1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,800 of God together to the book of 1 Corinthians, 2 00:00:02,800 --> 00:00:04,320 the seventh chapter today. 3 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:07,960 We're going to finish that chapter, God willing, 4 00:00:09,560 --> 00:00:13,040 as we deal with these questions related to marriage. 5 00:00:13,040 --> 00:00:15,560 What a day to talk about marriage, huh? 6 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:19,460 1 Corinthians chapter seven. 7 00:00:23,240 --> 00:00:28,240 Some young, tech savvy, computer literate bride 8 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:33,240 wrote to Silicon Valley's version of Dear Abby 9 00:00:34,980 --> 00:00:36,420 regarding her marriage. 10 00:00:38,780 --> 00:00:40,540 She wrote, Dear tech support, 11 00:00:42,420 --> 00:00:47,260 last year I upgraded from boyfriend 5.0 to husband 1.0 12 00:00:48,700 --> 00:00:52,300 and notice that the new program began making unexpected 13 00:00:52,300 --> 00:00:55,020 changes to my accounting modules, 14 00:00:55,020 --> 00:01:00,020 limiting access to flower and jewelry applications 15 00:01:00,300 --> 00:01:04,200 that had operated flawlessly under boyfriend 5.0. 16 00:01:05,180 --> 00:01:10,020 In addition, husband 1.0 uninstalled many other valuable 17 00:01:10,020 --> 00:01:14,720 programs such as romance 9.9, 18 00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:19,720 but installed undesirable programs such as NFL 5.0 19 00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:23,400 and NBA 3.0. 20 00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:29,440 Conversation 8.0 no longer runs 21 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:34,100 and house cleaning 2.6 simply crashes the system. 22 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:39,400 I've tried nagging 5.3 to fix these problems, 23 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:41,480 but to no avail. 24 00:01:41,480 --> 00:01:42,980 Signed desperate. 25 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:47,480 And so tech support wrote desperate and said, 26 00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:51,680 Dear desperate, keep in mind boyfriend 5.0 27 00:01:51,680 --> 00:01:53,680 is an entertainment package. 28 00:01:57,320 --> 00:02:00,640 While husband 1.0 is an operating system. 29 00:02:02,260 --> 00:02:06,920 Try to enter the command C colon slash, 30 00:02:06,920 --> 00:02:11,920 I thought you loved me and install tiers 6.2. 31 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:15,700 Husband 1.0 should then automatically run 32 00:02:15,700 --> 00:02:20,300 the applications guilty 3.0 and flowers 7.0. 33 00:02:21,160 --> 00:02:24,320 But remember overuse can cause husband 1.0 34 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:27,880 to default to grumpy silence 2.5. 35 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:32,580 Happy hour 7.0 and beer 6.1. 36 00:02:33,440 --> 00:02:36,440 That's a very bad program that causes 37 00:02:36,440 --> 00:02:38,980 snoring loudly wave files. 38 00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:43,280 Do not install mother-in-law 1.0 39 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:47,880 or reinstall another boyfriend program. 40 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:49,880 These are not supported applications 41 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:52,040 and will crash husband 1.0. 42 00:02:53,200 --> 00:02:57,920 In summary, husband 1.0 is a great program, 43 00:02:57,920 --> 00:03:00,080 but it does have limited memory 44 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:04,680 and cannot learn new applications quickly. 45 00:03:05,720 --> 00:03:10,040 Consider buying additional software to improve performance. 46 00:03:10,040 --> 00:03:13,960 I personally recommend hot food 3.0 47 00:03:13,960 --> 00:03:17,640 and lingerie 5.3 tech support. 48 00:03:17,640 --> 00:03:22,640 Married has problems with it, doesn't it? 49 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:26,800 We all start out with this ideal of marriage 50 00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:28,600 that everything's gonna be perfect. 51 00:03:30,560 --> 00:03:34,200 Before very long we find out that two fallen people 52 00:03:34,200 --> 00:03:40,240 have married with the same idealistic version of marriage. 53 00:03:40,240 --> 00:03:43,080 And the result is that that marriage goes through periods 54 00:03:43,080 --> 00:03:47,000 of question and doubt and struggle and conflict 55 00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:52,000 and ultimately through that we pray growth and happiness. 56 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:56,960 How many of you have ever said to yourselves, 57 00:03:56,960 --> 00:03:59,960 I'm glad I'm not rearing children in a day like this? 58 00:04:00,880 --> 00:04:01,720 Have you ever said that? 59 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:02,620 Yeah, right. 60 00:04:02,620 --> 00:04:06,060 Well, I think it may be that same spirit, 61 00:04:06,060 --> 00:04:08,860 the same spirit that Paul had in mind 62 00:04:08,860 --> 00:04:11,820 when he argues as he will in our text today 63 00:04:11,820 --> 00:04:14,700 for the advantages of remaining single. 64 00:04:16,020 --> 00:04:18,740 Now he's already introduced the subject to us 65 00:04:18,740 --> 00:04:20,660 in the earlier part of the chapter, 66 00:04:20,660 --> 00:04:23,740 but now he is going to elaborate on singleness. 67 00:04:24,740 --> 00:04:27,060 And I want you to notice how he does it. 68 00:04:27,060 --> 00:04:29,380 Earlier in the chapter Paul quoted the Lord, 69 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:32,540 but then he acknowledged that there are some things 70 00:04:32,540 --> 00:04:36,660 Jesus didn't talk about and he goes on to address them. 71 00:04:36,660 --> 00:04:39,420 Keep in mind that when Paul does that, 72 00:04:39,420 --> 00:04:42,600 he is writing with the full authority of Jesus. 73 00:04:43,680 --> 00:04:46,900 His words are every bit as much the word of God 74 00:04:47,900 --> 00:04:50,780 as what Jesus spoke because he's writing 75 00:04:50,780 --> 00:04:53,060 by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. 76 00:04:54,060 --> 00:04:57,180 And yet he writes this not as a command, 77 00:04:57,180 --> 00:05:01,860 not as a legalistic duty, but he's writing in terms of grace 78 00:05:01,860 --> 00:05:06,540 and suggestion and counsel, giving his opinion. 79 00:05:08,940 --> 00:05:12,860 The basic biblical principle we're going to see underscored 80 00:05:12,860 --> 00:05:15,260 in our study today is this, 81 00:05:15,260 --> 00:05:18,700 that whatever your circumstance in life, 82 00:05:18,700 --> 00:05:23,700 use God's calling and gifts to serve him in your world. 83 00:05:25,500 --> 00:05:27,060 Whatever circumstance you're in, 84 00:05:29,100 --> 00:05:31,820 use the calling of God, use the gifts of God 85 00:05:31,820 --> 00:05:34,700 in your life to serve him in your world. 86 00:05:36,100 --> 00:05:38,620 We can't serve the last generation. 87 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:42,660 We can only indirectly serve the future generation. 