1 Corinthians 5-9: To Marry Or Not To Marry

Paul's teachings on marriage in 1 Corinthians 7 may be considered as difficult sometimes, especially to those who would pit Paul's teachings AGAINST the teachings of Jesus (i.e. Matthew 5:31-32; 19:1-9). But Paul does not teach anything different than Jesus had taught, except in encouraging those at the time NOT to marry "in view of the present distress" (1 Cor. 7:26). There would be severe persecution coming against Christians, and Paul encouraged those who were not bound to a husband or wife to stay celibate to limit later heartache. After all, who would want to see a husband, wife, or children tortured and / or killed? But Paul was not COMMANDING celibacy, only encouraging it.

1. Marry if you must (7:1-9). If you are burning with desire, you may need to be married so you can fulfill that desire in the God-given way. Marriage is the ONLY provision God has given for us to have a sexual relationship.

2. Don't divorce a mate (7:10-24). Some might have gotten the impression that Paul wanted them to leave their mate to be in a better position to serve God. Paul said, "the wife should not leave her husband" (7:10). And when Paul said "leave," he meant divorce, because in 7:11 he said if she DOES leave "she must remain unmarried," showing the marriage had been terminated. Paul follows that up with, "and...the husband should not divorce his wife." This is in complete harmony with Jesus' teaching. He shows in 7:12-24 that a wife should not even leave an unbelieving husband. If the husband wants to leave, she can't force him to stay...but she still must remain unmarried.

3. You don't HAVE to marry (7:25-35). Don't feel that God has commanded Christians to marry. In fact, a single man or single woman can serve God in ways a married individual cannot. "One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord; but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and his interests are divided" (7:32-33). That doesn't mean a married man cannot serve God effectively, but he cannot serve God in complete freedom because he has a wife (and possibly kids) to think about, too.

4. Marriage is still good (7:36-40). If a man decides to give his daughter away in marriage, that's fine. It's not a sin. Paul is not binding anyone to celibacy, he's only encouraging it as a wise choice. If a widow wants to remarry, more power to her (as long as she marries "only in the Lord," which I think means a Christian man).

Me? I fall into category #1, I'm afraid. I HAD to get married. And I'm glad I did :-) But it's not mandatory.

God bless,
Nathan

Tomorrow's Reading: 1 Corinthians 9-12