1 Corinthians 7:25-40 - Undivided Devotion
Brandon Langley
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Introduction:
If you have your Bibles let me invite you to open with me to the book of 1 Corinthians.
We will begin reading together in verse 25 and we will read to verse 40 In just a moment.
The Bible is can be very practical.
Perhaps sometimes, more practical than we would like it to be.
It tells us of a world in which there is no aspect of our lives that goes untouched by the light of God’s sovereign rule.
There is no real secular/ sacred divide In God’s world.
If Jesus Christ lived, died, rose again, and ascended to the throne…
he has authority and dominion over all things In heaven and on earth…
including the details of our lives.
He is the sovereign Lord who gives out life assignments.
We saw that in verse 17 a couple weeks ago.
Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches.
In our study of 1 Corinthians chapter 7, the Apostle Paul has unfolded for us a Christian view on matters such as sex, marriage, divorce, and Christian contentment.
In today’s text, Paul transitions to address a different category within the church… he addresses the singles in the room - those who are not yet married.
But in doing so, his aim is not really to comment only on singleness so much as his aim is to comment on what all Christians should prioritize.
Though he addresses singles in verses 25-40, he is is speaking to all of us about what kind of perspective we should have of every category in our lives.
So lets read, and then lets pray for understanding.
25 Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy. 26 I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is. 27 Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife. 28 But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. 29 This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, 30 and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, 31 and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. 33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. 35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
36 If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed, if his passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. 37 But whoever is firmly established in his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed, he will do well. 38 So then he who marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. 40 Yet in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.
Lets Pray
1 Corinthians 7:25 (ESV)
25 Now concerning the betrothed,
The Greek Word here for betrothed is simply the word virgin,
though in context it could be referring to those already promised to a spouse in some type of a betrothal period.
Perhaps there were marriages that were arranged even before they had become Christians, and now they are questioning whether they should proceed on the path toward marriage.
Whatever case, Paul will give counsel to the not yet married.
25 Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.
Just as before, Paul acknowledges that he is not providing a direct quotation from Jesus himself here.
There is no record of Jesus giving counsel about singleness, though Jesus himself did live a single and celibate life.
So what Paul provides here is Holy Spirit inspired wisdom according to the mercy of the Lord Who called him to speak as an apostle of Jesus Christ…
He is no longer commenting on a direct quotation from Jesus as he was earlier in the chapter.
But he is speaking with authority as one whom by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.
And this is what he has to say….
26 I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is.
Now, the first question we should ask is contextual.
“What is the present distress that Paul is referring to?”
Some scholars suggest that the present distress mentioned here is a particularly bad famine in the Empire in AD 51.
This period would have been marked by social upheaval and riots and perhaps even the necessity of moving out of the city.
If this is the case, Paul’s counsel is more contextual and he is arguing for the wisdom of remaining as you are during such a present distress…
If thats the case, then his instruction here could be more isolated to the unique circumstances of Corinth.…, but…,
you can’t continue to read the paragraph without expanding the present distress to include much more than just the unrest of 1st century Corinth.
Listen to how Paul expands the readers perspective of the present distress
He continues in verse 27.
1 Corinthians 7:27–31 (ESV)
27 Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife. 28 But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. 29 This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, 30 and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, 31 and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.
Notice that this paragraph is not primarily about relationship status.
The primary focus is not actually about whether you get married.
You can get married and it is not a sin.
Its not about whether you should stay single.
You can stay single and it is not a sin.
What is important to Paul in this paragraph is whether you are living your life in light of eternity.
There is a principle here not just for singles and not just For married people.
Truth #1 All Christians Should Pursue an Eternal Perspective
Truth #1 All Christians Should Pursue an Eternal Perspective
He argues the point twice.…
Firstly, in verse 29.
1 Corinthians 7:29 (ESV)
This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short...
The appointed time Paul references is THE time… the Last Time… the End time…
The coming day where Jesus will split the sky open upon his return.
The time of final judgment where the only things that will matter will be those things of eternal significance.
The time where the worries, concerns, accolades, and priorities of this present world will pass away.
again in verse 31, Paul makes this primary point.
