The place to begin in the discussion of these texts is not with the exception itself, however—we will come back to it later—but with the general direction of the passage. And this, quite clearly, is to assert in the strongest possible language the permanency of marriage. Marriage is of God; hence, men are not to disannul it. In this assertion, Jesus was clearly at one with the entire scope of biblical teaching. 

Finally, there will be some for whom these words seem too late. In your case, love has died, and there seems to be nothing that will rescue your marriage from that void. If it were not for what your friends would think of you, you would proceed with a divorce. What should you do? You must yield to the Lord Jesus Christ and let Him rekindle a love that has grown cold or a living love that has died.

Now, of course, all of this is only one side of the relationship, as you will see. For if God sets a high standard before the woman He sets an even higher standard before the man. The wife is to love her husband and submit to him as she loves Christ and submits to Christ. But the husband is to love his wife as Christ loved us and gave Himself for us. 

One of the most important things that can be said about a Christian marriage is that within the relationship God has established an organic union between two persons—an organic union, not an organization. But when that is said, it must also be said that marriage does have organizational aspects. Hence, we must give attention to these also. How is a marriage to function after the wedding vows are taken? Is it to be a democracy? Is it to be a dictatorial system? A monarchy? Or is it a republican form of government? And what are the duties of the husband, wife, and children to each other and to the Lord? 

I have said that a true marriage must be a marriage of body with body and of soul with soul. But it must also be a marriage of spirit with spirit. It is for this reason that the only marriages that can approximate the kind of marriage that God intended to exist in this world are Christian marriages.