There it was, impossible to miss. Parked on the side of Washington Street in Ardmore, Oklahoma sat a little white car with big pink streamers tied to the back of it, and white shoe polish writing on the windows. As I drove closer, I expected to read “Just Married!” or an announcement of some other happy occasion. I was shocked when I read the words “Just Divorced!” written in giant white letters on the back windshield. How tragic that society celebrates what God hates (Mal. 2:16).
God created marriage as a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman. Marriage, when patterned after God’s will, is beautiful and worthy of exaltation. The Hebrews writer said, “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled…” (Heb. 13:4). Solomon wrote, “He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord” (Pro. 18:22). “A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband…” (Pro. 12:4). “Houses and riches are the inheritance of fathers, and a prudent wife is from the Lord” (Pro. 19:14). Study through the description of the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 and take careful note of how she blesses her family. Modern society may view marriage as a burden, but God defines it as a blessing, and so must we.
The marriage bond is very serious and sacred. When a man and woman are married they become one. They make a covenant and forge a union with one another. They pledge their love and faithfulness to one another for the remainder of their lives, regardless of external circumstances. To view this commitment in a nonchalant way is grave error. When we commit our lives to another person, we make a vow to them, and God expects us to keep that vow, both to Him and to one another (Ps. 76:11; Job 22:27; Matt. 19:6). The marriage relationship as God has designed it is a pristine picture of beauty. When that beauty is shattered by divorce it is an occasion to mourn—not celebrate. Let us remember God’s plan for marriage, that we may take our vows more seriously, and may we never be guilty of celebrating something that God hates.