88 00:05:43,860 --> 00:05:46,140 But we can serve this generation 89 00:05:46,140 --> 00:05:50,600 and this is when God has caused us to live, now. 90 00:05:51,940 --> 00:05:55,060 And he's put you in the middle of some context 91 00:05:55,060 --> 00:05:57,880 and you have relationships, you have a neighborhood, 92 00:05:57,880 --> 00:06:00,460 you have a community, you have a family 93 00:06:00,460 --> 00:06:03,240 that you touch personally. 94 00:06:04,340 --> 00:06:06,660 God wants you to use all that he's given you 95 00:06:08,020 --> 00:06:12,660 to serve him in the midst of that world today. 96 00:06:12,660 --> 00:06:16,240 And that includes, if it is the case, your being single. 97 00:06:17,940 --> 00:06:20,380 Now let me read the text and you follow along in your Bible. 98 00:06:20,380 --> 00:06:24,420 We begin in verse 25 where Paul says, 99 00:06:24,420 --> 00:06:28,740 "'Now about virgins, I have no command from the Lord, 100 00:06:28,740 --> 00:06:31,820 "'but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy 101 00:06:31,820 --> 00:06:32,980 "'is trustworthy. 102 00:06:34,120 --> 00:06:35,720 "'Because of the present crisis, 103 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:39,020 "'I think it is good for you to remain as you are. 104 00:06:40,120 --> 00:06:40,940 "'Are you married? 105 00:06:40,940 --> 00:06:42,260 "'Do not seek a divorce. 106 00:06:42,260 --> 00:06:43,300 "'Are you unmarried? 107 00:06:43,300 --> 00:06:45,580 "'Do not look for a wife. 108 00:06:45,580 --> 00:06:47,740 "'But if you do marry, you have not sinned 109 00:06:47,740 --> 00:06:50,020 "'and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. 110 00:06:50,860 --> 00:06:53,660 "'But those who marry will face many troubles in this life 111 00:06:53,660 --> 00:06:56,520 "'and I want to spare you this.'" 112 00:06:56,520 --> 00:06:59,780 What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. 113 00:07:00,820 --> 00:07:03,100 From now on, those who have wives should live 114 00:07:03,100 --> 00:07:04,900 as if they had none. 115 00:07:04,900 --> 00:07:07,800 Those who mourn as if they did not. 116 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:10,440 Those who are happy as if they were not. 117 00:07:10,440 --> 00:07:13,700 Those who buy something as if it were not theirs to keep. 118 00:07:14,780 --> 00:07:16,420 Those who use the things of the world 119 00:07:16,420 --> 00:07:18,340 as if not engrossed in them. 120 00:07:19,180 --> 00:07:23,940 For this world in its present form is passing away. 121 00:07:23,940 --> 00:07:27,980 I would like you to be free from concern. 122 00:07:27,980 --> 00:07:31,260 An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs. 123 00:07:31,260 --> 00:07:33,260 How he can please the Lord, but a married man 124 00:07:33,260 --> 00:07:35,980 is concerned about the affairs of this world. 125 00:07:35,980 --> 00:07:38,140 How he can please his wife. 126 00:07:38,140 --> 00:07:39,740 And his interests are divided. 127 00:07:40,660 --> 00:07:43,140 An unmarried woman or virgin 128 00:07:43,140 --> 00:07:45,820 is concerned about the Lord's affairs. 129 00:07:45,820 --> 00:07:48,420 Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord 130 00:07:48,420 --> 00:07:50,220 in both body and spirit. 131 00:07:51,100 --> 00:07:53,780 But a married woman is concerned about the affairs 132 00:07:53,780 --> 00:07:56,180 of this world, how she can please her husband. 133 00:07:57,500 --> 00:08:01,500 I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, 134 00:08:01,500 --> 00:08:03,980 but that you may live in a right way 135 00:08:03,980 --> 00:08:06,460 in undivided devotion to the Lord. 136 00:08:07,340 --> 00:08:09,280 If anyone thinks he's acting improperly 137 00:08:09,280 --> 00:08:11,160 toward the virgin he's engaged to, 138 00:08:12,260 --> 00:08:13,860 and if she's getting along in years 139 00:08:13,860 --> 00:08:17,060 and he feels he ought to marry, he should do as he wants. 140 00:08:17,060 --> 00:08:18,080 He's not sinning. 141 00:08:19,020 --> 00:08:20,260 They should get married. 142 00:08:20,260 --> 00:08:23,180 But the man who has settled the matter in his own mind, 143 00:08:23,180 --> 00:08:25,500 who is under no compulsion, 144 00:08:25,500 --> 00:08:27,780 but has control over his will, 145 00:08:27,780 --> 00:08:30,900 and who has made up his mind not to marry the virgin, 146 00:08:30,900 --> 00:08:33,660 this man also does the right thing. 147 00:08:34,900 --> 00:08:37,220 So then he who marries the virgin does right, 148 00:08:37,220 --> 00:08:39,980 and he who does not marry her does even better. 149 00:08:41,500 --> 00:08:45,020 A woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives. 150 00:08:46,420 --> 00:08:49,060 But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone 151 00:08:49,060 --> 00:08:52,380 she wishes, but he must belong to the Lord. 152 00:08:52,380 --> 00:08:56,380 In my judgment, she's happier if she stays as she is. 153 00:08:56,380 --> 00:08:59,620 And I think I too have the spirit of God, 154 00:08:59,620 --> 00:09:02,660 that is the mind of God about these things. 155 00:09:04,100 --> 00:09:05,620 So there are at least two questions 156 00:09:05,620 --> 00:09:07,340 that seem to come out of our text today. 157 00:09:07,340 --> 00:09:08,580 The first question is this. 158 00:09:08,580 --> 00:09:12,300 Should a single man or woman become married? 159 00:09:13,300 --> 00:09:15,660 Now keep in mind the cultural situation. 160 00:09:15,660 --> 00:09:18,780 By the way, you can follow along in your outline 161 00:09:18,780 --> 00:09:20,700 rather, this is in your bulletin. 162 00:09:20,700 --> 00:09:23,460 It's the yellow outline, as you will quickly note. 163 00:09:24,460 --> 00:09:26,740 The cultural situation was this. 164 00:09:26,740 --> 00:09:30,020 Most marriages were arranged by the fathers. 165 00:09:31,180 --> 00:09:33,340 Now I don't know what you think about that. 166 00:09:34,700 --> 00:09:36,700 Being a father, I kinda like the idea. 167 00:09:37,820 --> 00:09:40,540 Before I was married, I didn't like the idea very much. 168 00:09:40,540 --> 00:09:42,380 My perspective has changed. 169 00:09:43,900 --> 00:09:47,020 The reality was in those days, that's how it was done. 170 00:09:47,020 --> 00:09:49,540 The fathers did the arranging of the marriages. 171 00:09:49,540 --> 00:09:53,620 And so some translations, which are more literal, 172 00:09:53,620 --> 00:09:56,860 give that flavor to the text I've just read. 173 00:09:56,860 --> 00:09:59,900 It talks about a man giving his daughter in marriage. 174 00:10:01,580 --> 00:10:03,420 Translations that are more dynamic, 175 00:10:03,420 --> 00:10:05,220 like the NIV that I'm using, 176 00:10:06,500 --> 00:10:09,380 make it more understandable in today's culture. 177 00:10:09,380 --> 00:10:12,260 It's a man who's engaged to a woman. 178 00:10:14,180 --> 00:10:16,220 But Paul gives the counsel this way. 179 00:10:16,220 --> 00:10:20,420 He says, it's better not to marry. 180 00:10:20,420 --> 00:10:22,180 That's the counsel. 181 00:10:22,180 --> 00:10:23,820 Now that makes good sense, if you think, 182 00:10:23,820 --> 00:10:26,620 as Paul was thinking, and he gives three reasons 183 00:10:27,660 --> 00:10:30,420 why he says it's better not to marry, 184 00:10:30,420 --> 00:10:33,700 for a single man or woman to remain single. 