WEBVTT 00:00:02.640 --> 00:00:04.459 Well, if you see all those names up there, it's 00:00:04.459 --> 00:00:06.900 pretty impressive, isn't it? The number of people 00:00:06.900 --> 00:00:09.619 who volunteer in various areas of our children's 00:00:09.619 --> 00:00:11.880 ministry. And there's some of you, and we thank 00:00:11.880 --> 00:00:14.839 God for you. Let's pray together and give thanks 00:00:14.839 --> 00:00:18.739 to the Lord for our children's ministry. Father, 00:00:18.859 --> 00:00:20.879 we're glad for what you're doing in the lives 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:24.160 of our boys and girls because of dedicated people 00:00:24.160 --> 00:00:29.679 who are giving. Well, thank you for Julie and 00:00:29.679 --> 00:00:32.759 Karen who've done such a magnificent job. setting 00:00:32.759 --> 00:00:36.840 in this interim time as we seek a new children's 00:00:36.840 --> 00:00:41.060 director. Father, I pray that those who have 00:00:41.060 --> 00:00:44.439 given so generously will sense great encouragement 00:00:44.439 --> 00:00:48.299 knowing that what they have planted in the lives 00:00:48.299 --> 00:00:51.920 of boys and girls will bring fruit to the glory 00:00:51.920 --> 00:00:58.820 of your name for decades to come. We claim that 00:00:58.820 --> 00:01:03.070 and we give thanks for it in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:01:05.049 --> 00:01:07.670 Let's open our Bibles together please to 1st 00:01:07.670 --> 00:01:10.069 Corinthians chapter 7 as we continue working 00:01:10.069 --> 00:01:14.090 our way through this great epistle written by 00:01:14.090 --> 00:01:20.890 Paul the apostle. Today we're going to talk about 00:01:20.890 --> 00:01:24.969 the advantage of being single as we pick up our 00:01:24.969 --> 00:01:35.939 reading in verse 25 of 1st Corinthians 7. Now 00:01:35.939 --> 00:01:38.859 concerning virgins, I have no command of the 00:01:38.859 --> 00:01:41.420 Lord, but I give an opinion as one who by the 00:01:41.420 --> 00:01:45.799 mercy of the Lord is trustworthy. I think then 00:01:45.799 --> 00:01:48.299 that this is good in view of the present distress, 00:01:48.519 --> 00:01:52.640 that it is good for man to remain as he is. Are 00:01:52.640 --> 00:01:55.840 you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be released. 00:01:56.719 --> 00:02:00.180 Are you released from a wife? Do not seek a wife. 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:04.560 But if you should marry, you have not sinned. 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:08.060 And if a virgin should marry, she has not sinned. 00:02:08.240 --> 00:02:10.580 Yet such will have trouble in this life, and 00:02:10.580 --> 00:02:14.259 I'm trying to spare you. With this I say, brethren, 00:02:14.360 --> 00:02:18.180 the time has been shortened so that from now 00:02:18.180 --> 00:02:21.060 on those who have wives should be as though they 00:02:21.060 --> 00:02:24.680 had none." Some of you Viking fans take that 00:02:24.680 --> 00:02:27.219 a little bit too literally in Viking season, 00:02:27.240 --> 00:02:31.039 I want to tell you that. And those who weep as 00:02:31.039 --> 00:02:33.840 though they did not weep, and those who rejoice 00:02:33.840 --> 00:02:36.900 as though they did not rejoice, and those who 00:02:36.900 --> 00:02:40.060 buy as though they did not possess, and those 00:02:40.060 --> 00:02:43.599 who use the world as though they did not make 00:02:43.599 --> 00:02:48.039 full use of it. For the form of this world is 00:02:48.039 --> 00:02:51.319 passing away. But I want you to be free from 00:02:51.319 --> 00:02:54.979 concern. One who is unmade is concerned about 00:02:54.979 --> 00:02:57.060 the things of the Lord, how he may please the 00:02:57.060 --> 00:03:00.599 Lord. The one who is married is concerned about 00:03:00.599 --> 