Scripture: Nehemiah 13:23-25
In
those days I also saw that the Jews had married women from Ashdod, Ammon and
Moab. As for their children, half spoke in the language of
Ashdod, and none of them was able to speak the language of Judah, but the
language of his own people. So I contended with them and cursed them
and struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear by God,
"You shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor take of their
daughters for your sons or for yourselves.
Insights: This
command of God had nothing to do with genetic purity. It had nothing to do with race or ethnic distinction. Part of the reason we know this is because of
Jesus’ own lineage. In it you have Rahab
a Canaanite woman and Ruth a Moabite woman.
What it dealt with was spiritual holiness and righteousness before
God. Israel was God’s children and He
desired them to be fully His and He knew that if they intermarried with those
from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab, they were more than likely going to defile their
love for Him in order to please their spouses.
It was for this same reason that Paul admonishes Christians to not be unequally
yoked with lost people (2 Cor. 6:14). As
a pastor I have heard so many Christians involved in a relationship with a lost
person tell me God was telling them to marry the person and then lead that
person to Jesus for salvation. There are
two problems with this statement I have heard.
One, God did not tell them that because He never contradicts Scripture
and Paul’s letter to the church of Corinth has explicitly stated not marry such
an individual. Two, if a person is lying
down and another is trying to pull them up off of the ground; the one on the
ground has the advantage. It is easier
for him to pull the other person down than it is for the other one to pull him
up. The same is true in
relationships. More often than not I
have watched the believer get pulled down in the relationship and soon God is
not even a factor in the believer’s life.
I mentioned this passage earlier this week, but I mention it again here
for the same truth applies. “Bad company
corrupts good morals (1 Corinthians 15:33).”
If you are a believer and have
been truly born again and you are in a relationship with an unbeliever, then I
would strongly encourage you to not follow the example of the people of
Nehemiah’s day. End the relationship and
ask God to bring you a godly spouse.
Questions:
- Are you cultivating a romantic relationship with an
unbeliever?
- Are you contemplating uniting this relationship into an
unequally yoked marriage?
Prayer: Father, the
heart is such a dangerous thing to us humans.
Protect Your children from themselves and give them the wisdom necessary
to make holy decisions. Amen.
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