185 00:10:33,700 --> 00:10:38,700 First of all, because of what he calls the present crisis. 186 00:10:38,740 --> 00:10:40,060 Verse 26. 187 00:10:41,260 --> 00:10:42,780 As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, 188 00:10:42,780 --> 00:10:45,940 we don't know what that present crisis was. 189 00:10:45,940 --> 00:10:48,020 Was there a growing hostility 190 00:10:48,020 --> 00:10:51,620 in the part of the Corinthian pagan culture? 191 00:10:51,620 --> 00:10:52,740 Toward believers? 192 00:10:53,620 --> 00:10:54,940 Likely. 193 00:10:54,940 --> 00:10:58,380 Was there some government persecution gearing up? 194 00:10:58,380 --> 00:10:59,220 Possible. 195 00:11:00,500 --> 00:11:02,260 We don't know of any at that moment 196 00:11:02,260 --> 00:11:06,260 that was broadly put into place, 197 00:11:06,260 --> 00:11:08,180 but about 10 years after this, 198 00:11:08,180 --> 00:11:11,140 Nero came into power and there was persecution 199 00:11:11,140 --> 00:11:13,100 against Christians empire-wide. 200 00:11:13,100 --> 00:11:16,260 In cases where there is that kind of pressure, 201 00:11:17,420 --> 00:11:22,420 to have a family multiplies the sense of responsibility 202 00:11:23,460 --> 00:11:25,620 and of suffering that one goes through. 203 00:11:27,180 --> 00:11:31,300 Now, persecution ebbs and flows with each generation, 204 00:11:32,460 --> 00:11:35,020 but Jesus reminded us with these words 205 00:11:35,020 --> 00:11:36,420 that we should expect it. 206 00:11:37,300 --> 00:11:41,100 He says, here on earth, you will have 207 00:11:41,100 --> 00:11:43,900 many trials and sorrows, 208 00:11:44,900 --> 00:11:47,700 but take heart because I've overcome the world. 209 00:11:49,700 --> 00:11:52,740 We can expect, as Pastor Dave said earlier, 210 00:11:52,740 --> 00:11:55,700 that we're going to face difficult times. 211 00:11:57,220 --> 00:11:59,780 Now, Paul says because of the present crisis, 212 00:11:59,780 --> 00:12:02,540 whatever it was, it's better not to marry. 213 00:12:02,540 --> 00:12:05,860 Secondly, he says because of the shortened time, 214 00:12:05,860 --> 00:12:07,260 it's better not to marry. 215 00:12:07,260 --> 00:12:09,860 Literally, he says because of the time, 216 00:12:09,860 --> 00:12:12,220 the time is having been shortened. 217 00:12:14,060 --> 00:12:15,740 Now, we don't, again, exactly know 218 00:12:15,740 --> 00:12:17,940 what Paul had in mind when he wrote this. 219 00:12:17,940 --> 00:12:20,180 Was he thinking about the Lord's coming? 220 00:12:20,180 --> 00:12:21,020 Possibly. 221 00:12:22,220 --> 00:12:24,180 He wrote that way in other places, 222 00:12:24,180 --> 00:12:26,820 for example, in Romans 13. 223 00:12:26,820 --> 00:12:30,060 He says, this is all the more urgent for you, 224 00:12:30,060 --> 00:12:32,580 for you know how late it is. 225 00:12:32,580 --> 00:12:33,860 Time is running out, 226 00:12:33,860 --> 00:12:36,260 and you're going to have to wait until the end 227 00:12:36,260 --> 00:12:38,340 of the day for the Lord to come. 228 00:12:38,340 --> 00:12:41,740 Time is running out, wake up for the salvation. 229 00:12:41,740 --> 00:12:45,180 Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 230 00:12:45,180 --> 00:12:46,540 The night is almost gone, 231 00:12:46,540 --> 00:12:49,300 the day of salvation will soon be here. 232 00:12:51,220 --> 00:12:55,500 Not because marriage is limited to a lifetime, 233 00:12:55,500 --> 00:12:58,020 it's not an eternal relationship. 234 00:12:58,020 --> 00:13:00,780 Paul is saying, well, the time is so short, 235 00:13:01,660 --> 00:13:02,700 maybe you shouldn't. 236 00:13:02,700 --> 00:13:05,220 And he may have had in mind by the shortened time 237 00:13:05,220 --> 00:13:08,140 the arrival of some great, intense persecution 238 00:13:08,140 --> 00:13:09,420 that was very near. 239 00:13:10,620 --> 00:13:13,100 Either way, what Paul is saying 240 00:13:13,100 --> 00:13:15,420 in this part of the chapter is this. 241 00:13:17,020 --> 00:13:21,500 Every Christian needs to be detached 242 00:13:21,500 --> 00:13:24,260 from this world in a certain sense. 243 00:13:27,100 --> 00:13:29,100 Now, I know we have to live in the world. 244 00:13:29,100 --> 00:13:31,780 We have to do business here. 245 00:13:32,820 --> 00:13:34,620 We're to try to influence the world. 246 00:13:35,940 --> 00:13:38,020 But Paul is saying in a certain sense, 247 00:13:38,020 --> 00:13:40,380 we as the citizens of God's kingdom, 248 00:13:40,380 --> 00:13:42,700 as the children of God, 249 00:13:42,700 --> 00:13:45,020 should be detached from the world. 250 00:13:45,020 --> 00:13:48,660 We should hold loosely to the affairs 251 00:13:48,660 --> 00:13:51,860 and the experiences of this life. 252 00:13:51,860 --> 00:13:56,540 We should remember that the world as it now appears, 253 00:13:56,540 --> 00:14:00,380 the present form of the world is passing away 254 00:14:00,380 --> 00:14:02,460 right in front of our eyes. 255 00:14:03,660 --> 00:14:06,100 And so he says, yes, there's marriage 256 00:14:06,100 --> 00:14:08,620 and weeping and rejoicing and there's buying 257 00:14:08,620 --> 00:14:09,940 and there's enjoying. 258 00:14:11,380 --> 00:14:12,740 And there's nothing wrong really 259 00:14:12,740 --> 00:14:14,700 with any of these experiences 260 00:14:14,700 --> 00:14:16,820 that are part of this world. 261 00:14:17,980 --> 00:14:19,300 Paul is saying you need to keep 262 00:14:19,300 --> 00:14:21,620 all of these things in perspective. 263 00:14:22,900 --> 00:14:25,020 So we have to ask ourselves the question, 264 00:14:25,020 --> 00:14:30,020 do we spend more time, more energy and money 265 00:14:30,020 --> 00:14:33,980 on the things that are part of the current world 266 00:14:35,100 --> 00:14:38,580 than we do on those things that are not passing away? 267 00:14:40,420 --> 00:14:42,500 I have to say in our culture, 268 00:14:42,500 --> 00:14:44,900 there's a huge temptation to do that. 269 00:14:46,780 --> 00:14:48,180 A huge temptation. 270 00:14:50,660 --> 00:14:52,940 I'm not gonna get into the pluses and minuses 271 00:14:52,940 --> 00:14:53,980 or the politics of it, 272 00:14:53,980 --> 00:14:56,460 but the fact is that nearly all of us 273 00:14:56,460 --> 00:14:58,980 are gonna get checks in the mail from the government. 274 00:14:59,780 --> 00:15:01,420 Right? 275 00:15:01,420 --> 00:15:03,340 Have you seen yours yet? 276 00:15:03,340 --> 00:15:04,700 Me either. 277 00:15:04,700 --> 00:15:06,020 But some of you shook your head yes 278 00:15:06,020 --> 00:15:07,820 and that encourages me a great deal. 279 00:15:09,660 --> 00:15:11,060 That's gonna be a few hundred dollars 280 00:15:11,060 --> 00:15:12,300 we had never counted on. 281 00:15:13,180 --> 00:15:15,820 It's just gonna be ours and the hope of the president 282 00:15:15,820 --> 00:15:17,620 is that we'll all go out and spend it 283 00:15:18,860 --> 00:15:21,700 on things that will boost our economy. 