FAITHFULWORD.ORG | TEACHINGS

II Corinthians 5:17; [Romans 3:23; 6:23]; I Corinthians 5:7; [Philippians 3:21; II Corinthians 5:17]; Matthew 26:26-28; Galatians 6:15; Isaiah 1:18; Colossians 2:13, 14; Ephesians 1:4-7; I Timothy 1:11-16; Psalm 25:7; 59:16, 17; II Corinthians 3:2; Psalm 143:8, 9

FAn interesting question has arisen from time to time, requiring looking to God’s Word for the answer rather than our opinions. The question is regarding divorced men before they were saved. Since they were divorced prior to salvation, being ignorant of God’s commands about divorce, but are now forgiven in Christ, are they now eligible to hold the office of pastor and deacon? Or, since the qualification of both offices as stated in Timothy is to be the husband of one wife, and one has remarried, does that disqualify a man from the office of pastor and deacon?

God’s Word declares in II Corinthians 5:17 that “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” “New creature” means “new creation.” This refers to a new life in Christ Jesus. Regardless of how good or bad an individual was prior to being born again, their ethnicity or religious background, they all sinned and fell short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus (Romans 6:23). In many ways, God lumps all our sins as being the whole of our lives prior to coming to Christ. None of us individually or collectively could have worked to achieve the salvation and new life that was accomplished by the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ.

Colossians speaks of the “blotting out of the handwriting of ordinances that was against us.” This refers to the Oriental custom of debts. When someone owed a debt, it was written on a small scroll or piece of paper and tacked to the city gate for all to see. If a benefactor came along and paid the debt in full for the person, the scroll or paper would be folded over and “paid in full” would be written on it. All those came into the city would then see the debt had been cleared.

When Jesus Christ laid down his life for us, God forgave us all for His Son’s sake, giving us a “clean slate.” This is the beauty of the message of salvation. We are completely forgiven in Christ. God can cleanse and forgive, holding nothing against us. He starts each of us out on the same footing, and we determine how fast and far we want to go with God.

Prior to salvation, which sin is greater — divorce or murder? Which of these more disqualifies a man from serving in a leadership role after salvation? Paul speaks of himself as being chief among sinners. He was a murderer prior to salvation. Yet God called him to be an Apostle and gave him the revelation for the many epistles he wrote.

For the born again, we have a brand new life in Christ. Nothing has been left uncleansed. Our sins are gone — that is God’s gift to us. What we do with our lives after we are saved is our gift to God.