When the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, he addressed several problems. One seemed to be, “Now that I’m a follower of Christ, all my relationships are upside down. What am I supposed to do?” His letter said, “Because of the present crisis, I think it is best to remain as you are. If you have a wife, do not seek to end the marriage. If you do not have a wife, do not seek to get married.” (I Corinthians 7:26, 27) In other words, his response was, “Just hold steady.”
What was the present crisis? Christians often suffered for their belief; they were persecuted and Paul perhaps felt it was easier to endure such pressure yourself than to see your loved ones facing it. In those times people believed, even more than they do now, that Jesus was returning at any moment. Why be encumbered with a family? “The time is short,” Paul told these Christians, “so everyone needs to love and minister to everyone else.” He was not opposed to marriage, but he didn’t see it as a prerequisite for advancing the cause of Christ.
It’s easy for those who are not married simply to follow the course of what everyone else seems to be doing—getting married. Especially as a few years go by, the single person may begin to focus more and more on finding someone to marry. This is a dangerous thing! “There are a thousand things worse than being single,” a wise college professor told my class of relational studies students. “Nine hundred ninety-nine are being married to the wrong person,” one who doesn’t share your passion and commitment. Someone who is consumed with the idea of finding a companion is not in the best position to recognize “the right person”; instead one should let the experience of singleness be a time of growth, concentrating on being the person God has intended.
One of the fears of singles is, “If I’m happy and contented as a single, no one will know that I really want to marry!” Fear not! No one is born with the traits we find attractive in people: purpose and faithfulness, contentment, honesty, purity and generosity. It is quite impossible to have too much of these for our own good! Develop good stuff in your life. If God intends marriage for you, you will discover that. If it does not come as part of His unfolding plan, your search for someone to marry is not going to add to the quality of your life in any worthwhile way!
MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)
Thanks to Dr. David Jeremiah (Turning Point) for permission to use the outline of his radio sermon on I Corinthians 7 and quotes from his book Core Vales of the Church: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, Volume 2. Many years ago during an extended period of singleness, these were a great help to me.
Scripture quotation taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.
Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com
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