284 00:15:21,700 --> 00:15:24,180 No, we can do that. 285 00:15:25,340 --> 00:15:28,300 And I hate to talk against the president, 286 00:15:28,300 --> 00:15:30,020 you know what else we could do? 287 00:15:30,020 --> 00:15:32,100 We could take that money that we had not expected 288 00:15:32,100 --> 00:15:34,020 and invested in the work of the Lord. 289 00:15:36,180 --> 00:15:37,020 We can do that. 290 00:15:39,220 --> 00:15:42,380 We have such a tendency to focus ourselves 291 00:15:43,820 --> 00:15:46,580 on the things of this world and its forms 292 00:15:46,580 --> 00:15:48,660 and its appearances and all of these things 293 00:15:48,660 --> 00:15:50,380 are just temporary. 294 00:15:50,380 --> 00:15:53,300 They're just blips on the radar screen of eternity. 295 00:15:55,300 --> 00:15:58,740 So Paul is saying consider the time, 296 00:15:59,620 --> 00:16:02,140 the short time you're going to be in this world 297 00:16:04,180 --> 00:16:05,420 and the present crisis. 298 00:16:05,420 --> 00:16:06,660 In light of these things, 299 00:16:06,660 --> 00:16:08,540 maybe better not to marry, he says. 300 00:16:09,420 --> 00:16:10,780 There's a third reason he points out 301 00:16:10,780 --> 00:16:13,140 and that is because of the concerns of marriage. 302 00:16:14,580 --> 00:16:17,020 Literally the word is the distractions of marriage. 303 00:16:17,020 --> 00:16:20,660 It means to be pulled in different directions. 304 00:16:20,660 --> 00:16:23,340 Now those of us who are married have no idea 305 00:16:23,340 --> 00:16:24,940 what Paul is talking about here. 306 00:16:28,140 --> 00:16:31,500 We recognize, don't we, that marriage carries responsibilities 307 00:16:31,500 --> 00:16:34,620 and we do get pulled in different directions. 308 00:16:34,620 --> 00:16:37,820 We have many demands upon our time and our energy. 309 00:16:39,300 --> 00:16:41,540 And because of that, it restricts us. 310 00:16:41,540 --> 00:16:42,820 Marriage restricts us. 311 00:16:42,820 --> 00:16:47,340 It creates encumbrance upon us. 312 00:16:47,340 --> 00:16:50,420 A good marriage requires attention 313 00:16:52,100 --> 00:16:53,860 and you don't want a bad marriage. 314 00:16:55,220 --> 00:16:57,220 A good marriage takes work. 315 00:16:58,380 --> 00:16:59,780 A lot has to go into it. 316 00:17:00,660 --> 00:17:04,140 Somebody has said a good marriage is a lot like a casserole. 317 00:17:04,140 --> 00:17:07,340 Only those responsible knows what goes into it. 318 00:17:07,340 --> 00:17:11,260 It's the truth, isn't it? 319 00:17:11,260 --> 00:17:14,460 So Paul is saying here, because of the encumbrance of marriage, 320 00:17:14,460 --> 00:17:17,300 because the time is short, because of the present crisis, 321 00:17:17,300 --> 00:17:20,220 maybe better not to marry. 322 00:17:20,220 --> 00:17:21,980 But he makes a concession. 323 00:17:21,980 --> 00:17:24,260 He says, I do want you to understand this. 324 00:17:24,260 --> 00:17:26,340 Marriage is not sinful. 325 00:17:28,100 --> 00:17:31,020 If a man or a woman marries, that's fine. 326 00:17:31,020 --> 00:17:33,220 They're not sinning against God. 327 00:17:33,220 --> 00:17:35,420 Just be sure it's God's will. 328 00:17:35,420 --> 00:17:38,340 Be sure it's God's will that you're not succumbing 329 00:17:38,340 --> 00:17:41,100 to some social pressure to get married. 330 00:17:41,100 --> 00:17:44,180 After all, God ordained marriage and it's necessary 331 00:17:44,180 --> 00:17:45,620 for the propagation of the race. 332 00:17:45,620 --> 00:17:47,620 And I'm gonna talk more about that later. 333 00:17:48,860 --> 00:17:50,700 But he says, I do want you to recognize 334 00:17:50,700 --> 00:17:53,340 that it brings trouble in this life. 335 00:17:54,300 --> 00:17:56,780 And again, who knows what he's talking about here, right? 336 00:17:56,780 --> 00:17:58,100 Oh yeah. 337 00:17:58,100 --> 00:18:01,100 Now, every married person knows what trouble's about. 338 00:18:01,100 --> 00:18:02,500 We all experience it at time. 339 00:18:02,500 --> 00:18:04,220 There's pressure with marriage. 340 00:18:04,220 --> 00:18:06,580 There's difficulty with marriage, 341 00:18:06,580 --> 00:18:08,940 because we're fallen people. 342 00:18:08,940 --> 00:18:11,340 And we give birth to little sinners somehow. 343 00:18:11,340 --> 00:18:15,380 It happens, doesn't it? 344 00:18:15,380 --> 00:18:19,900 Marriage doesn't solve problems, by the way. 345 00:18:19,900 --> 00:18:22,140 It only magnifies problems. 346 00:18:22,140 --> 00:18:23,340 Have you found that out? 347 00:18:24,660 --> 00:18:27,620 The only thing worse than waiting to get married 348 00:18:27,620 --> 00:18:28,780 is wishing you had. 349 00:18:28,780 --> 00:18:31,700 Paul says it's better to live in single blessedness 350 00:18:31,700 --> 00:18:34,100 than to live in married cussedness. 351 00:18:34,100 --> 00:18:35,300 That's what he's saying here. 352 00:18:39,260 --> 00:18:40,820 But the bottom line is this. 353 00:18:41,660 --> 00:18:45,860 Each one is free to decide for himself regarding marriage. 354 00:18:47,460 --> 00:18:48,780 It's a personal decision. 355 00:18:50,020 --> 00:18:51,220 If you get married, you're not sinning. 356 00:18:51,220 --> 00:18:52,940 If you don't get married, you're not sinning. 357 00:18:52,940 --> 00:18:56,420 Make the choice under the cross of the cross, 358 00:18:56,420 --> 00:19:00,460 meaning make the choice under the Lordship of Christ, 359 00:19:00,460 --> 00:19:03,180 keeping in mind the things that he's talking about. 360 00:19:06,780 --> 00:19:08,540 But there's a second question that arises 361 00:19:08,540 --> 00:19:10,580 as Paul writes about singleness, 362 00:19:10,580 --> 00:19:13,140 and that's what about people who are single again? 363 00:19:14,740 --> 00:19:17,900 And so the question, I've put it this way. 364 00:19:17,900 --> 00:19:21,940 Should a widowed spouse marry again? 365 00:19:21,940 --> 00:19:25,260 Should a widowed spouse marry again? 366 00:19:26,620 --> 00:19:29,260 I can almost hear some widows here saying, 367 00:19:29,260 --> 00:19:30,540 you gotta be kidding. 368 00:19:31,420 --> 00:19:33,140 I've heard some say that, by the way. 369 00:19:34,660 --> 00:19:38,100 Well, it's possible that for them 370 00:19:38,100 --> 00:19:39,980 it would not be good to be married again. 371 00:19:41,820 --> 00:19:45,620 But God's ideal is for a man and woman to be married. 372 00:19:47,820 --> 00:19:50,780 And through that, to enjoy the company of the Lord, 373 00:19:50,780 --> 00:19:52,780 through that, to enjoy the companionship 374 00:19:52,780 --> 00:19:55,860 and the completion of marriage, and to propagate the race. 375 00:19:59,620 --> 00:20:02,460 Paul's short answer to the question is, yes. 376 00:20:04,260 --> 00:20:05,940 A widowed spouse can marry again, 377 00:20:05,940 --> 00:20:10,740 but he has some things he wants to say about this. 378 00:20:10,740 --> 00:20:12,940 First of all, he wants to remind us, 379 00:20:12,940 --> 00:20:14,380 he wants us to recognize something. 380 00:20:14,380 --> 00:20:16,180 It's a recognition, it's this, 381 00:20:16,180 --> 00:20:21,180 that death frees the survivor to remarry. 382 00:20:21,340 --> 00:20:23,460 Now can I tell you that that's a hard reality 383 00:20:23,460 --> 00:20:26,580 for some people who lose their spouse? 384 00:20:28,700 --> 00:20:31,620 When you've lived with someone happily 385 00:20:31,620 --> 00:20:35,780 for decades of your life, and suddenly they're gone, 386 00:20:37,900 --> 00:20:42,900 it's hard to face the fact that the marriage, 387 00:20:42,900 --> 00:20:47,260 as you've known it, is done. 388 00:20:47,260 --> 00:20:52,060 Some even feel guilty about the idea of marrying again. 