Mankind’s list of rules for pleasing God has become increasingly invasive upon the lives of those affected by such man-made decrees. Yet, the reality is that God most desires for man to trust Him in the present (through faith) as well as in the future (through hope). The Lord is well pleased when an individual chooses to place all of his hopes solely upon the Lord and upon His word. Simply put, man was created for only one purpose—to please the One who brought him into this world in the first place (Revelation 4:11). This single purpose is impossible to fulfil without faith (Hebrews 11:6) and hope in the Lord (Psalm 147:11). The Lord promised that He would one day return for His church. Placing all of one’s faith and hope upon that promise (of the Lord’s return) demonstrates an unfailing love for the Lord!
Most people do not understand or recognize that the law and grace are polar opposites. The law emphasizes man’s responsibility to God, while grace emphasizes God’s efforts toward man. The law’s purpose shows man his sin and points him to God for help (Romans 3:20). Additionally, the law condemns man and sheds light upon the fact that he has no hope. Interestingly, the first five books of the Bible (commonly called the books of the Law) make no reference to the word hope. Some might ask why? Because the law simply reveals that man has no hope apart from God. As such, the Lord Jesus brought in a “better hope . . . by the which we draw nigh unto God.” Any man who places his hope and trust in what he can do or must do for God has lost sight of what God must do for him.
In a very basic sense, the word hope means desire, yet the true meaning is not nearly as weak as the world presents. The word hope in scripture is associated with the word expectation (Proverbs 10:28; Proverbs 11:7). Hope is not simply some type of wishful thinking; it is something that someone trusts in dearly (Jeremiah 17:7). This type of hope is not something visible to the naked eye of man (Romans 8:24), but it is believed and held firm by faith (Hebrews 11:1). All men live their lives based upon hope; however, not all hope is the same. One man’s hope might be that there is no life after death. Another might place his hope solely upon the payment for sin provided by the Lord Jesus Christ.
Because of the hardness of man’s heart, God permitted man to seek a divorce. The Pharisees, who generally sought to broaden the law’s reach and its application, sought to expand the justification for a divorce. The Lord never condoned this type of perversion of truth but quickly told the Pharisees that God never intended for marriage to have an escape clause when a man grew weary or discontented. God introduced the bill of divorcement because of the hardness of men’s hearts. Even then, the Lord indicated very limited grounds for a biblical divorce. Divorce was never intended to be an option for the masses, and even in those cases where a bill of divorcement was justified or allowed, the Lord still preferred reconciliation between the husband and wife.
Like other callings upon a person’s life, God prepares men and women for marriage. Obviously, God prepares the heart, but He also prepares other areas in order to provide for a strong home. When God created Adam, He could have immediately created Eve, but He chose to allow Adam to experience the sense of being alone. Perhaps there are other reasons, but God may have thought it wise to prepare Adam for marriage. He needed to experience life without Eve. Adam needed to come to the place where he desired companionship. He needed to be alone before he could truly appreciate a wife. In addition to the preparation of Adam’s heart, the Lord gave him a job, a means by which he could provide for Eve (Genesis 2:8-9, 15). All of these preparations were necessary for a strong marriage relationship.
