Articles
1 Corinthians 7 and Marriage
1 Corinthians 7 and Marriage
God has provided for a complete fulfilling relationship by creating the woman for the man and instructing them to become one flesh. ALL other ‘one flesh’ relationships outside of such God ordained marriage relationship are condemned. Thus we are instructed and warned: "4Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous” (Hebrews 13:4). To avoid fornication, let EACH man have his OWN wife and EACH wife her OWN husband. Such relationships as polygamy or same-sex are thus outside the bounds of God’s rightful one-flesh marriage.
Paul instructs the various groups beginning with the ‘unmarried and the widows’ (8-9). The next group is ‘the married’ and by this he means those who are married to another believer (10-11). He then addresses ‘the rest’ and this group is comprised of those who are married but their spouse is NOT a believer (12-16). Because of the present distress, it was good if they could remain unmarried. If they have the right to marry, then that is acceptable and will help them avoid the sin of fornication. If they are married - stay married. If they are married to an unbeliever then they are to, as far as their choosing goes, stay married. However, some unbelievers refuse to live with a believer that is living faithfully to the Lord. It ‘cramps their style’ and they want to ‘live more freely’, hence the unbeliever often ups and leaves. The believer is not enslaved to such a mate - they are instead ‘enslaved’ to Christ.
It is interesting that Paul used a verb form that basically indicates past action that continues into the present condition - hence, ‘you never were nor are you now enslaved’ to such a spouse. This is NOT a new ‘free’ situation that the believer enters when the mate leaves, it is the relationship that a believer has ALWAYS had with his unbelieving mate. A believer cannot choose to abandon the principles of Christ just to keep the unbelieving spouse. We must always put our Lord above family, even our spouse.
In short, Paul says if you can remain unmarried AND faithful to Christ, which is good - particularly under the current distress that they were facing (cp. the long section from vs. 17-40). The basic instruction is that you get married and you remain married. Jesus did give the one exception to this and that is when one’s spouse is sexually unfaithful. With that exception the Lord proclaimed that one can put away the guilty spouse and is free to remarry. Anyone marrying the one who is put away will enter into an illegitimate relationship and thus commit adultery.
Hugh DeLong