389 00:20:52,060 --> 00:20:54,820 They think somehow it's gonna denigrate 390 00:20:54,820 --> 00:20:56,900 the memory of their spouse. 391 00:21:00,060 --> 00:21:02,060 Now we need to recognize what Paul says here, 392 00:21:02,060 --> 00:21:06,820 what the Bible teaches, that death ends that marriage. 393 00:21:08,060 --> 00:21:11,060 Now the one who's passed away you trust is with the Lord. 394 00:21:11,060 --> 00:21:13,260 If they're believers, they are, right? 395 00:21:13,260 --> 00:21:17,460 So you'll see them again, but not in a married relationship. 396 00:21:18,420 --> 00:21:20,300 Whatever relationship there will be in heaven, 397 00:21:20,300 --> 00:21:22,940 it will be even better than marriage. 398 00:21:22,940 --> 00:21:27,060 It'll be deeper, more fulfilling and meaningful than marriage. 399 00:21:28,820 --> 00:21:32,900 And the one who remains is free to remarry. 400 00:21:36,460 --> 00:21:38,820 My brother-in-law was married to my sister 401 00:21:38,820 --> 00:21:41,300 for over 30 years. 402 00:21:42,860 --> 00:21:46,020 When she died April 1st, 2007, 403 00:21:47,940 --> 00:21:50,860 went to be with the Lord, that marriage ended. 404 00:21:52,780 --> 00:21:55,900 And over the last year, he's gone through 405 00:21:55,900 --> 00:21:57,540 the grieving process. 406 00:21:59,460 --> 00:22:03,260 God brought into his life a wonderful Christian lady, 407 00:22:03,260 --> 00:22:06,060 and yesterday they married. 408 00:22:06,060 --> 00:22:08,460 I'm not unhappy about that. 409 00:22:08,460 --> 00:22:09,780 I gave him my blessing. 410 00:22:09,780 --> 00:22:11,940 In fact, I did months ago when I could see 411 00:22:11,940 --> 00:22:13,980 what was gonna be happening on the horizon. 412 00:22:14,980 --> 00:22:17,700 I said, Lou, that's wonderful, God bless you. 413 00:22:18,900 --> 00:22:20,660 And all of our family feels that way. 414 00:22:20,660 --> 00:22:24,700 He's still my brother-in-law, and he feels the same way. 415 00:22:25,740 --> 00:22:27,820 But he's married somebody else now. 416 00:22:27,820 --> 00:22:29,140 It's a good thing. 417 00:22:29,140 --> 00:22:31,620 That's a choice that they made together. 418 00:22:31,620 --> 00:22:33,820 He was free to make that choice. 419 00:22:33,820 --> 00:22:37,220 He was free to make that choice, but there's a stipulation. 420 00:22:38,300 --> 00:22:40,900 Paul says, and that is, it must be in the Lord. 421 00:22:41,940 --> 00:22:45,340 Only somebody else who belongs to the Lord. 422 00:22:45,340 --> 00:22:47,740 And again, we'll talk more about that in a moment. 423 00:22:48,740 --> 00:22:53,260 Considering the light of the present crisis, 424 00:22:54,340 --> 00:22:57,660 though Paul says this, greater happiness may be found 425 00:22:57,660 --> 00:23:00,740 in following his earlier advice to remain single. 426 00:23:00,740 --> 00:23:05,620 And so a widowed spouse is free to remarry 427 00:23:05,620 --> 00:23:07,580 and enjoy a married relationship. 428 00:23:08,540 --> 00:23:10,620 But in light of the circumstances, 429 00:23:10,620 --> 00:23:14,420 whatever they were at that time, in Corinth, 430 00:23:14,420 --> 00:23:17,700 Paul says, maybe you ought to think about what I've just said. 431 00:23:17,700 --> 00:23:19,820 That wasn't always what Paul said. 432 00:23:19,820 --> 00:23:22,260 For example, in Timothy, in the city of Ephesus, 433 00:23:22,260 --> 00:23:25,820 to Timothy, Paul wrote, I counsel younger widows to marry, 434 00:23:27,500 --> 00:23:29,380 to have children, to manage their homes, 435 00:23:29,380 --> 00:23:32,180 and to give the enemy no opportunity for slander. 436 00:23:34,140 --> 00:23:38,020 And so we've been through this little bit of a marriage 437 00:23:38,020 --> 00:23:40,140 and singleness seminar with Paul, 438 00:23:41,020 --> 00:23:45,220 trying to reconstruct the questions that Paul was answering 439 00:23:45,220 --> 00:23:48,420 for the Corinthian church in light of what they were passing 440 00:23:48,420 --> 00:23:49,420 through at that time. 441 00:23:51,100 --> 00:23:52,540 In light of the chapter we've looked at, 442 00:23:52,540 --> 00:23:55,500 I'd like for us just to back up a little bit from it. 443 00:23:55,500 --> 00:23:57,220 And as I bring the message to a close, 444 00:23:57,220 --> 00:24:01,700 to see marriage from a biblical perspective, okay? 445 00:24:04,220 --> 00:24:06,300 There are several statements I want to make. 446 00:24:06,300 --> 00:24:10,620 Number one, marriage is God's good gift 447 00:24:11,500 --> 00:24:15,940 intended to bless and to perpetuate the human race. 448 00:24:16,780 --> 00:24:20,580 It is God's good gift by design 449 00:24:20,580 --> 00:24:25,580 to bring blessing and to perpetuate humans. 450 00:24:27,020 --> 00:24:28,820 That's what God wants in marriage. 451 00:24:35,300 --> 00:24:37,260 Dave earlier called the decision 452 00:24:37,260 --> 00:24:42,020 by the California Supreme Court this week evil. 453 00:24:44,420 --> 00:24:45,500 And I want you to know, 454 00:24:45,500 --> 00:24:48,540 I think that is a perfectly appropriate word. 455 00:24:48,540 --> 00:24:50,260 The decision that was handed down 456 00:24:50,260 --> 00:24:55,260 by the majority of this court is an evil decision. 457 00:24:55,540 --> 00:24:58,500 Not only is it wrong in the eyes of God, 458 00:24:59,700 --> 00:25:05,180 but it is wrong for the blessing of the human race. 459 00:25:05,180 --> 00:25:10,180 It is wrong for the blessing of the human race. 460 00:25:19,020 --> 00:25:21,220 I don't know about you, but I asked myself this week, 461 00:25:21,220 --> 00:25:22,780 how did we get here? 462 00:25:24,260 --> 00:25:27,420 By the way, the decision was no surprise. 463 00:25:29,700 --> 00:25:32,500 That's why we've been out in front getting signatures 464 00:25:32,500 --> 00:25:35,660 to get the amendment to the Constitution on the ballot 465 00:25:35,660 --> 00:25:39,420 for this fall, because we feared 466 00:25:39,420 --> 00:25:41,940 that this is exactly what was going to happen. 467 00:25:41,940 --> 00:25:43,300 It was not a surprise, 468 00:25:44,540 --> 00:25:47,100 but that doesn't make it any less disappointing. 469 00:25:49,900 --> 00:25:51,980 I frankly am angry about it. 470 00:25:51,980 --> 00:25:56,980 I am angry that we have judges in this land 471 00:26:01,300 --> 00:26:04,020 that think they have the right to create law. 472 00:26:05,100 --> 00:26:10,100 This is a democracy, a democratic republic. 473 00:26:14,460 --> 00:26:16,660 And the people in 2000 spoke, 474 00:26:16,660 --> 00:26:20,820 by more than a 60% vote in California, 475 00:26:20,820 --> 00:26:23,340 that marriage was between a man and a woman. 476 00:26:25,620 --> 00:26:28,100 I hope all of us voted on that. 477 00:26:28,100 --> 00:26:29,700 We helped make that decision. 478 00:26:32,340 --> 00:26:35,340 And now by one vote, with a majority of four, 479 00:26:36,220 --> 00:26:38,060 the California Supreme Court, 480 00:26:38,060 --> 00:26:40,940 at least that part of the court, 481 00:26:40,940 --> 00:26:42,940 is going to be the Supreme Court. 482 00:26:42,940 --> 00:26:47,940 The California Supreme Court, at least that part of the court, 483 00:26:47,940 --> 00:26:50,460 has declared, we don't know what we're talking about, 484 00:26:50,460 --> 00:26:52,060 and they know better than we do. 485 00:26:54,300 --> 00:26:56,540 This is not the America. 