King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Friday, October 31, 2025
Chapters: Matthew 19, Mark 10
Message: Matthew/Mark: Divorce And The Servant
Hello My Friend,
As we continue in the reading of the Gospels, we learn that marriage was instituted by God Himself from the very beginning of creation, being of one man and one woman. Divorce, is something that Moses instituted as a means for the couple to go their separate ways if the wife (husband) had defiled the marriage, aka, committed adultery and they could not work it out. It is really not the adultery that is the issue, it is the heart as no person with a pure heart for their spouse will even think about being with someone else, which is why Jesus said this, [Matthew 5:27-28 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: 28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.]
We also learn why Jesus said, [Luke 14:26 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.]. This is also something that comes from having a pure heart, [Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.]
The great thing about God is that He is no respecter of persons, He is of course a just God, but He is also merciful, much more than we actually realize. Think about it, when God instituted marriage as being of one man and one woman, that did not stop men from committing polygamy and yet God still made use of the situation whenever necessary. Still today, there are religions who believe in this, but it was never God’s attention. Divorce, on the other hand, was not something that God instituted, but again, He still made use of it whenever necessary. Matthew and Mark, both give their testimonies of how Jesus responds to the subject of marriage and divorce.
[Mark 10:1-4 And he arose from thence, and cometh into the coasts of Judaea by the farther side of Jordan: and the people resort unto him again; and, as he was wont, he taught them again. 2 And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him. 3 And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? 4 And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away.]
What exactly was is that they were tempting Jesus with? They wanted to see if He would contradict Himself according to what was written in the Law of Moses. Now, there were two groups of people there, one group that forbid divorce on any level, and one that granted it on any level. It was actually kind of ridiculous the reasons they were giving that constituted their divorcing their wife, one being that she did not cook a proper meal. I laugh at this because while I am a pretty good cook, my husband is always on me about my cooking, especially if I overcooked the meat. Point being, very few people want to remain committed to anyone or thing anymore, which was why Jesus reminds them what marriage is all about.
[Matthew 19:4-6 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.]
In other words, a marriage between a man and woman that God has brought together is inseparable because the two have become one flesh, in fact, they are destined to be together, and if we are married then we ought to do whatever we can to keep the marriage from severing. Well, of course, the egos did not like that answer and wanted Him to explain why Moses even written it in the Law.
[Matthew 19:7-11 They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? 8 He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery. 10 His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry. 11 But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.]
Jesus, points out that fornication is the only acceptable means for a divorce, that is if the marriage cannot be reconciled. Fornication is any physical or sexual abuse or idolatry committed on ones spouse, or sexual thoughts or acts committed upon anyone other than ones spouse.
The number one reason why people get divorced is because of what is in their heart, despise, bitterness, anger, jealousy, lust, these are all things that come from the heart and if the heart was pure, then faithfulness would have come even before marriage came up. I can attest to this, while thank God the only person I ever married was my husband, I had been in a couple of relationships prior to that, before and after I got saved. Honestly, the love we have for someone never dies, it just changes to the point that we cannot live through those circumstances any longer and that ought to be figured out before saying, “I do.” Paul, said this about marriage, [1 Corinthians 7:27-28 Art thou bound unto a wife? seek not to be loosed. Art thou loosed from a wife? seek not a wife. 28 But and if thou marry, thou hast not sinned; and if a virgin marry, she hath not sinned. Nevertheless such shall have trouble in the flesh: but I spare you.]
In other words, if you are married, stay faithful and committed to your spouse and if you are not, then make sure that you rush not into something that is may cause a great deal of problems down the line. There two things to remember here, one; a marriage between a man and woman that God has brought together is inseparable because the two have become one flesh. And two; the second that we accept Christ as our Saviour we too have become one with Him and therefore, we are inseparable from Him as well, [Romans 8:35-37 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.]
When we accept Christ as our Saviour, the Holy Spirit teaches us that God’s commands are not grievous, and let me tell you, sometimes, God will use judgment to put fear in the congregation to show them that He means business, other times He uses grace. Matthew and Mark, also give the account of the young rich man who asked Jesus what he needed to do to receive eternal life.
[Matthew 19:16-20 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?]
Notice how Matthew words how this young man approaches Jesus, he knew that he was to do good, he just did not know exactly what that entailed, which is why he asked Jesus what commandments he were to follow. Notice, that Jesus does not mention the first five commandments regarding our relationship with God, but only the ones on how we are to treat one another. As the young man thinks about what He said, he thought to himself, “I never killed, cheated, stole, or lied to anyone and I obey my parents, but something must be missing?” Now, watch how Mark words how Jesus responds to the young mans question.
