Matthew 19:9 and Matthew 19:12 Divorce and Eunuchs

MATTHEW 19:9—"And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery."
 
MATTHEW 19:12—"For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made so by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can."

Comment:

It can be very misleading to isolate specific sentences from the Bible—especially from the teachings of Jesus—and treat them as individual teachings when, in fact, they are part of a larger discussion. In this case, the Pharisees—eager as always to trap Jesus into saying something that will bring him into conflict with religious authorities—have asked him about divorce.    What bothered the Pharisees most about the message of Jesus Christ was that he was calling people to a higher authority than the literal obedience to the Law that was the essence of Pharisaic Judaism. Jesus didn't overthrow the Law, but he saw the Law as a means to a greater end—to a full embrace of our true identity as the Christ, the creative Power of God. From that Christ consciousness we will no longer obey the Law out of fear of punishment; we will appreciate the Law as a valuable guide to effectively expressing our Christ energy in the world. And we will understand in our own hearts how the Law expresses and applies in our own lives.   Thus Jesus' teaching about divorce both honors the dictates of the Law and challenges us to approach the question from the perspective of the Christ. "What God has joined together, let no man put asunder" is a valuable spiritual guide that asks each of us to trust our own Christ authority. If a marriage or relationship—or any two distinct energies, for that matter—serves a spiritual purpose, then it cannot be abandoned. We may try, but we can't do it. If the Power of God has joined us together, that unity cannot be severed because of distractions or challenges in our human experience.   It is also true that God has not joined together every marriage. Sometimes we enter into marriages or unions for nonspiritual reasons. And sometimes we may realize that a spiritual union has served its God-ordained purpose, and needs to be set aside so that the individuals involved can continue on their own unique paths. How do we know if we are to stay in a union or release ourselves from it? We turn to, and trust, the Christ Presence within. Counseling or advice from others may help us to see the issues clearly, but ultimately we must ask the Christ within whether we are joined to another by God.   Remember that metaphysically, “adultery” involves conflicting commitments—especially the conflict between a commitment to the Christ and a commitment to things of the world—including sexual distractions. We are “married” to our spiritual purpose—the process of creating the kingdom of heaven. If we shift our commitment—our highest priority—to concerns of the flesh, we are committing spiritual adultery, and we will experience its negative consequences in our lives.   And ultimately, I hear Jesus saying in Matthew 19:12 that it's all a matter between each individual and his/her own Christ Consciousness. No one else can know, or judge, what's going on. Eunuchs were considered repulsive to Jews—and would certainly have been considered so by the Pharisees Jesus is addressing. But, he points out, who's to know? Some people are born that way. Others have it forced upon them. And still others are so convinced that sex is evil that they make themselves eunuchs out of spiritual conviction.  Who's right? Who's wrong? Who knows? It's not for us to judge.   Blessings!

Rev. Ed