Grace and Historical Fact | Responsibilities | Vows | Credentials | Subsequent Grace | Binding And Loosing

Thank God for His abundant grace! Within His grace is the forgiveness of sins. Amen!

During that same quarter, sin increased dramatically in the body of Christ. The early to mid 1980's saw a direct attack on the Christian family. As time progressed, well known Christians sought divorce. Things became worse as many of these same well known Christians or "Christians" were remarried to another spouse. Many elements fueled this firestorm of sin. One element was how the Word of God was translated and interpreted, which led to a redefinition of what the grace of God does.

During the mid 1970s a new translation was released: The New International Bible. At that time I was a student at Northeast Bible Institute in Green Lane, PA (now Valley Forge Christian College in Phoenixville, PA.). We were issued complimentary copies of the NT NIV. Most of our instructors were ecstatic about the clarity and "accuracy" of the NIV. Yes, indeed, the major proof texts for the deity of Christ were there among other things. Unfortunately I went along with the general positive evaluation of this translation encouraging all Christians under my ministries to employ this translation. In the late 1990's, after repeatedly comparing the NIV to the Greek text (I use the Nestle text), I was disheartened to see that the NIV took too many translation liberties. Some of these effected the passages that would had more clearly expressed the subordination of the Son to the Father had the NIV translators were faithful to the ancient texts. Some other passages dealt with divorce and marriage, changing the wording ever so slightly from the actual Greek.

In that last quarter of the 1900s the NIV became THE BIBLE to many and I maintain that, in part, it was this general acceptance of the NIV and other translations other than the KJV that redefined what all grace does in people's lives in the realm of marriage, divorce, divorce and remarriage.

Grace indeed is the unmerited favor of God, but, Thayer points out that it can also mean, according to the context that it is used in, the ability to do the right thing. So, aside from the gracious forgiveness of sins, when we accept Christ, we become...

A New Creature (2 Cor. 5:17)

Without question, sin is forgiven. Divorce is sin. It can be forgiven. Remarriage to another person is sin (Luke 16:18).

This logic fails, for the Scriptures show that though grace absolves us from sin, it does not erase historical fact (even in the mind of God) nor does it nullify godly responsibilities. The fact that we become new creatures enables us to DO the correct thing by accepting historical fact and our godly responsibilities. Here are some examples both in Scripture and in everyday life of both points.

Grace Does Not Erase Historical Fact

Some Scriptural Examples

• Paul maintained the historical fact that he persecuted the church. 1 Cor. 15:9
• The fact that John Mark shrunk back from a ministry opportunity affected Paul one way, Barnabas another way. Acts 15:37-40
• Peter was rebuked by Paul for his duplicity. Peter sinned. He was forgiven no doubt, but his error is historical fact. Gal. 2:11-14
• Dissension within the early church. It was corrected, but it remains historical fact. Acts 6:1-7

All of these are forgivable, but they remain historical fact. These historical events affected the individuals involved, the body of Christ, and the society in which these people were located. Grace erased only the sin, not the events nor their effects.

Some General Daily Examples

It is with good reason that God declares through Paul that the bishop/ deacon/ pastor/ elder/ etc. is to be the husband of ONE wife (1 Tim. 3:2, 12, Titus 1:6). Yes, that could refer to polygamy, but it refers to remarriage too. You shall see why just a few lines down.

Let's say a lady named Mary purposely bounces checks in some local stores. However, a few days later, Mary comes to know Christ as her Savior. Immediately she does the right thing and begins to make things right, but the grace that she received does not prevent litigation nor does it prevent some storeowners from refusing to accept personal checks from anyone, including ME! (Hey buddy, I didn't do it!). No amount of the grace of God in this time-age will erase historical fact nor the repercussions of sin.

Marriage

Back in the 1990's a phrase was being kicked around by youth workers - "spiritual virginity." It was to help young people who had premarital sex realize that when they came to Christ, He removes their sin from them. However, physically and historically the fact remains they are no longer a virgin, even though they came to Christ. Their salvation did not erase historical, social, emotional, physical, and psychological fact.

If you get married, no amount of grace can remove that fact and no amount of paperwork to create a divorce dissolves a marriage. If the grace of God does not dissolve a former marriage, how much less then does the laws of feeble man!

Hence, God commands that the pastor/ deacon/ elder/ bishop, etc. be the husband of one wife (1 Tim. 3:2, 12, Titus 1:6). Even if a remarriage occurs prior to salvation, both the historical fact of a prior marriage leading to a divorce and the repercussions thereof are not dissolved by grace. The marriage itself is not dissolved by grace. The fact remains that when one remarries with another spouse still living, they have more than one spouse. Even after all the hideous paperwork for a divorce many face alimony, child support, visitation rights, financial disbursements, perhaps cantankerous relatives that could very well instigate litigation, debt entanglement, and many other issues. Yet God declares that they who serve him as ministers to the flock be free from any worldly entanglements (2 Tim. 2:4, 4:13 - 16, Acts 6:12).

This point was made even more real to me when we bought a house in Cambridge. There were numerous fees of course, but a certain optional one time fee came up - insurance in case there would be any litigation between former owners who had divorced each other when such litigation would affect the present owners! Human law may try to claim that a "marriage had ended," but the effects are long lasting to many generations.