486 00:26:57,420 --> 00:27:01,100 This is not the United States that my forefathers 487 00:27:01,100 --> 00:27:05,940 and yours came to found and shed their blood for. 488 00:27:09,260 --> 00:27:11,060 I'm angry about this decision. 489 00:27:11,060 --> 00:27:12,660 Who do they think they are 490 00:27:15,220 --> 00:27:20,220 to rip the last piece of fabric out of this society, 491 00:27:20,780 --> 00:27:21,900 holding it together? 492 00:27:31,220 --> 00:27:33,780 And you and I cannot be silent about this. 493 00:27:35,140 --> 00:27:38,540 There are some things we can do, and we must do. 494 00:27:38,540 --> 00:27:39,700 And we must do. 495 00:27:43,380 --> 00:27:45,980 You received, I hope, one of those little booklets 496 00:27:45,980 --> 00:27:46,900 coming in this morning, 497 00:27:46,900 --> 00:27:50,420 talking about the slippery slope of gay marriage. 498 00:27:51,420 --> 00:27:53,460 I hope that you will read that booklet 499 00:27:53,460 --> 00:27:56,380 and get yourself acquainted with the facts. 500 00:27:58,860 --> 00:28:00,180 It's not just Bible verses, 501 00:28:00,180 --> 00:28:02,340 it's facts that you can argue with somebody 502 00:28:02,340 --> 00:28:03,860 who doesn't even believe the Bible 503 00:28:03,860 --> 00:28:08,860 to show that it's wrong for society. 504 00:28:08,940 --> 00:28:10,180 It's the wrong decision. 505 00:28:12,020 --> 00:28:14,860 I hope that you will plan to vote this fall, 506 00:28:16,620 --> 00:28:17,700 and that in the meantime, 507 00:28:17,700 --> 00:28:19,900 you will persuade every person you can 508 00:28:19,900 --> 00:28:21,140 to see your point of view, 509 00:28:21,140 --> 00:28:24,020 that is your right and your duty as an American citizen. 510 00:28:24,020 --> 00:28:30,100 Have we been asleep at the switch? 511 00:28:35,420 --> 00:28:36,900 I think some churches have. 512 00:28:40,780 --> 00:28:42,940 We all share some blame there, I'm sure. 513 00:28:44,420 --> 00:28:46,580 But I know that many of us have been involved deeply 514 00:28:46,580 --> 00:28:47,900 in some of these battles. 515 00:28:47,900 --> 00:28:52,180 And that's why we were so engaged in the year 2000. 516 00:28:54,180 --> 00:28:55,860 And now by this decision, 517 00:28:58,020 --> 00:29:03,020 this court has said that what we think is invalid. 518 00:29:03,540 --> 00:29:05,420 The majority does not rule. 519 00:29:08,540 --> 00:29:11,500 The justices on the Supreme Court need to understand. 520 00:29:12,980 --> 00:29:16,020 The California Supreme Court answers to a higher judge. 521 00:29:16,020 --> 00:29:19,020 I'm going to use a strong term regarding those four. 522 00:29:21,100 --> 00:29:22,100 They are fools. 523 00:29:25,020 --> 00:29:28,500 That is exactly what the Bible calls people who forget God. 524 00:29:28,500 --> 00:29:30,660 You go and read Romans chapter one, 525 00:29:30,660 --> 00:29:32,340 and you find people who know about God, 526 00:29:32,340 --> 00:29:35,340 but deliberately forget God. 527 00:29:35,340 --> 00:29:37,500 And that's because they're not the same people 528 00:29:37,500 --> 00:29:38,340 that you would think. 529 00:29:38,340 --> 00:29:39,900 They're not the same people that you would think. 530 00:29:39,900 --> 00:29:42,700 They're not the same people that you would think. 531 00:29:42,700 --> 00:29:46,060 And you find people who know about God, but deliberately 532 00:29:47,460 --> 00:29:49,820 refuse to acknowledge God. 533 00:29:49,820 --> 00:29:51,820 God calls them fools. 534 00:29:53,340 --> 00:29:56,020 And because of their foolishness, 535 00:30:00,500 --> 00:30:03,100 God gives them over to what they want. 536 00:30:05,140 --> 00:30:06,060 I want to say to you 537 00:30:06,940 --> 00:30:08,860 that what we're experiencing in California, 538 00:30:08,860 --> 00:30:10,780 by the way, Gavin Newsom is right, 539 00:30:10,780 --> 00:30:13,060 as California goes, so goes the nation. 540 00:30:14,500 --> 00:30:17,180 We have a job to do not only for California, 541 00:30:17,180 --> 00:30:18,980 but for the United States of America. 542 00:30:23,460 --> 00:30:24,620 And I was going to say something, 543 00:30:24,620 --> 00:30:25,620 and it went right out of my mind 544 00:30:25,620 --> 00:30:27,620 when I started talking about Gavin Newsom. 545 00:30:29,060 --> 00:30:30,820 He's a very distracting person to me. 546 00:30:30,820 --> 00:30:31,660 What was I going to? 547 00:30:31,660 --> 00:30:32,580 Judicial activist. 548 00:30:32,580 --> 00:30:33,420 I'm sorry? 549 00:30:33,420 --> 00:30:34,660 Judicial activist. 550 00:30:34,660 --> 00:30:36,700 I was going to talk about judicial activists. 551 00:30:36,700 --> 00:30:41,700 Oh, we might say that the decision 552 00:30:45,620 --> 00:30:50,620 of these judges this week will bring the judgment of God. 553 00:30:53,460 --> 00:30:54,860 I don't think that's right. 554 00:30:56,900 --> 00:30:59,100 I think it is the judgment of God. 555 00:31:03,100 --> 00:31:05,780 We are already under the judgment of God, 556 00:31:05,780 --> 00:31:07,940 and you and I may, by God's mercy, 557 00:31:07,940 --> 00:31:10,780 have an opportunity yet to hold off 558 00:31:10,780 --> 00:31:14,220 the full blow of His judgment. 559 00:31:14,220 --> 00:31:16,260 But you read Romans chapter one and three times, 560 00:31:16,260 --> 00:31:18,340 God says, okay, if that's how you feel, 561 00:31:18,340 --> 00:31:20,180 I'll just give you over to what you want. 562 00:31:20,180 --> 00:31:23,740 And we are getting what some people want. 563 00:31:25,020 --> 00:31:28,100 And the scary thing about this is 564 00:31:28,100 --> 00:31:31,660 that public opinion continues to be persuaded 565 00:31:31,660 --> 00:31:36,660 by the words, the neatly packaged words of the opposition, 566 00:31:37,980 --> 00:31:39,100 the opposition to us, 567 00:31:41,060 --> 00:31:43,580 putting us under discrimination and so forth. 568 00:31:43,580 --> 00:31:47,340 If I were a descendant of an American slave, 569 00:31:47,340 --> 00:31:49,100 I would be so offended 570 00:31:51,140 --> 00:31:53,820 that the idea of discrimination in civil rights 571 00:31:53,820 --> 00:31:58,820 has been kidnapped, all of that under point number one. 572 00:32:06,180 --> 00:32:10,060 Because marriage is God's good gift, friends. 573 00:32:10,060 --> 00:32:13,340 It was not created by the California Supreme Court 574 00:32:13,340 --> 00:32:14,820 or by the state of California 575 00:32:14,820 --> 00:32:17,100 or by the Constitution of the United States. 576 00:32:18,180 --> 00:32:21,940 It was created by God, and God has the final word 577 00:32:21,940 --> 00:32:24,780 on what marriage is, and God has spoken. 578 00:32:26,660 --> 00:32:31,660 Let's go on to number two. 579 00:32:34,660 --> 00:32:37,380 Only you can decide whether marriage will help 580 00:32:37,380 --> 00:32:41,180 or hinder your mission, your life mission. 581 00:32:41,180 --> 00:32:42,980 That is God's design for you. 582 00:32:44,500 --> 00:32:46,940 Now for Jesus, He chose not to be married. 583 00:32:48,140 --> 00:32:49,260 That was best for Him. 584 00:32:49,260 --> 00:32:52,180 Paul, He chose to remain single. 