00:03:03.180 the things of the world, how he may please his 00:03:03.180 --> 00:03:06.879 wife, and his interests are divided. And the 00:03:06.879 --> 00:03:09.919 woman who is unmarried and the virgin is concerned 00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:12.979 about the things of the Lord, nor she may be 00:03:12.979 --> 00:03:16.500 holy, both in body and spirit. The one who is 00:03:16.500 --> 00:03:18.560 married is concerned about the things of the 00:03:18.560 --> 00:03:21.400 world, how he may please, how she may please 00:03:21.400 --> 00:03:25.060 her husband. And this I say for your own benefit. 00:03:25.590 --> 00:03:28.710 not to put a restraint upon you, but to promote 00:03:28.710 --> 00:03:32.949 what is seemly and secure, undistracted devotion 00:03:32.949 --> 00:03:38.530 to the Lord." That's a great statement. But if 00:03:38.530 --> 00:03:41.150 any man thinks that he is acting unbecomingly 00:03:41.150 --> 00:03:43.770 toward his virgin daughter, if she should be 00:03:43.770 --> 00:03:46.250 of full age, and if it must be so, let him do 00:03:46.250 --> 00:03:49.830 what he wishes. He does not sin. Let her marry. 00:03:50.689 --> 00:03:53.550 But he who stands firm in his heart, being under 00:03:53.550 --> 00:03:56.169 no constraint, but has authority over his own 00:03:56.169 --> 00:03:59.370 will, and has decided this in his own heart to 00:03:59.370 --> 00:04:02.610 keep his own virgin daughter, he will do well. 00:04:03.430 --> 00:04:06.449 So then that he who gives his own virgin daughter 00:04:06.449 --> 00:04:09.569 in marriage does well, and he who does not give 00:04:09.569 --> 00:04:13.949 her in marriage will do better. A wife is bound 00:04:13.949 --> 00:04:17.149 as long as her husband lives, but if her husband 00:04:17.149 --> 00:04:20.250 is dead, she is free to be married to whom she 00:04:20.250 --> 00:04:24.329 wishes, only in the Lord. But in my opinion, 00:04:24.449 --> 00:04:27.889 she is happier if she remains as she is. And 00:04:27.889 --> 00:04:33.129 I think that I also have the Spirit of God. One 00:04:33.129 --> 00:04:35.370 of our single women handed me this little note 00:04:35.370 --> 00:04:40.430 last week as we talked about marriage and the 00:04:40.430 --> 00:04:43.129 advantages of being single in the earlier text. 00:04:44.430 --> 00:04:48.779 It says, men are like parking spaces. All the 00:04:48.779 --> 00:04:52.079 good ones are already taken and the rest are 00:04:52.079 --> 00:04:54.680 handicapped or their leaders are running out. 00:04:57.800 --> 00:04:59.620 No, that wasn't one of our single women. That 00:04:59.620 --> 00:05:03.699 was somebody else who gave me that. But today 00:05:03.699 --> 00:05:07.360 we want to talk about the advantage of being 00:05:07.360 --> 00:05:10.279 single. I was talking with a friend of mine a 00:05:10.279 --> 00:05:13.360 few days ago and he made the comment to me, I'm 00:05:13.360 --> 00:05:16.649 glad that my children are grown up. because of 00:05:16.649 --> 00:05:20.009 the kind of a day that we're living in. Have 00:05:20.009 --> 00:05:22.189 you ever had that feeling, those of you whose 00:05:22.189 --> 00:05:26.129 children are grown? If you can identify with 00:05:26.129 --> 00:05:28.370 that statement, then perhaps you can understand 00:05:28.370 --> 00:05:31.670 a little bit of what Paul is saying here when 00:05:31.670 --> 00:05:34.470 he argues for the advantage of remaining single. 00:05:36.370 --> 00:05:38.709 Now, already in the chapters we have studied 00:05:38.709 --> 00:05:41.389 it, he has written to us about singleness, but 00:05:41.389 --> 00:05:43.910 now he is going to reiterate some of that and 00:05:43.910 --> 00:05:50.019 expand on it. I know Paul's word and his spirit. 