1 Corinthians 7:31 (ESV)
…. For the present form of this world is passing away.
Money will pass away.
Mourning will pass away.
Marriage will pass away.
This is a return to an earlier theme.
In chapter 3, Paul addressed the leadership of the church with this warning.
There is a way to carry out Christian ministry so that all your labors will be burnt up on the last day,
and there is a way to labor in Christian ministry so that the fruit of your labors survive into eternity.
11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
1 Corinthians 3 is about laboring for the cause of Christ its durable materials…
the durable material is the word of God breathing life into the people of God.
1 Corinthians 3 is about church leadership.
But this section of 1 Corinthians 7 is about the Christian life Assignment.
It’s about not living your life primarily for the things that are coming to an end.
There is a way to seek marriage like it Is all that matters.
There is a way to live your married life, as if joy and fulfillment in your married life is all that matters.
There is a way to mourn as if your present mourning is all there is.
There is a way to rejoice as if this present joy is all there is.
There is a way to buy and sell and deal with all that is in the world as if you’ll be able to take all that into eternity with you.
But as Christians, we don’t believe this is it.
We exist in the world differently precisely because we believe that this form of the world is passing away… and that it could pass away tomorrow With the coming of Jesus our Lord.
This is why Paul can be so matter of fact about something that perhaps you think is THE most important thing about your future.
What could be more important than whether you get married or not?
What could be more important than your highest joy
or your deepest sorrow?
What could be more important than your business, your buying, and selling, and provision for your family.
I believe Paul would have approved of this poem by C.T. Studd …
Only one life, twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done; Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgement seat; Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
So much of Jesus’ teaching was designed to reorient his disciples to think about their lives through the lens of Christ’s future coming and what will be of eternal significance On that day.
In fact, we will be teaching this text to pastors in the jungle of Peru just next week. This is just as true for them as it is you.
44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 47 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know 51 and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
let me ask you a question. How eternally minded are you?
If the sky were to split open this afternoon, and Jesus were to descend to right all wrongs, to judge the world and welcome us into our eternal dwelling… would you be glad to see him?
Would he find you busy about his work in the world, expecting his return, spiritually awake to his purposes ?
or would he find you distracted, sleepily wasting away all the gifts of grace he gave you to steward?
As Christians, we put everything in our lives in proper eternal perspective. …
Our buying
our selling
our rejoicing
our mourning
our marriages
our singleness
It doesn’t mean that we don’t do any of that.
But it does mean we do those things with one all consuming passion… our devotion to the Lord.
Paul understands that to take on a spouse is to take on one more potential way to divide and distract you from your devotion to the Lord.
Look as he elaborates in verses 32-35.
1 Corinthians 7:32–35 (ESV)
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. 33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. 35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
Whats the point?
Is the point your relationship status Or is the point your undivided devotion to the Lord?
Truth #2 All Christians Should Pursue an Undivided Devotion to the Lord
Truth #2 All Christians Should Pursue an Undivided Devotion to the Lord
This is the greatest commandment.
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
We have a way of putting God into a box and categorizing him to particular spheres of life, particular places, or particular moments.
We have a way of dividing our devotion between God and then everything else.
Our tendency is toward idolatry.
We take good gifts from God…, and we make them out to be a god to us.
We take good things and we make them ultimate things.
Your relationship status can be a false god to you
Your children can be a false god to you
Your business endeavors can be a false god to you
They are not intrinsically evil things…, but they can stoke the fires of your evil heart toward idolatry and away from undivided devotion to God.
You can give yourself to those things and then simply look to God to bless what the little g- god you desire most.… rather than desiring more of the one true God and trusting him to bless you with what is eternally best for you.
A good way to determine whether your devotion is divided is to consider the depths of your anxieties.
Notice the repetition of the word anxious.
1 Corinthians 7:32–34 (ESV)
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. 33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband.
Paul says that the danger of getting married is that you open yourself up to worldly anxieties.
Your anxieties and concerns and worries may be a signal to where your deepest devotions are.
If you want to assess your affections… then take a good look at your thought life.
What dominates your thoughts?
