1 / 10

The Courage of Ezra & the People

Confronting Unscriptural Marriages. The Courage of Ezra & the People. Introduction. The marital relationship, ordained of God, was established in the Garden of Eden for man’s good (Gen. 2:18-24; Eccl. 9:9). Domestic happiness is dependent upon following the divine pattern (Psa. 127:1-5).

lucia
Download Presentation

The Courage of Ezra & the People

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Confronting Unscriptural Marriages The Courage of Ezra & the People

  2. Introduction • The marital relationship, ordained of God, was established in the Garden of Eden for man’s good (Gen. 2:18-24; Eccl. 9:9). • Domestic happiness is dependent upon following the divine pattern (Psa. 127:1-5). • Accordingly, let us fear the Lord, walk in His ways, and enjoy His manifold blessings (Psa. 128:1-6).

  3. The Courage of Ezra & the People • Ezra was a scribe and priest who led those Jews who returned from Babylonian captivity to a renewed commitment to God’s Law. • Arriving in Jerusalem, he discovered that many of the Hebrew men had married foreign wives from the surrounding nations (Ezra 9:1-4).

  4. The Courage of Ezra & the People • During the Mosaic dispensation, Israelites were forbidden from intermarrying with their idolatrous neighbors (Exod. 34:11-17; Deut. 7:1-6).

  5. The Courage of Ezra & the People • After a period of fasting and prayer (Ezra 9:5-15), he evidenced courage in confronting the issue of unscriptural marriages, insisting that these men divorce their wives, fearing that intermarriage with pagans would drag God’s people back into idolatry (Ezra 10:1-17, esp. vs. 2-4).

  6. The Courage of Christ & His Disciples • When questioned about divorce, Jesus Christ stressed the exclusivity and permanence of marriage; sexual immorality is the only divinely-approved exception allowing for divorce and remarriage (Matthew 19:3-9; cf. 5:31-32).

  7. Objection #1 • Some would object by saying, “Requiring those in unscriptural marriages to put away their spouse would break up a loving relationship.” • However, such reasoning would justify unmarried couples living together. It could also be used to justify polygamy, and long-term homosexual relationships. Yet, these practices violate Gal. 5:19-21, Rom. 1:26-27 & Matt. 19:4-6.

  8. Objection #2 • Some object by saying, “If those who are in an unscriptural marriage ask for forgiveness, they can stay in the relationship.” • God is willing to forgive any sin, but repentance (i.e., a change of heart followed by a change of life ) is always a prerequisite to divine pardon (1 Cor. 6:9-11; 2 Cor. 7:5-11; Eph. 4:25-32).

  9. Objection #3 • Some object by saying, “If you require individuals in an unscriptural marriage to put away their spouse, you are forbidding marriage, as per 1 Timothy 4:1-5.” • No, every individual has the right to be scripturally married; no one has the right to be unscripturally married. • An adulterer who has been put away for the reason of sexual immorality forfeits his/her right to another divinely-approved relationship (Matt. 19:10-12; cf. 13:10-16; Heb. 13:4).

  10. Conclusion • Recognizing the blessings of marriage, let us build our homes according to the divine pattern; • Acknowledging the exclusivity and permanence of marriage, let us cultivate loving, life-long relationships (Eph. 5:25-33; 1 Pet. 3:1-7).

More Related