationship between Christ and His people!  And this is not just coincidence.  Nor is it a late, great idea–it’s not as if God created the first marriage, and thousands of years later realised that the marriage relationship would be a good way to describe His relationship with His people.  No, the relationship between God and His people came first! 

Eph. 1:3-4
       Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…

When were we chosen?  Before the foundation of the world!  Before even the events of Genesis 1, you were chosen to be a child of God, the bride of Christ, the friend of God, if you are in Him!  Marriage began with Adam and Eve; your marriage to Christ was established before the world was made.  So first we have to know that God created marriage between a man and a woman specifically to show us a picture of our relationship with Him in Christ. 

That is huge!   We have to begin by understanding that God’s original intention for marriage was that it would show to all people everywhere the nature of His relationship to His people, through the love and submission of the partners in a marriage.  So when you or I are married, that marriage is designed by God to show the world around us a picture of the love He has for us, and the submission we show toward Him.  How grand is that?!  What an enormous calling for some, to receive that favor from the Lord! 

For those of you who are married–how are you doing?  Is your marriage a reflection of Christ’s love toward the church, and of our obedient response to His love?  In what ways can you grow toward that purpose?  And for those of us who are single–wow, do we ever need to see the gravity, beauty, and seriousness of marriage!  It’s not for someone swept up in romance to stumble into lightly.  When you think about a future marriage, do you realise the roles you will have?  Single guys, are you becoming now the kind of men who will love their wives just as Christ loves the church?  And how about growing in leadership and responsibility?  And single girls–are you learning to encourage and “put yourself beneath” the spiritual authorities over you now, so that when that husband comes, you will be able to do the same for him, helping him lead actively and in the power of God?  What a high calling for us both!

This is marriage, the first human relationship given by God.  And since it is a gift from God, we should probably give some thought to God’s role in every marriage…that’ll be next.  But for now, I pray that for our generation, marriage will come to mean so much more than it has for those before us.  I pray we would show Christ by our marriages…

I’ve been a little torn, gang, as I’ve tried to begin writing the next thoughts concerning marriage, divorce, remarriage, adultery, and so on.  The teacher part of me (which is quite strong) really wants to do nothing but copy here some important Scriptures on these subjects and ask questions which you all can answer on your own, to let you discover the truth.  That sounds like a really great idea, as I type it out like that…but then the prophet side of me kicks in and wants to deliver the clear truth, bring the Word like a hammer which breaks rocks to pieces (Jer. 23:29)…speaking from the conviction God has put upon my heart here.  And this may be a time for prophets, if God will grant us many, for I believe we have stood too long in confusion on this issue.  As I pray, I am convinced that I must do the latter and simply speak the truth–which may be best, since xanga doesn’t really allow for conversation.  I am going to speak what I have seen from Scripture, and as I go, I really truly welcome all comments!  Tell me what you think, ask questions or argue as you feel led, raise Scriptures which I may have overlooked and which would better inform me–the purpose here is not David Ritterbush’s self esteem (smile).  The purpose is the truth!  May God be pleased to open our eyes to it.

It’s late now, so I’ll begin tomorrow by looking where Jesus points us–back to Genesis, to the first marriage…

nothing produces faith more clearly
than a simple map
showing places known too dearly
yet far more you’ve never seen
and only hope
to God
exist somewhere as if within a dream–
you see the borders fast and sharp
which tell you where you cannot go
to which the soul’s imagination
only cries, “to hell with that!”
(“to hell”? is there a map for hell?
oh
well)
and so you dream again
of places far from homeland security–
daring frontiers already conquered,
oceans already braved,
beasts already tamed
(you see them in the zoo)
–and yet these things you see in faith
for you have never really been or seen,
for all you know they may be fantasies
the children of an idle brain
a steady pen
and clever marketing,
for all you know your room is the only Here
and it too vanishes when once you leave it
which you never do,
for all you know, it’s all a lie–
for all you know is only that which other hands have drawn you…

It’s a pretty day again outside, though still on the cold side. Yet I’m thinking of taking a short walk before church anyhow, and musing on the Psalm I read this morning; 77, I think it was. As I read how the psalmist’s voice rose to God in the day of his trouble, and how his soul refused to be comforted, I was struck afresh with how profound it truly is, that even the writers of the Holy Word of God, moved as they were by the Holy Spirit to sing and to pen their words, did not always have their feet set in the concrete of doctrine. They moved, they kicked and screamed (it seems), they fought to understand why God is the way He is, and sometimes they mistook Him.

But the important thing is the Search. I began a new book last night by an author whom I’ve read before, and whom I respect quite a lot: Walker Percy. He was a Southern writer of a deeply philosophical and spiritual persuasion–not in the Flannery O’Connor vein of spirituality, rather, I would say, more profound and less mystical. I began his first novel, “The Moviegoer,” in which the main character early on observes the random times in which he felt “the search.” One day he woke up, dressed for work, and began to grab all his usual traveling companions–wallet, watch, pens, etc.–but was struck with a new strangeness as if all these things were not his own. He adopts the methods of a detective, peering at all these objects as if they were clues to a greater, deeper meaning.

Of course, the narrator in the story realises that he may be searching for God, but refuses to say for certain–he says, because everyone else has already answered that question for themselves, and he’s afraid of showing his own ignorance in the matter. He remarks (fictitiously, but the point is sound) that they have taken surveys in which 98% of Americans claim that they believe in God, and the remaining 2% are agnostics or atheists–thus leaving not even 1% of us engaging in the search! Rather good point, if you ask me. What is wrong with the search?

What is wrong with the search, when even the psalmists of the Bible itself were searching for this God of promises? Sometimes even for us, it will require a search to discover Him beneath the trappings of a wounding friend, a natural devastation, an ordinary flower or a candle burning low. Sometimes we must have a hard look to discern Him within the wrath and the grace and the peace and the trouble in which He is often wrapped. “To have found Him and still be looking for Him is the soul’s paradox of love.”

But the enemy of the search may just be the ordinary everyday. So what will you do with that?