What God has joined together...
I took this shot a few months ago and was planning to talk about marriage, but then recently decided not to because I’ve never been in a relationship nevertheless marriage! So I didn’t want to talk about something I have no personal experience with.
Those wedding rings are of my sister and her husband. I took three shots to make an HDR image, but somehow the overexposed shot looked just perfect, and the HDR image had so much noise! I think this is the only time where I have included an overexposed shot in my flickr page!
Sometimes I wonder about the meaning of this verse, and what is God’s opinion if we went into more details. Many Christians simply hold so tight to it that a woman can’t leave her husband even if he beats her up everyday! Others just brush the verse away as being outdated! But for most they hold on to it until it doesn’t satisfy their situation anymore then they brush it away! But what does it mean, really?
I think the line that holds the key to explain this passage of scripture is this, “What God has joined together”. Was our Lord Jesus Christ talking to His followers, Christians, or to humanity as whole? I mean, we can say that every man who marries a woman God has joined together, because He created man and woman to be joined in marriage. But then, what about a man who leaves his wife for no reason other than he wants to marry another? Did God join him and his second wife together? I mean, he is still a man, and his second wife is a woman.
What about Christians? Has every Christian couple gotten married according to God’s will for their lives? If “No”, then does it still count as “God has joined together”? If “Yes”, then why is divorce rate among Christians just as high as among non-Christians?
And if our Lord meant this verse to people who got married according to God’s will, which is a small percentage of population, then does it mean that all the rest are ok to get divorced whenever they wanted to?
I think it is important to read the rest of the New Testament, especially the letters of Paul to understand God’s will for marriage, such as 1 Corinthians 7. Divorce is certainly one of those topics that are very sensitive to discuss.
All I know is that many become Christians and God starts to fix their lives, but there is nothing they could do about what they had done in the past before God changes them. But that doesn't matter because they are a new creation in Christ now, and the old things has past.
I also know that you can’t make someone loves you and stay with you—if they don’t want to there is nothing you can do about it. You could be “perfect”, but if the other person doesn’t want you then you can’t have a relationship with them. If you don’t believe this is true then ask God! He is perfect but how many choose to have a relationship with Him? A successful relationship is like clapping, you need both hands to make a sound, and God is like the air that carries the sound.
That’s it, and I hope you like the picture :)
(Toronto, ON; spring 2008.)
Comments and faves
LittleGoldWoman, QueenNeveen, laurarnmd, candyboos_mom, and 25 other people added this photo to their favorites.
† David Gunter (49 months ago | reply)
Excellent!
Gramma Elizabeth (49 months ago | reply)
Wonderful subject! I love the shot...it's perfect..and the verse! Well done Fadi.
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Seen in my contacts' photos. (?)
J316 (49 months ago | reply)
A truly fine piece of art here Fadi..and it comes alive with the living Word.
A time for refreshing (49 months ago | reply)
The photograph is excellent! With the verse even better.....the comments are superb!
Yet even gay couples use wedding bands today.....so we won't be using wedding bands as saying God joined someone together.
Just as an outward sign of covenant was the circumcision of the flesh to enter covenant with God thru the Laws of Moses.....so the beginning of wearing wedding bands was to establish covenant between one another and to have an outward sign ot others....yet not necessarily towards God. Now that circumcision of a man's flesh continues even today but for hygenic purposes and for some that are still trying to obey the Laws of Moses.....so the outward sign of circumcision has lost its value and reason for coventantal purposes towards God. And now so has the "wedding rings" for they still do serve a purpose to those that desire marraige by outwardly telling another that these two are taken (though that doesn't stop some or even the ones wearing the wedding set).
As far as the two becoming one.....the joining of male and female usually will produce offspring and there is your one flesh that the author speaks of. It has always been God's desire to make forth committment and keep the committment as children are produced and then there is family. God is "family oriented" yet He always would like the entire family "God oriented".
