1 Cor. 7:25-40

Introduction

Read 1 Cor. 7:25-40

Can we trust this?

Paul doesn’t have a direct quote from Jesus on this, but his words are still trustworthy, and we can affirm it as the Word of God.

Here the Spirit-inspired words of Paul don’t lead to direct commands, but principles that need to be applied

What are the principles undergirding Paul’s advice here?

Explanation

Marriage is a gift, but singleness is a gift too. (v. 26-28, 36-40)

v. 25 — “virgins” is umbrella term for unmarried

v. 26-28 — We don’t know what distress (local—persecution/famine/death or universal) he refers to, but marriage brings its own difficulties, so why add more troubles?

v. 36-37 — It’s totally fine to get married (esp. if burning with passion), but you shouldn’t rush into marriage, assuming you can avoid sin.

v. 38-40 — Paul seems to think singleness is the better gift, at least as far as service to God’s Kingdom goes.

Those that are single now need to recognize…

1) The gift of singleness (7:7) is not about wanting to be single, but simply about being single.

Some of us will have the gift of singleness temporarily, others for a lifetime, but for all who are single, you have that gift now.

If you don’t believe it’s temporary, think about the fact that Paul writes to widows. They had the gift of marriage; now they have the gift of singleness. Paul says they can remarry if they like, but he thinks they’ll be happier if they embrace the gift of singleness.

Do you recognize your current situation as a blessing from God?

2) Marriage is not the silver bullet to solve your problems.

It can help with sexual temptation (cf. v. 3-5), but it won’t cure your sexual addiction.

It can bring great joy, but it won’t fix your contentment issues. If you can’t appreciate the gift (of singleness) God has given you now, what makes you think you’ll appreciate the gift (of marriage) he gives you later?

Paul flips their thinking upside down, and ours too.

They thought getting married was bad (asceticism=extra holy), but Paul says it’s good, even if he still prefers singleness.

We think singleness is a curse, but Paul says it’s a gift!

Even those that think it’s a gift, think that for the wrong reason (independence) and for a limited time (in your 20’s)

Why do we have such a hard time believing Paul when he says this?

Because most of us aren’t mature enough to put our eternal impact before our earthly inclinations.

To be clear…I don’t think a desire for companionship is sinful.

God made us for companionship (cf. Gen. 1-3)

But there’s a difference between wanting to be married & still being content without it (cf. Phil. 4:13), and idolizing marriage

Do you trust God’s Word that life will be better without a certain gift but fully focused on the Giver, than if you have the gift but lose focus of the Giver?

This can apply to all of us beyond marriage…

Stop thinking things would be better if your situation were different. (v. 27)

The clunky language is Paul’s way of encompassing those who are engaged and those who are already married.

Paul certainly says this to the singles — marriage doesn’t solve your problems; it just gives you a different set of problems.

He also says this to the married

First, again, divorce is off the table

Secondly, if you’re playing mental games wishing you were no longer bound (even if not actively pursuing divorce), those games are doing nothing productive for your spiritual walk or your marriage.

Me and Emma not even jokingly saying the “d word” (divorce)

Don’t even entertain the thought of your life being better if not married

“The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.” — Elizabeth Elliot

The determining factor of fulfillment in your life will not be marriage or singleness, but your eternal perspective.

The point is not ultimately to be unmarried, but to be undistracted. (v. 29-35)

v. 29-31 — He says elsewhere that husbands should love their wives like Jesus loves the church. The unusual language is just Paul’s way of using rhetoric to remind us that our identity is not rooted in our present situations, but in our eternal standing.

v. 31 — He wants us to live in light of the end.

v. 32-35 — Paul isn’t saying that marriage is less holy or that caring for your spouse is sinful.

Example — I’d be at Cookout every week til midnight. Being focused just requires a greater level of intentionality.

You can still be single and distracted or married and undistracted.

Exhortation

Whatever your present marital status, focus on honoring God where you’re at.

Single — What is distracting you from a deeper relationship with God?

Married — Is your marriage fueling your eternal perspective or taking away from it?

God has given us a much greater gift than singleness or marriage.

—[2nd service break for communion]—

“This world in its current form is passing away.”

What will really matter in the end is not whether you had a relationship with a spouse, but whether you had a relationship with God.

We weren’t just created for companionship with each other; we were created for relationship with God.

All of us have run the other way — we’ve run around chasing idols that cannot satisfy and cannot save.

God in his grace made a way to restore us to him.