I am of the opinion that divorce is worse today than what it was in the time of the apostles. Litigation and any other trouble may raise its' head. Hence, the Holy Spirit speaks through the apostle to indicate that the man of God is to be the husband of one wife. Nowhere in the NT or early church history prior to 250AD do we find divorced people who are remarried admitted to the ministry.

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Grace Does Not Nullify Godly Responsibilities

• Some converts at Ephesus publicly burned their evil books - Acts 19:19
• At the point of his conversion, Zacchaeus knew he had to make restitution. Luke 19:1-10
• After his conversion, the Philippian jailer washed the wounds of Paul and Silas. Acts 16:30-34
• After his conversion, Onesimus returned to submit to Philemon - Philemon

• Frank before he was saved stole money from his employer. No one knew who did it. A week later, Frank gets saved, and, at the risk of being fired and punished in jail, he confesses to his employer and returns the money, with extra money.
• Lou had premarital sex with Bernice, who became pregnant. Lou later gets saved. Lou willfully pays child support and, not only that, comes around to spend time with his child.
• Veronica, unmarried, becomes pregnant. She contemplates abortion. A few weeks later she comes to Jesus Christ and accepts Him as Lord and Savior. She then cancels her appointment for abortion and makes plans to raise the child herself or to surrender the child for Christian adoption.

• Regardless of what YOUR marriage vows said, God says marriage is for life.
• It is a commitment to the other person to love and to care for them under ALL CONDITIONS.
• If children are involved there is a tremendous sacred trust given to the parents to raise those children in the fear and admonition of the Lord.

The Vow: Physical Death Only Dissolves A Marriage

On the first two pages of this series on marriage we clearly showed by Scripture that marriage was for life and soluble only by physical death. If you have not already done so, please see Marriage 101 and Basic Help For The Marriage Under Attack. As you examine the Scriptures you will see that a valid vow made by an adult had to be fulfilled. You will find God hates divorce. Jesus never gave permission to remarry. Also, only physical death dissolves a marriage. Grace does not dissolve vows or intent that have their basis in God. Only death dissolves the marriage / marriage vow and that is not to say that we should kill ourselves or anyone else.

Being crucified in Christ does not terminate a marriage. Instead, it cancels our fleshly desires (2 Cor. 5:16) and enables us to do the right thing.

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For Those That Think Those Saved After Their Divorce And Remarriage Should Hold Credentials To Pastor:

The Word of God says "thou shalt not steal." We do not have a problem with that.

I used to pastor in the mountains of Western MD, Flintstone, MD. There I met a few folk who were not as fortunate as you and I to use and understand many words greater than eight letters long. However, whenever they were saved, the were able to understand the Word of God. They would read "husband of one wife" and believe exactly that! They would understand that remarriage was included in that verse.

Or, think of a child who hears about Pastor's Smith's first wife and pastor Smith is now remarried. Later the child reads in God's Word that Pastor Smith should be the husband of one wife. Pastor Smith will have to "explain it" to the child. The child subconsciously learns that the Word of God can be circumvented to meet the situation. After all, would not pastor Smith refer to his first wife as his "first wife." and since he is remarried, he has a second wife?

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Is There A Difference Between Initial Grace And Subsequent Grace?

Therefore, since I have been spurred on in part by the errors of the 49th General Council of the Assemblies of God, with respect I write this to them: Either you are going to have extend the effects of grace to include those that backslide, or, you will have to embrace eternal security for there is no difference between initial grace and subsequent grace. If grace nullifies sin for the new comer to Christ it nullifies it for the backslider that returns. If grace nullifies a marriage prior to conversion it can nullify a marriage that occurred when someone backslid.

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Binding And Loosing And John 20:22

Note that Young's Literal declares "shall be having been bound in the heavens" and "shall be having been loosed in the heavens." It is quite clear that any "binding and loosing" that we do is directed by what has already been declared correct in heaven. Therefore it CANNOT contradict the Word of God.

Neither does our Lord's statement make holiness and salvation a moving target. I have heard at least one preacher say that Jesus was easier on the Samaritan woman He met at the well than He was the blind man He healed in John whom He told not to sin again lest something else happen to Him. Indeed, our Lord was NOT easier. Review the information to the right bottom half in the pale red section.

Marriage has come under attack by liberal theology that waters down the Word of God and encourages people to sin. Those who teach these things bear the great responsibility of causing others to sin. Some liberals encourage us to read books about how marriage and divorce was back in the Lord's time but they ignore this main point: JESUS WAS OPPOSED TO WHAT THE JEWS AND THE REST OF SOCIETY WERE DOING TO MARRIAGE. JESUS REFERED BACK TO GENESIS 2! Should we not ignore these books written by men and listen to Jesus?

Unlike the situation where the school of Hillel "loosed" many things that the school of Schammai "bound", the Church does not need to "flip-flop" today for we have the whole plain Word of God. Man's Word is NEVER above God's Word, and, on this page and others we list the Scriptures, and the Scriptures are unified in that only physical death releases one from the bonds of marriage and the responsibilities thereof. Grace, though it forgives sin, dissolves no historical fact, including marriage, but empowers us to do the correct thing and follow through with our responsibilities in accordance with the Word of God.

I am sure that deep down inside you want to do the right thing. Ask God and obey in faith and you will be blessed!

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