Maintaining God’s Intent For Marriage(& Singleness)-6

MAINTAINING GOD’s INTENT For MARRIAGE(& Singleness)-VI—1Corinthians 7:1-9

(Making Marriage(& singleness) Worthy of its Creator)

You will notice that I have added a qualification to the focus of marriage to include singleness. That is because the apostle Pauls’ discussion includes the related subject of singleness. Singleness & marriage are two sides-of-the-coin of relationship under consideration for God’s people.

Attention:

If we are careful to nurture God’s Intent in our marriages, then they will NOT end up ‘on the skids’ as do worldly marriages!

Paul answered the inquiries & clarified the concerns of the Corinthian Christians regarding marriage.

Christians maintain God’s intent/design for marriage.

How do/can Christian couples maintain God’s intent for marriage?

6 focal points for Christians regarding marriage.

We have found that Maintaining God’s intent for marriage(& singleness) demands a concentration upon...

1. His DIRECTIVES(:1)

2. His LIMITATIONs(:2)

3. His AFFECTION(:3)

4. His AUTHORITY(:4)

5. His COMMITMENT(:5-6)

6—Maintaining God’s intent for marriage(& singleness) demands a concentration upon...His GIFTEDNESS(:7)

Explanation:(:7)Ability/Capacity/Proficiency/Competence

:7—“For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner & another in that.”

Paul would rather see all people in the same state as he himself was. That is Paul experienced no [sexual]temptation from being separated sexually from a woman.

“This clearly means that Paul was not then married & it is confirmed by 9:5. Whether he had been married & was now a widower turns on the interpretation of Ac 26:10 "I cast my vote." If this is taken literally(the obvious way to take it) as a member of the Sanhedrin, Paul was married at that time. There is no way to decide.”—RWP

However, Paul knew that his celibacy was a gift from God & he also knew that all men did not have that gift(of celibacy).

“Celibacy” “is a gift that He[God] does not give to every believer.” “It is wrong to misuse a gift that we have”, likewise it is “wrong to try to use a gift we do not have.”—MNTC

*Thus neither marriage nor singleness is superior to the other, but rather, it is the determination of the Holy Spirit that is superior.

“Remaining unmarried is desirable, but it isn’t demanded.”—Davon Huss in ‘I've Got To Get Married!’ @ SermonCentral.com

“one man has the gift of continency[self-restraint], another the gift of marriage; all cannot contain themselves, only to whom it is given: & all are not disposed to marriage; some are inclined to a single life, & some to a marriage state; & of those that are married, some can abstain from the use of the marriage bed longer than others, without being in danger of being tempted by Satan for their incontinency;...”—John Gill

“And therefore Paul did not bind every man to marry, though every man had an allowance. No, he could wish all men were as himself(1Co 7:7), that is, single, & capable of living continently in that state. There were several conveniences in it, which at that season, if not at others, made it more eligible in itself.”.....“But it did not answer the intentions of divine Providence”...“for all men to have as much command of this appetite as Paul had. It was a gift vouchsafed to such persons as Infinite Wisdom thought proper”—Matthew Henry

“one in this manner, & another in that”—Lit.=‘One so & another so.’

*Seeing celibacy as ‘a gift of the Spirit’ implies that “celibate existence is not a matter of personal preference, nor is it a meritorious feat of self-mastery for which [a person] can take credit.” Paul does not want either party in the [marriage] to be “trapped in a vow that goes against their nature & that they cannot fulfill.”—BECNT

1Cor. 12:4-11—“There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”

“For/Yet”—“For”—gar—Conjunction—1) For. Strong—a primary particle; properly--Assigning a reason(used in argument, explanation or intensification; often with other particles).

“Wish”—“Wish/Would”—yelw—Verb—1) To will, have in mind, intend—1a) To be resolved or determined, to purpose, 1b) To desire, to wish, 1c) To love—1c1) To like to do a thing, be fond of doing, 1d) To take delight in, have pleasure. Yelw denotes the active resolution, the will urging on to action. Strong—apparently strengthened from the alternate form of aireomai[To take to oneself or prefer]; To determine(as an active option from subjective impulse; whereas boulomai properly denotes rather a passive acquiescence in objective considerations), i.e. Choose or prefer(literally or figuratively); by implication--To wish, i.e. Be inclined to(sometimes adverbially, gladly); impersonally for the future tense--To be about to; by Hebraism--To delight in.