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What Does the Bible say about some of these
everyday issuses?
Divorce
- When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the
region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. Large crowds followed him, and he healed
them there. Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a
man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?" "Haven't
you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the
Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this
reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will
become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one.
Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate." "Why
then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of
divorce and send her away?" Jesus replied, "Moses
permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way
from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his
wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."
The disciples said to him, "If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it
is better not to marry." Jesus replied, "Not everyone can
accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. For
some are eunuchs because they were born that way; others were made that way by men; and
others have renounced marriage because of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept
this should accept it." (Matthew 19:1-12)
"It has been said, 'Anyone who
divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.' But I tell you that anyone who
divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress,
and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery. (Matthew 5:31,32)
To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord):
A wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or
else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife. To the
rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she
is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband
who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him.
(1 Corinthians 7:10-13)
Forgiveness - Then
Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when
he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I
tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. (Matthew
18:21,22)
"Therefore, my brothers, I want you to
know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. (Acts13:38)
In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be
cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. (Hebrews 9:22)
And when you stand praying, if you
hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may
forgive you your sins." (Mark
11:25)
Faith
and Deeds - Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and
so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, "So shall your
offspring be." Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as
good as dead--since he was about a hundred years old--and that Sarah's womb was also dead.
Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened
in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he
had promised. This is why "it was credited to him as righteousness." The words
"it was credited to him" were written not for him alone, but also for us, to
whom God will credit righteousness--for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord
from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our
justification. (Romans 4:18-25)
That same day Jesus went out of the house and
sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in
it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them many things in parables,
saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the
path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have
much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun
came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up
and choked the plants. Still other seed
fell on good soil, where it produced a crop--a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was
sown. He who has ears, let him hear." The
disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?"
He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to
you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance.
Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to
them in parables: "Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear
or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: "'You will be ever
hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this
people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have
closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.' But blessed are your eyes
because they see, and your ears because they hear. For I tell you the truth, many prophets
and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear
but did not hear it. "Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone
hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and
snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky
places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no
root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word,
he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man
who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it,
making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man
who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or
thirty times what was sown." Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of
heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping,
his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and
formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. "The owner's servants came to him and
said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?'
"'An enemy did this,' he replied. "The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go
and pull them up?' "'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you
may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I
will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned;
then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'" He told them another parable:
"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his
field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest
of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its
branches." He told them still another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like
yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through
the dough." Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say
anything to them without using a parable. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the
prophet: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the
creation of the world." Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples
came to him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field." He
answered, "The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world,
and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil
one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the
harvesters are angels. "As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will
be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out
of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into
the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous
will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he
hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he
found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
"Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and
caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then
they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how
it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the
righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing
of teeth. "Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked. "Yes,"
they replied. He said to them, "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been
instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his
storeroom new treasures as well as old." When Jesus had finished these parables, he
moved on from there. Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their
synagogue, and they were amazed. "Where did this man get this wisdom and these
miraculous powers?" they asked. "Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his
mother's name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren't all his
sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?" And they took offense
at him. But Jesus said to them, "Only in his hometown and in his own house is a
prophet without honor." And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack
of faith. (Matthew 13)
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