By a couple committing fornication and having offspring they have brought forth offspring yet that doesn't make it a "what God hath joined together" situation. Yet by their repentance to God and acknowledgement that they have made certain errors and their desire to go about respecting God, each other, and their offspring then there surely is the hope that they can now be joined together in the admonition of the Lord and certainly a wedding celebration with witnesses will only add to the establishment of the union. However, if one says if God will just forgive me anyway why put off the sex before marraige.....remember God is not mocked, Christ is still the judge, and nothing is hidden from Our Maker.
loswl (49 months ago | reply)
Wonderful Photo and verse, I think this is one of the verses that holds a lot for us as Christians, From the beginning he made the union that will replenish the earth, between a Man and a Woman.
In the previous verse, the Pharisees tested Jesus to see if He would slip up or something by asking Him this question about divorce??..."Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?" Well I think Jesus's answer is pretty direct and clear that, a man should not do this, it is against the law of God!!.....
Reflecting on the verse and looking at todays situation, we can see that mankind has strayed away from the law of God in a wretched way!!......we divorce for any and all reasons!! and our hearts have been hardened.....The only reason that God gives for divorce is sexual immorality!!.......The devil really have this world under some serious bondage and the first place he does relentless havock is in the family!!
I am married 7 years now (thank God) and my wife and I speak about all the weaknesses that we both have so we won't fall into temptation, married life is not easy, but it is a joy when lived in the principles of God :o)
QueenNeveen (49 months ago | reply)
Amazing capture Fadi and amazing verse!
Love the thought beyond your words!
Photoprincess2006 (49 months ago | reply)
so pretty!
DGMiller777 (49 months ago | reply)
You have a good understanding of marriage. I like the thought you have put into this.
One thing to remember, the key to a successful marriage is for the husband to do what Ephesians 5:25 says, "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it". If every husband loved his wife with the self sacrificing love that Jesus has for us, divorce lawyers would be lined up outside food banks!
The reason for the high divorce rate is people go into marriage to satisfy themselves and for what they can get out of the marriage. As soon as they are not getting what they want, or are no longer happy, they think they should be able to simply get a divorce. People think that the most important thing is their own happiness.
Think about how Jesus loves us! First of all, there was nothing "attractive" about us that caused Jesus to love us. Romans 5 tells us we were "without strength", "sinners", and in fact "enemies" of God, and he still loved us enough to die for us! Think about that in terms of a husband loving his wife the way Jesus loved us! He loves us in spite of the many times we fail Him, the many times we fall into sin, the times we are unfaithful, the times we would rather watch TV than spend time with Him!
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Seen in my contacts' photos. (?)
laurarnmd (49 months ago | reply)
Your image is beautiful and evocative. I think it symbolizes the relationship between a man and a woman that God wants us to have. But I believe that Christ would not want a woman to stay with a man who beats her up physically or emotionally, so His advice to us to stay married needs to be understood within the context of His love for us.
001FJ (49 months ago | reply)
Thank you all for your comments (and e-mails). I learned a lot from your insights.
“A time of refreshing”, I especially like those two points you made (I hope I understood them right):
1)God can restore the marriage between a man and a woman if they both turn to Him and seek Him, even if they didn’t seek His will when they got married.
2)God cannot be mocked. Our sins will find us out.
I agree with you, “loswl”, mankind has strayed from God’s laws in ways unimaginable to many of us, so why do we expect them to obey God’s laws in marriage?!
“DGMiller777”, I agree that husbands are commanded to love their wives as Christ loved the church, but I do not agree that’s the key to successful marriage. I believe both the husband and wife hold the key together. I think this would be unfair to the many husbands who were betrayed, rejected, and mistreated by their wives. We must realize that both men and women make mistakes, and sin, and that many times both make mistakes which lead to the failure of their relationship as husband and wife, but we cannot discard the possibility that only one party—the husband or the wife—can cause the failure of the marriage. Because the truth of the matter is that it takes Satan to deceive one person to destroy a relationship between two.