585 00:32:52,180 --> 00:32:53,540 That was best for Him. 586 00:32:53,540 --> 00:32:55,580 Now you have to decide for you. 587 00:32:57,340 --> 00:32:59,780 You have to understand what God's mission for you is, 588 00:32:59,780 --> 00:33:02,620 how He's designed you, and whatever choice you make, 589 00:33:02,620 --> 00:33:03,980 God will bless. 590 00:33:05,500 --> 00:33:09,260 Number three, believers are to marry only another 591 00:33:09,260 --> 00:33:10,700 who shares their faith. 592 00:33:13,100 --> 00:33:16,740 This is the principle of spiritual compatibility. 593 00:33:16,740 --> 00:33:19,820 Paul expands on this in his next letter to the Corinthians, 594 00:33:19,820 --> 00:33:22,860 2 Corinthians 6, verses 14 to 16. 595 00:33:22,860 --> 00:33:26,340 And he says there, do not be unequally yoked together 596 00:33:26,340 --> 00:33:27,820 with unbelievers. 597 00:33:28,740 --> 00:33:32,340 For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? 598 00:33:32,340 --> 00:33:35,340 Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 599 00:33:35,340 --> 00:33:38,540 And what accord has Christ with Belial, that's Satan? 600 00:33:39,540 --> 00:33:42,620 Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 601 00:33:42,620 --> 00:33:45,900 What agreement has the temple of God with Christ 602 00:33:45,900 --> 00:33:48,500 with the temple of God with idols? 603 00:33:48,500 --> 00:33:52,660 We are the temple of the living God, he says. 604 00:33:54,980 --> 00:33:58,900 That's why I think it's a mistake 605 00:33:58,900 --> 00:34:02,180 for a Christian young person to begin dating a non-believer. 606 00:34:03,060 --> 00:34:03,900 Be friends. 607 00:34:04,940 --> 00:34:07,100 Socialize with them, that's how you win them. 608 00:34:07,100 --> 00:34:09,060 But you get into a dating relationship, 609 00:34:09,060 --> 00:34:12,100 you're getting out there where it can become very difficult 610 00:34:12,100 --> 00:34:17,100 later to turn it around if that unbeliever 611 00:34:17,420 --> 00:34:19,220 doesn't come to Christ. 612 00:34:19,220 --> 00:34:21,020 God is serious about this, friends. 613 00:34:23,780 --> 00:34:27,380 You and I are to marry only one who is a believer. 614 00:34:30,020 --> 00:34:32,660 Now I recognize that people can lie to us, 615 00:34:32,660 --> 00:34:35,580 people can turn after they're married, 616 00:34:35,580 --> 00:34:37,580 they can show their true colors and all of that, 617 00:34:37,580 --> 00:34:39,580 and you can't be held responsible, 618 00:34:39,580 --> 00:34:42,620 as best as you know, marry only another believer. 619 00:34:42,620 --> 00:34:45,460 Somebody has said if you're a child of God 620 00:34:45,460 --> 00:34:47,420 and you marry a child of the devil, 621 00:34:47,420 --> 00:34:50,220 you will be sure to have trouble with your father-in-law. 622 00:34:52,540 --> 00:34:56,500 Number four, marriage brings both joys and cares. 623 00:34:56,500 --> 00:34:59,660 We've talked about this, greater responsibility. 624 00:34:59,660 --> 00:35:03,740 A married person has divided concerns, Paul says. 625 00:35:03,740 --> 00:35:06,420 Husbands are to focus on their wives to love them, 626 00:35:06,420 --> 00:35:08,620 and wives are to focus on their husbands 627 00:35:08,620 --> 00:35:10,140 to respect them. 628 00:35:13,180 --> 00:35:17,260 So we need to enter marriage with realistic expectations 629 00:35:17,260 --> 00:35:19,540 to know that we will have conflict. 630 00:35:19,540 --> 00:35:21,500 There are no perfect marriages. 631 00:35:22,980 --> 00:35:24,740 One commentator, John MacArthur, writes, 632 00:35:24,740 --> 00:35:27,620 marriage involves conflicts, demands, hardships, 633 00:35:27,620 --> 00:35:29,900 sacrifices, and adjustments. 634 00:35:29,900 --> 00:35:31,540 That singleness does not. 635 00:35:32,420 --> 00:35:35,660 Marriage is ordained of God, good, holy, and fulfilling, 636 00:35:35,660 --> 00:35:37,740 but it does not solve all problems. 637 00:35:37,740 --> 00:35:38,980 It brings more. 638 00:35:40,860 --> 00:35:42,180 I thought I'd hear an amen on that. 639 00:35:42,180 --> 00:35:44,780 Marriage never should be used as a way of escape, 640 00:35:44,780 --> 00:35:47,020 even from loneliness. 641 00:35:47,020 --> 00:35:49,940 Many people carry loneliness right into marriage. 642 00:35:49,940 --> 00:35:51,260 Is that true? 643 00:35:51,260 --> 00:35:52,540 Sure is. 644 00:35:52,540 --> 00:35:54,980 And end up making another person lonely. 645 00:35:56,100 --> 00:36:00,540 Marriage does not end the temptation to lust and immorality. 646 00:36:00,540 --> 00:36:02,460 There are troubles unique to singleness, 647 00:36:02,460 --> 00:36:05,380 but they may be exceeded by those in marriage. 648 00:36:05,380 --> 00:36:07,020 He's right. 649 00:36:09,740 --> 00:36:13,460 In marriage, your focus is on serving the other person. 650 00:36:14,620 --> 00:36:18,020 And by the way, don't expect your spouse 651 00:36:18,020 --> 00:36:19,700 to meet all your needs. 652 00:36:21,540 --> 00:36:23,460 Only the Lord can do that. 653 00:36:23,460 --> 00:36:25,100 Would you say amen to that? 654 00:36:25,100 --> 00:36:26,380 We're to serve one another, 655 00:36:26,380 --> 00:36:28,620 but only your spouse can meet all your needs. 656 00:36:28,620 --> 00:36:32,300 Only the Lord can meet all your needs. 657 00:36:32,300 --> 00:36:35,500 Not your spouse, there we go. 658 00:36:35,500 --> 00:36:37,220 Freudian slip. 659 00:36:37,220 --> 00:36:39,420 Maybe worse than a Freudian slip, who knows? 660 00:36:40,540 --> 00:36:42,700 Finally, number five, 661 00:36:42,700 --> 00:36:47,060 whatever your marital state, use life for its highest purpose. 662 00:36:47,060 --> 00:36:48,900 Oh folks, this is so important. 663 00:36:48,900 --> 00:36:51,340 Just as we read in that book that some of us bought 664 00:36:51,340 --> 00:36:53,620 and passed out to others a while back, 665 00:36:53,620 --> 00:36:55,020 it's not what? 666 00:36:56,060 --> 00:36:57,380 It's not about you. 667 00:36:58,900 --> 00:37:00,420 Life is not about getting wealthy, 668 00:37:00,420 --> 00:37:03,100 it's not about buying toys or spoiling our kids 669 00:37:03,100 --> 00:37:05,220 or our grandkids. 670 00:37:05,220 --> 00:37:08,780 It's not about just having fun or retiring to play golf. 671 00:37:10,260 --> 00:37:13,380 Life is about serving God's purpose. 672 00:37:13,380 --> 00:37:15,620 And to put it simply, it's just this, 673 00:37:15,620 --> 00:37:19,140 love God and love others. 674 00:37:21,220 --> 00:37:25,380 We're to be involved in the Lord's affairs, says Paul. 675 00:37:25,380 --> 00:37:26,980 That should be a focus of our lives, 676 00:37:26,980 --> 00:37:29,100 whatever our marital state. 677 00:37:29,100 --> 00:37:33,900 Now, remember, the opportunities you have are not forever. 678 00:37:35,420 --> 00:37:37,020 So make the most of them. 679 00:37:37,020 --> 00:37:40,300 As Paul says to the Ephesians, redeem the time. 680 00:37:41,420 --> 00:37:43,340 Work while you can. 681 00:37:43,340 --> 00:37:45,420 As Wesley said, do all the good you can 682 00:37:45,420 --> 00:37:48,540 by all the means you can and all the ways you can. 683 00:37:48,540 --> 00:37:51,660 In all the places you can, at all the times you can, 684 00:37:51,660 --> 00:37:55,180 to all the people you can as long as ever you can. 685 00:37:55,180 --> 00:38:00,180 Soon and very soon, people are gone who need our help. 686 00:38:00,900 --> 00:38:02,220 Life is short. 