Scripture: 1 Corinthians 7:25-40

I. Singleness is good if you are fully devoted to the Lord.

A. In 1 Corinthians 7 Paul begins writing to the betrothed (vs. 25) – those who are engaged. His advice in vs. 26 is that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is. What distress is he talking about? We get a clue in vs. 29 where Paul says, “This is what I mean brothers: the appointed time has grown very short.” The time referred to here is the time before Jesus returns to judge the earth and to set up His eternal Kingdom. Jesus could return at any moment. So, where should our focus be as Christians? On Jesus and His Kingdom.

B. So, as Christians we should be less involved in the affairs of this world than the non-Christian. Verse 31 says the present form of this world is passing away. This world will soon be no more. And that means that the marriage of this world will soon be no more. None of us will be married in heaven. How then should we as Christians live in light of Christ’s soon return? We should live with different values. We should live like marriage is not the ultimate in human fulfillment. We should live instead with Jesus and His Kingdom being the ultimate in human fulfillment.

C. Single Christians can live a joyful and fulfilling life even without romance, marriage and sex. Both Jesus and Paul were single and lived fulfilling lives. However, we should not under-value marriage. In Genesis 1:31 after God had created Adam and Eve and brought them together in marriage, the conclusion is, “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” What is God’s judgment about marriage? It is very good. Marriage then is good, and so is singleness if we are fully devoted to Jesus.

II. Marriage is good if you are fully devoted to the Lord.

A. Paul’s advice to engaged couples is summarized in vs. 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.” The main point of what Paul is saying is that we live in undivided devotion to the Lord – whether we are single or married. He doesn’t want to lay any restraint on people who want to get married. He doesn’t want those who want to get married to be anxious that they have committed a sin. Either marriage or singleness, Paul says, is good in the eyes of God as long as we are fully devoted to Jesus.

B. But if a single Christian wants to marry, who should they marry? One answer is found in Paul’s advice to widows in vs. 39: “But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.” Christians should only marry another Christian. And Christian men should recognize that beautiful women come in all shapes and sizes. The most important part of a woman’s beauty is her character. Christian women should recognize that a man’s character is far more important than the size of his bank account. In Ephesians 5:32 Paul says, “This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.” Human marriage is not ultimate. Human marriage is a sign that points to the Real marriage: the marriage of Jesus to His church. Marriage is not ultimately about sex or security or personal fulfillment. Marriage instead was created by God to be a reflection of Jesus’ love for us in the church.

Application:
Whether single or married, live with complete devotion to Jesus.

Sources:
The letter of 1 Corinthians
Commentaries on 1 Corinthians by Gordon Fee and Craig Blomberg
“The Meaning of Marriage” by Tim Keller