“laurarnmd”, I love your comment: you show passion for God and people. I agree that a woman should not continue to put herself in a situation where she is harmed. Recently a verse came to my mind (and stuck there) because it was quoted by a Middle Eastern man (Egyptian) who run for his life when his country men tried to kill him because he became a Christian. The verse he quoted is this:
"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)
Until recently I believed that Christians should be a doormat, but that’s certainly not God’s will because He clearly teaches us to oppose evil.
I also would like to put in the insight of a wonderful Christian who e-mailed me in regard to the topic. She mentioned something that I didn’t know but always felt it was according to God’s Word. She said that a man and a woman are allowed to divorce only if one of them commits adultery, and that the guilty party is not permitted to get married again. The last sentence kind of struck me as being just, because I’ve heard many stories of women (and men too) getting a divorce because their spouse committed adultery, and yet they get stuck with the responsibility of the children, while the guilty party moves on and gets married to whoever they committed adultery with!
Another thing I want to say, and it is about remarrying, which I have heard from another wonderful Christian lady is that if your spouse committed adultery and you get a divorce is that: do not give up on God. Trust God, and He will make your paths straights.
I will end my comment with one of my favourite verses about husbands and wives, and when the Bible says something about men, we usually automatically assume it applies to women too, such as the Ten Commandments. Therefore, I will write this verse for both men as well women, even though it was written for husbands, Ephesians 5:28:
“In this same way, husbands/wives ought to love their wives/husbands as their own bodies. He/She who loves his wife/her husband loves himself/herself.”
laurarnmd (49 months ago | reply)
It's amazing, Fadi, that you quoted that verse from Matthew, "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves". I helped a woman today who was stranded. She locked herself out of her car. Turned out she was a scam artist. I feel like such an idiot. The Lord gave me a double helping of innocence. I could use a little more shrewdness.
candyboos_mom (49 months ago | reply)
Love all your photos, God Bless...
Juleen_D (49 months ago | reply)
I like the picture very much and i agree with every word you are saying. Last paragraph in particular.
DAISY R. (49 months ago | reply)
Thanks for putting this Marriage Thoughts on picture.Although..it got more to the subject ..my husband & I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary next Month June 22th.And I thank the Lord Jesus for saving it from the very beginning to break for HE personally mended our Relationship up to this point in our lives.As we obey HIM ..our Lord Is Faithful to fulfill HIS Promises of an intact,loving Families who cared for each other building up one another.I have failed in the course of time to be perfect mate BUT the Lord is always there to Bridge the difference so our Family will be whole once more.I am excited for in my 5 physical senses it looked bleak BUT I have EXPERIENCED GOD'S TRUSTWORTHINESS as HE continously shown me how truly HE is in healing Families in limbo..HE is the stabilizing force as we always reach out for HIM to help us in our difficulties.I say...THANK YOU LORD JESUS...YOU DEFY EVERYTHING FOR ME..YOU HAVE MAKE A WAY WHERE THERE IS NO WAY..YOU MAKE ALL "IM"possible POSSIBLE FOR ME.
To you...LORD JESUS...EVERYTHING IS...MISSSION:POSSIBLE!!!
heaths_pics (36 months ago | reply)
I love this!
HL_Butterfly (35 months ago | reply)
I came across your Scripture - wedding rings picture looking for Scripture pictures of 1 Cor. 7... THANK YOU so much for sharing this pic. I would love to use it on my blog today... but won't as I don't have your permission (but maybe next week?!?)... as I participate in a Word-Filled Wednesday meme & want to ask (now that I read through yours) the same question. I'm in an unequally yoked marriage (my second marriage too)... its hard, especially right now. But I don't think divorce is the answer either. Again - thx for sharing! I LOVE IT!
soul winner (26 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Your Favorite Bible Verse, and we'd love to have this added to the group!