[Mark 10:21-25 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. 22 And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.]
Jesus, not only responds, but I image grasps hold of his shoulders, tells him point blank that the only way to receive eternal life is through his faith in Him. Jesus, loves every soul, but this is proof that unless we come to Him, there is no eternal life in the kingdom of God. Jesus, was not only grieved over this young mans response, He became angry because this fool chose his earthly riches over him when he could have received so much more had he chose Him. That response prompted Peter to ask Jesus a question.
[Matthew 19:27-30 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.]
Now, Jesus, knows our faith right from the start, and exactly at what point we will fully believe, but that does not mean that all to come to that knowledge. Jesus, gave His life for all, not just one group of people, but the choice is ours to make in whether or not we accept that, regardless if we believed in Him well before He got here or well after His passion, [Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.]
Notice how Mark words Jesus’ response to Peter’s question, [Mark 10:29-31 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s, 30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. 31 But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.]
First, He mentions that no one has left all that they had for His and the Gospel’s sake, and also says that those who do will receive much more than what they have while they are here and eternal life, but cautions that persecution will come. I have been on both sides of the spectrum, I prospered quite well in the past working for myself and always managed to receive more than what I deserved. Right now, I am the side where you ask God each day for your daily bread, not sure what tomorrow will bring. This is part of that persecution that we face as faithful Christians and lines up with what I said yesterday about not feeling God’s presence for a while, even being faithful. We cannot expect every day to be all peaches and cream, some days are going to be sour grapes, but we can expect Jesus to be with us every step of the way.
[Romans 8:35-37 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.]
Praise God! Speaking of tribulation and distress, as if the disciples were not already fearing what He had said as they were headed toward Jerusalem He told them for third time now that He was going to suffer and die, [Mark 10:32-34 And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid. And he took again the twelve, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him, 33 Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles: 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.]
Every one of them were scared about what Jesus just said, what would be the consequence of it to themselves, as well as to Him. We need to realize that we all have a cup to bear, there are things appointed only to us that we are going to go through, but they all lead to the same place, the Kingdom of God. And out of no where James and John decide to ask Jesus for something for them, which we will learn that their mother put them up to it.
[Mark 10:35-40 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire. 36 And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you? 37 They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory. 38 But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? 39 And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: 40 But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.]
All of the apostles, except for Judas Iscariot, were indeed baptized with the same baptism, which means that they would receive the Holy Spirit in them. It was not for Jesus to grant them their every request upon their faith and obedience to Him, it was for them to be faithful, knowing what is to come of them once they leave here. Jesus, goes on to explain this, [Mark 10:42-45 But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.]
Remember, we are saved by the grace of God through our faith in the Gospel of Christ and nothing can change that. However, what we do after we are saved is a reflection of our faith in Him, regardless of what we get out of it here. The most prosperous Christians are the ones who minister to others, in other words, use their time and talents to help lead and guide others in their walk with Christ, [1 Corinthians 12:27-31 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. 28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? 30 Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? 31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.]
Mark, also gives the account of the blind man calling out to Jesus, I thought it necessary to focus on his testimony again. The reason being is that something else comes to mind as we read about his not yelling louder for Jesus when they were trying to shut him up, [Mark 10:46-48 And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. 48 And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.]
This is what Jesus wants, for us to cry out to Him, no matter how many people try to stop us. Watch how fast this blind man jumped up when they told him that Jesus called for him, [Mark 10:49-52 And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. 50 And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. 52 And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.]
This man did not hesitate to follow Jesus the second he got saved. There is something incredible that happens to us the second we truly see Jesus, we want to follow Him wherever He goes. You know, we are going to deal with a lot of things in our lifetime, we are going to be put through the fire, tried and tested of our faith, but in the end we will be more than conquerors, we will be with Jesus, [1 Peter 4:12-14 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: 13 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the Spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.]
Today’s Prayer: Jesus, it is amazing that we can simply come to You and be a part of You. We do not have to work our way to heaven or pay our way to get there, because You paid the price for us. We just need to simply have faith in Your finished work. Lord, when I received You as my Saviour a marriage began, one that will never tear us apart, I may drift and feel all alone, but You are never far. I am trusting in You to help me endure every trial and tribulation, I know if I want a lasting, fulfilled, and abundantly blessed life with You, I need to be just as faithful and true to You as You are to me. Even if I mess up I know that You are always with me and will help me endure and find rest for every burden when I completely trust You. I pray this in Your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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