Are you anxious for the cause of Christ?
Are you anxious for the people in your life who do not know Jesus?
Are you anxious for the 2 billion people who have not heard the name of Jesus?
Are you anxious for the people in our own country who do not know where they can go to hear the Bible preached faithfully, that have never experienced the gift of the local church, and sweet security of eternal life?
Are you anxious to be Christ-like, full of the Spirit, and full of the knowledge of the glory of God in the Scriptures?
Do you concern yourself with pleasing the Lord chiefly?
Or do you concern yourself primarily with whether someone else is pleased with you?
It’s certainly not a sin to concern yourself with pleasing your spouse.
Paul says as much even earlier in this chapter.
The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband.
Paul says its a God-honoring thing to give yourself to a spouse in Ephesians 5.
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,
There is a way to do so that is in line with your devotion to the Lord… but there is a way to do so that is at odds with your devotion to the Lord.
So married couples should heed this warning.
Your marriage is important.
Your children are important.
But you serve them and you love them in your worship of God.
You don’t worship them and then take breaks to serve God every once in a while.
Beware, even good things can divide your devotion.
to the singles… you need to understand that your singleness is not a burden to be escaped.
It is a present opportunity to be stewarded.
You have a unique opportunity to give yourself wholly to the Lord without consideration of how it impacts other individuals who rely upon you.
And this is just true… I feel this truth This week.
There is a a deeper more real fear that I experience when I go oversees now because of what it would mean to my family if something happened to me.
There is a deeper sacrifice, a deeper difficulty that I feel when I leave for Peru this Friday just for a short 8 day trip because of the unique pressures that it will place on my wife and children.
Singleness has very real difficulties, don’t get me wrong.
But the Apostle Paul is telling you singles in the room this morning, that despite the difficulties, your singleness is a gift to the church to be leveraged for the mission of God.
It is an opportunity to be stewarded not a season to be escaped at all cost.
Now, again, Paul is not saying its a sin to get married.
In fact, he says if you burn with passion get married. Its not a sin to get married, it is a sin to have sex outside of marriage.
Listen to how Paul concludes and reiterates.
36 If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed, if his passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. 37 But whoever is firmly established in his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed, he will do well. 38 So then he who marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. 40 Yet in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.
Notice again…,
You can get married if you’re burning with passion for someone. It’s not a sin. In fact its far better to do that then to engage in any kind of sexual sin.
But if you can stay single. That’s good too. In fact, it could even be better for the cause of Christ and your mission to live for him and make disciples of all nations.
Regardless of the relationship status:
Pursue an eternal perspective
and give undivided devotion to the Lord
Now I do want to make one more point before we close.
For Paul to take this kind of position… he has to assume one more big truth that all Christians need to hold to.
Truth #3 Gospel Promises are Better Than Worldly Pursuits
Truth #3 Gospel Promises are Better Than Worldly Pursuits
Our culture idolizes and fantasizes the love story.
I know this because of how many hallmark movies get played around my house during the Christmas season.
There is an undercurrent narrative that says in order for you to live a fulfilled And worthwhile life you need to make a certain amount of money, have a certain kind of marriage and family and live in a certain kind of house.
There is a narrative that you have to have some kind of relationship that makes you feel in love, and then you will find true happiness.
And here is the Apostle Paul saying, you can forego all of that And live an eternally worth while life.
In fact, Paul is simply teaching the implications of Jesus’ own teaching.
Jesus said Things like this…
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Conclusion:
The invitations of Jesus Christ is an invitation to come and die to all the things this world says are most important…
It is an invitation to come and live in the fullness of joy as you lay down your life for what will be eternally glorious…
Here is the promise of the gospel…
No matter how much you have sinned against a holy God, He loves you and sent his son to pay the penalty for your sin… All you have to do is believe in him and you will receive eternal life…
This is the message that all the people in all the world need most… our mission is to get that message to them… and as we carry out that mission we will face hardship, and difficulty, and sacrifices…,
but we will do so with this promise…, that nothing can separate us from the love of our God, and all of it will be eternally worth it …………………
15 For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.
17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
Lets Pray