Commitment and Devotion with Faith as a Child

Matthew 19:1-15 

Marriage and Divorce

1 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2 And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.

3 The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"

4 And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' 5 and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."

7 They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"

8 He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."

10 His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."

Jesus Teaches on Celibacy

11 But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given: 12 For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

Jesus Blesses Little Children

13 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven." 15 And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.

Jesus taught about commitment, devotion, and faith as of a little child as being of utmost importance in the kingdom of heaven.  The commitment in marriage as devotion not only to a spouse, but fidelity to the Lord Himself as He so often taught and warned Israel who committed spiritual and physical adultery.  What Gods has joined together in a holy union we are not to separate.  This means marriage on the surface but also devotion and fidelity to God alone in union with Christ Jesus as well, for the one is a picture and type of the other (Ephesians 5:31-32).  The teaching of Jesus covered this concept and command of devotion in marriage as a reminder like the prophets before Him to the people to have no other gods except Him as reflected in a committed and monogamous relationship between man and wife.  Since these guardrails of marriage were so difficult for some, they asked if it was better to remain single and He then addressed that question by pointing out that was not the calling of many but only a few because it may be more difficult for most to deny the passion and desire for belonging by not marrying.  He seemed to lead into the example of children as a way to drive the point home that it is a matter of faith, of trusting God’s word and will for our best and for His honor and glory in all these matters of commitment, devotion, and faith.  The kingdom of heaven opens wide the doors for those who take him at His word as a child, for children rely on their parents to give them what is best (Matthew 7:11) and they rely on Him (Job 24:23) as all they need for life and godliness (1 Timothy 4:8, 2 Peter 1:3)!  These are some f the lessons we learn here from these seemingly unrelated sayings.