I have two rather simple questions for my fellow brother's and sister's in Christ...
In making one of the most important decisions of your life(choosing your soulmate), will you completely rely on the affirmation and confirmation from God in your choice? And second, if God gave you exactly what you prayed for in a soulmate...but in two different individuals...would you believe you should choose or would you still expect The Lord to choose for you between the two individuals?
Before you consider optional items, they have to meet the required by God qualifications.
1. Must be a Christian. 1 Corinthians 7:39; 2 Corinthians 6:14-18
2. Marriage to the individual cannot cause the person to enter into a sinful relationship, or to violate a specific command by marrying the person.
Mark 10:11-12 �Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.� (no exceptions- written to the Romans);
Luke 16:18 �Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery." (no exceptions- written to the Greeks);
1 Corinthians 7:10-11 "Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife." God commands that the individuals do nothing to impede reconciliation, which requires the active participation of both parties.
1 Corinthians 7:39 "A wife is bound by law as long as her husband lives; but IF HER husband DIES, (THEN, and only then) she is at liberty to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord."
Romans 7:1-4 "Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. So then IF, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she WILL be called an adulteress; BUT IF her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man."
*Matthew 19:6-11 (in addition to the limitations below, that is why the big AND is included; no matter what, anyone who marries the woman put away in the Matthew 19 scenario commits adultery.
3. Jesus repudiates Moses as an authority on divorce, and all of the reasons based upon what Moses said as a basis for divorce. Jesus notes that the one legitimate reason for divorce occurs before consummation of the marriage, and it only exists in the Jewish culture. *see below. Mark 10:2-12; *Matthew 19:3-12.
4. Given the prohibitions of the verses in points 2 and 3, both person to be married must be in the never been married or widow/widower category.
*The Matthew 19 exception is only available to Jews who observe the year long betrothal period without consummating the marriage, where one is found to have committed sexual sin prior to the consummation of the marriage, AND was divorced for that reason, and ONLY when divorced for that reason. This is the Joseph and Mary situation. They had not consummated the marriage, when Mary was found pregnant with Jesus. Under the law, it was the only time a Jew could divorce his wife, marry another, and not commit adultery. In all other situations, if the husband divorced his wife for any other reason, and married another, he would have been guilty of adultery.
So if you are Jewish, and your betrothed messes around prior to the final ceremony and and consummation of the marriage; and she commits porneia, then you can divorce her, marry another, you do not commit moxitai. You may now do as the disciples did when speaking to Jesus in Matthew 19 and FREAK OUT.
After this first hurdle is conquered, then it's time to consider which color for the shades. Until then, it's not worth the time to discuss it.
"Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil. Do not be rash with your mouth, and let not your heart utter anything hastily before God. For God is in heaven, and you on earth; therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes through much activity, and a fool�s voice is known by his many words. When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it; for He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed� Better not to vow than to vow and not pay. Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger of God that it was an error. Why should God be angry at your excuse AND DESTROY THE WORK OF YOUR HANDS? For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But you fear God." Ecclesiastes 5:1-7
Thank you God is my Father for your extension gleaning of God's Word regarding how we as believers must be assured that we follow God's guide lines in our choices for life partners.
In knowing there is no compromise in that truth, I was really making reference to when after ALL of God's criteria have been met in meeting possibly two potential soulmates, would there still be a reliance on waiting for God to confirm the choice you should make between the two or given what you've learned of God and by the power of The Holy Spirit, make the choice yourself.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."
and "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
Or you can trust your heart, because, you know, "the heart wants what it wants" and, just like momma said in the song, "follow your heart, and nothing else" and of course, your heart would never misguide you:
�The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?"
Thank you again God is my Father! His Word is truly the only thing that will ever give confirmation in our life journey's! To be honest, I knew in my heart the truth regarding this and to add:
"So shall My Word be that goes forth out of My mouth: It shall not return to Me void, but It shall accomplish that which I please, and It shall prosper in the thing which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11
Careful putting a burden on another that may not apply.
There's is a huge difference between separation only and divorce, both in practical application and in the bible. I have a synopsis in my profile if you want to discuss it further.