687 00:38:03,420 --> 00:38:07,700 The people in our world don't linger forever. 688 00:38:07,700 --> 00:38:10,140 Therefore, we must redeem the time. 689 00:38:11,900 --> 00:38:13,340 Whatever your circumstances, 690 00:38:13,340 --> 00:38:14,660 this is where we started this morning, 691 00:38:14,660 --> 00:38:16,300 whatever your circumstances of life, 692 00:38:16,300 --> 00:38:21,300 use God's calling and gifts to serve Him in your world. 693 00:38:21,300 --> 00:38:24,380 One man who did that, he was a man of faith. 694 00:38:24,380 --> 00:38:27,380 One man who did that was a guy named Sam Shoemaker. 695 00:38:29,300 --> 00:38:31,540 Sam Shoemaker was one of the founders 696 00:38:31,540 --> 00:38:34,700 of Alcoholics Anonymous 697 00:38:35,900 --> 00:38:39,820 and was a faithful layman in his church in New York City. 698 00:38:41,620 --> 00:38:45,180 He wrote a poem called I Stand at the Door. 699 00:38:45,180 --> 00:38:48,820 It's a long poem, I'm just going to read part of it for you. 700 00:38:48,820 --> 00:38:50,720 The words of Sam Shoemaker. 701 00:38:51,660 --> 00:38:53,180 I stand by the door. 702 00:38:53,180 --> 00:38:56,820 I neither go too far in or stay too far out. 703 00:38:56,820 --> 00:39:00,340 The door is the most important door in the world. 704 00:39:00,340 --> 00:39:05,340 It is the door through which men walk when they find God. 705 00:39:06,980 --> 00:39:10,940 There's no use of my going way inside and staying there 706 00:39:11,820 --> 00:39:13,660 when so many are still outside 707 00:39:13,660 --> 00:39:18,060 and they, as much as I, crave to know where the door is. 708 00:39:18,060 --> 00:39:23,060 And all that so many ever find is only the wall 709 00:39:23,060 --> 00:39:24,900 where the door ought to be. 710 00:39:25,780 --> 00:39:29,340 They creep along the wall like blind men 711 00:39:29,340 --> 00:39:33,020 with outstretched groping hands, feeling for a door, 712 00:39:33,020 --> 00:39:35,220 knowing there must be a door. 713 00:39:36,900 --> 00:39:38,580 Yet they never find it. 714 00:39:40,540 --> 00:39:42,740 So I stand by the door. 715 00:39:42,740 --> 00:39:45,740 So I stand by the door. 716 00:39:47,820 --> 00:39:50,060 The most tremendous thing in the world 717 00:39:50,060 --> 00:39:52,900 is for men to find that door, the door to God. 718 00:39:53,820 --> 00:39:56,260 The most important thing that any man can do 719 00:39:56,260 --> 00:39:59,420 is to take hold of one of those blind groping hands 720 00:39:59,420 --> 00:40:01,700 and put it on the latch, 721 00:40:01,700 --> 00:40:05,900 the latch that only clicks and opens to the man's own touch. 722 00:40:05,900 --> 00:40:10,900 Men die outside the door. 723 00:40:13,500 --> 00:40:15,980 As starving beggars die on cold nights 724 00:40:15,980 --> 00:40:18,020 in cruel cities in the dead of winter. 725 00:40:19,700 --> 00:40:23,900 They die for want of what is within their grasp. 726 00:40:25,500 --> 00:40:27,820 They live on the other side of it, 727 00:40:27,820 --> 00:40:30,260 live because they have not found it. 728 00:40:30,260 --> 00:40:35,260 Nothing else matters compared to helping them find it 729 00:40:36,140 --> 00:40:38,820 and open it and walk in and find him. 730 00:40:40,620 --> 00:40:43,300 So I stand by the door. 731 00:40:46,420 --> 00:40:49,020 My friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, 732 00:40:49,020 --> 00:40:50,060 family of God, 733 00:40:53,820 --> 00:40:56,380 you and I have a world that we relate to. 734 00:40:56,380 --> 00:40:59,300 It's this generation. 735 00:41:01,380 --> 00:41:03,660 God has called us to stand by the door. 736 00:41:04,900 --> 00:41:08,100 I know, it's a lot more fun to go way inside 737 00:41:08,100 --> 00:41:10,500 and just enjoy one another and the fellowship 738 00:41:10,500 --> 00:41:11,740 and all those things, 739 00:41:12,980 --> 00:41:15,380 but God wants us to stand at the door. 740 00:41:18,780 --> 00:41:21,220 So that others finding their way along 741 00:41:21,220 --> 00:41:26,220 can find that latch and come in and find Jesus. 742 00:41:29,100 --> 00:41:31,020 We stand at the door of our culture. 743 00:41:33,260 --> 00:41:35,260 I know we can get very discouraged 744 00:41:36,140 --> 00:41:38,500 because of decisions like this week. 745 00:41:38,500 --> 00:41:40,660 We should never be discouraged, folks. 746 00:41:41,540 --> 00:41:43,140 God is still on the throne. 747 00:41:44,020 --> 00:41:46,660 God is bigger than the Supreme Court 748 00:41:46,660 --> 00:41:49,540 and God's purposes are going to be done, 749 00:41:49,540 --> 00:41:52,420 but he calls you and me to stand, 750 00:41:52,420 --> 00:41:54,060 to stand for the truth. 751 00:41:55,180 --> 00:41:57,180 That is not popular. 752 00:41:59,980 --> 00:42:02,860 And what has happened over the last six years, 753 00:42:02,860 --> 00:42:05,220 eight years since our vote last time, 754 00:42:06,060 --> 00:42:09,340 is that there are fewer of us willing to stand for the truth 755 00:42:09,340 --> 00:42:12,060 and I am so sad to say this, 756 00:42:12,060 --> 00:42:14,580 even in the evangelical church. 757 00:42:14,580 --> 00:42:17,580 It's going to be costly to stand, I think. 758 00:42:19,780 --> 00:42:21,900 But that's what God's called us to do. 759 00:42:22,820 --> 00:42:24,620 And so I say to you and I say to me, 760 00:42:24,620 --> 00:42:26,380 let's stand at the door. 761 00:42:27,460 --> 00:42:28,980 The only way we can do that 762 00:42:30,740 --> 00:42:33,220 is by giving ourselves a way to Jesus 763 00:42:33,220 --> 00:42:35,580 and trusting him for the strength and the courage 764 00:42:35,580 --> 00:42:38,180 and the wisdom and all that we'll need to stand. 765 00:42:40,100 --> 00:42:41,580 We can't do it in ourself. 766 00:42:41,580 --> 00:42:44,580 We need to be men and women of prayer, 767 00:42:44,580 --> 00:42:46,260 men and women of great devotion, 768 00:42:46,260 --> 00:42:48,980 men and women of great conviction and courage, 769 00:42:48,980 --> 00:42:51,620 and stand by the door. 770 00:42:55,420 --> 00:42:56,860 Would you pray with me, please? 771 00:42:56,860 --> 00:42:58,500 Would you bow your head? 772 00:42:58,500 --> 00:43:00,660 We're going to sing a chorus 773 00:43:00,660 --> 00:43:03,660 that talks about giving it to Jesus. 774 00:43:03,660 --> 00:43:07,100 ["The Star-Spangled Banner"] 775 00:43:07,100 --> 00:43:12,100 Giving it to Jesus, inviting Jesus to be the Lord of all, 776 00:43:15,300 --> 00:43:16,700 the kingdoms of our heart. 777 00:43:17,660 --> 00:43:19,060 I think you know the chorus. 778 00:43:19,060 --> 00:43:21,140 Just a couple of verses, very simple. 779 00:43:22,420 --> 00:43:25,180 I invite you to stand with me with your head bowed 780 00:43:25,180 --> 00:43:26,180 or if you don't know the words, 781 00:43:26,180 --> 00:43:27,460 I think they'll be on the screen. 782 00:43:27,460 --> 00:43:29,380 If not, the words are easy to pick up. 783 00:43:31,340 --> 00:43:34,820 Jesus be the Lord of all, the kingdoms, my heart. 784 00:43:34,820 --> 00:43:37,060 Let's give ourselves to Him this morning 785 00:43:37,060 --> 00:43:40,060 so that we may be able to stand in the day of evil. 786 00:43:42,220 --> 00:43:43,300 Let's sing together. 787 00:43:43,300 --> 00:44:03,300 ["The Star-Spangled Banner"]