Matthew 19:5-6,”And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall CLEAVE to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.”
This is a fascinating and important Biblical truth for married couples today. The Bible word “CLEAVE” comes from the Greek word, “proskollao” and means “TO GLUE, TO ADHERE.” Thus, in marriage a man becomes bonded together with his lovely wife, literally glued as soulmates forever. God intended for this inseparable bond to last one's lifetime. God chose to use the word for GLUE to describe the husband wife marriage bond.
It is sad to think that Elmer's Glue is stronger than most marriages today. A marriage should be based on permanent glue that cannot be undone.
That's why I like the marriage illustration concerning how plywood is made, because you cannot separate plywood later on after it's been completed. Different pieces of wood are repeatedly fit and glued together and then heated to a few hundred degrees for the glue to bond. The final product is inseparable without doing major damage in the process.
Divorce is like Ripping Apart Plywood
Ask any carpenter and he'll tell you that you cannot separate plywood without destroying it. Divorce does to a marriage what trying to separate plywood does to the wood—it cracks, splinters, breaks and renders the plywood worthless. There's no easy way to separate plywood without doing irreparable and lasting damage. The same is true when a spouse decides to quit and divorce—irreparably damage is done to the relationship and family, the damage is lasting and severe, and the unbreakable bond once formed has now been ripped, shredded, torn and pulled apart piece-by-piece in an attempt to destroy that bond.
Oh listen my friend, please don't quit your marriage. Anyone can quit during the rough times.
I heard about two U.S. soldiers injured in the Iraqi war. Their faces were severely burned beyond recognition. The one man's wife came in, looked at him and said, “I'm sorry, but I cannot live with this and she left.” The man was devastated and died 2-days later. The doctors said she probably helped kill him by discouraging him. The man next to him became very apprehensive after seeing what had happened, because his wife was coming to see him in a couple weeks. He was scared that she would leave him too. Three weeks passed and the wife came to see her soldier man. When she saw his horribly disfigured and grotesque face, she kissed the one spot on his head that wasn't burned and said, “I love you and I'm here for you. I'll be with you until the day I die. I'm your wife and I love you.” What a difference in wives!
Oh listen to me, if you have God's love, then you won't quit, no matter what. Shame on that first evil wife, who killed him with her cold-heart and rejection. That poor man. He died with no wife loving him by his side. So sad!
God's unconditional love is the only thing that will keep a marriage going through the rough years. A man should love his wife because of who he is, and not for who she is. And visa versa. A wife should love her husband because of who she is, and not for what or who he is. God loves us because of Who He is, and not for who we are. Amen! I love my website visitors because of who I am, and not for who they are. God's love is unconditional.
God hates the sin of divorce. Jeremiah 3:20, “Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith the LORD.” Why go through the horrible pains of ripping, tearing, shredding, and irreparably destroying your marriage? You were both GLUED together in the eyes of God, in the eyes of all those witnesses, the angels and your families. You can't separate what God hath joined together without completely destroying it. What God has given to you as a gift, your marriage, you have ripped it to shreds in an attempt to separate what God has made inseparable.
The manufacturers of plywood build it with the intention that it will never be taken apart. To do so is to destroy the plywood, because the glue is extremely strong and bonding. Likewise, God never intended for marriages to be taken apart. To do so is to destroy the people involved, including the children and other loved ones, because of the very strong bonds which have formed. Matthew 19:6, “What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.” A divorce does massive emotional, financial, physical and spiritual damage to a family. It is not easy to break glued bonds which God has formed. It is not easy to learn to become unattached from a departed spouse, when you're heart still loves them dearly. The only way to live with a brokenheart is to become attached to Jesus Christ. Amen!
You Can Make It
When I used to live in Chicago back in 1996, a city police officer (Jim Mullen) was shot in the neck on the job. The young man was completely paralyzed and has been a quadriplegic since. I remember that the first thing his wife (Athena Mullen) did back then was to cut her beautiful long hair short, because she wanted to relate with her husband's loss.
I admired Mrs. Mullen back then for standing by her man, and so much more today for staying-the-course. I cannot express in words the respect and admiration I have for such a woman, who honors her marriage vows, remaining faithful "for better, for worse; in sickness, as in health; 'til death do us part." She is one of my heroes.
Tears came to my eyes as I watched this video. There is no way humanly possible how anyone could possibly understand what Mrs. Mullen has endured, and the sacrifices she has made; but she has stayed by her husband's side. She could have quit, and moved on to greener pastures; but she did the right thing by staying. She could have ran off with another man who wasn't disabled; but she chose to stay with her husband. That is God's unconditional love. Athena is an American hero and certainly so is her husband, Jim, who was wounded in the line of duty.
Here's a video 15-years later of Jim Mullen sharing his experience, life and new business...
If anyone reading this article is considering a divorce, I want you to think about the Mullen family. If they can make it, so can you! It is tragic that a divorce is so easy to get in America. Anyone can quit; but it takes a special person, like Athena Mullen, to stay-the-course and hang-in-there. You just don't divorce, no matter what!
Hebrews 13:5-6a, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper...”
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