00:05:51.399 --> 00:05:56.720 He says, I give an opinion. I think that this 00:05:56.720 --> 00:06:03.100 is good. In my opinion, you see in writing by 00:06:03.100 --> 00:06:07.339 the inspiration of the spirit, there is no doubt 00:06:07.339 --> 00:06:10.699 of the authority of his words, and yet they are 00:06:10.699 --> 00:06:16.180 not harsh, legalistic, and overbearing. There 00:06:16.180 --> 00:06:21.040 is in this chapter a wonderful spirit of grace 00:06:21.040 --> 00:06:26.560 that comes through in Paul's counsel. If I were 00:06:26.560 --> 00:06:30.939 to sum up this chapter in its entirety, and perhaps 00:06:30.939 --> 00:06:33.259 to the extent even the whole book, I would put 00:06:33.259 --> 00:06:40.579 it in this sentence. Live wisely using the gifts 00:06:40.579 --> 00:06:44.980 God has given you to serve Him in your world. 00:06:47.079 --> 00:06:50.819 Live wisely using the gifts that God has given 00:06:50.819 --> 00:06:56.500 you to serve him in this world. Now, as I mentioned 00:06:56.500 --> 00:06:59.199 last week, in this chapter, Paul gives to us 00:06:59.199 --> 00:07:03.600 a lot of advice and counsel concerning questions 00:07:03.600 --> 00:07:06.560 that he had been asked. We don't have the questions. 00:07:07.420 --> 00:07:09.879 And so what we attempt to do is go back to the 00:07:09.879 --> 00:07:12.600 content and formulate what the questions might 00:07:12.600 --> 00:07:16.949 have been. There are two questions in the text 00:07:16.949 --> 00:07:20.029 as we've read it this morning. The first question 00:07:20.029 --> 00:07:23.310 deals with this. Should a father give his daughter 00:07:23.310 --> 00:07:27.670 in marriage? Now remember that the cultural situation 00:07:27.670 --> 00:07:31.470 is quite different in Corinth than it is in contemporary 00:07:31.470 --> 00:07:36.990 America. In those days, fathers or parents arranged 00:07:36.990 --> 00:07:42.769 for marriages. And so the question arose, should 00:07:42.769 --> 00:07:47.430 a conscientious Christian father arrange the 00:07:47.430 --> 00:07:51.089 marriage of his unmarried daughter, or is it 00:07:51.089 --> 00:07:56.709 better for her to remain single? That seems to 00:07:56.709 --> 00:07:59.670 be the question that Paul had been asked. And 00:07:59.670 --> 00:08:02.769 so now he is going to answer it. And so we come 00:08:02.769 --> 00:08:07.769 first to his counsel. Verses 26 and 27 rather 00:08:07.769 --> 00:08:10.290 summarize that. He doesn't give a commandment. 00:08:10.620 --> 00:08:15.019 But his counsel is that they are better off not 00:08:15.019 --> 00:08:19.540 to marry. A father is better not to give his 00:08:19.540 --> 00:08:24.199 daughter in marriage. He says this is good. That 00:08:24.199 --> 00:08:27.699 is, it makes good sense, and he lays out for 00:08:27.699 --> 00:08:32.120 us three reasons why this makes good sense. First, 00:08:32.179 --> 00:08:35.019 because of what he calls the present distress 00:08:35.019 --> 00:08:42.149 in verse 26. The present distress. We need to 00:08:42.149 --> 00:08:45.590 remember that a Christian is naturally in conflict 00:08:45.590 --> 00:08:50.330 with the world system that we live in. When Paul 00:08:50.330 --> 00:08:55.850 talks about a distressful time, this period of 00:08:55.850 --> 00:08:59.870 stress, he may be referring to a persecution 00:08:59.870 --> 00:09:04.629 that the Corinthians were in or which was impending 00:09:04.629 --> 00:09:08.559 for them. I remind you of the words of our Lord 00:09:08.559 --> 00:09:11.639 when he said, these things I have spoken unto 00:09:11.639 --> 00:09:16.580 you, that in me you may have peace. In the world 00:09:16.580 --> 00:09:22.659 you will have what? Tribulation. You will have 00:09:22.659 --> 00:09:26.000 trouble. You will have pressure against you. 00:09:26.940 --> 00:09:30.000 But take courage, I have overcome the world, 00:09:30.600 --> 00:09:35.950 he assures us. Now in Corinth we know of no particular 00:09:35.950 --> 00:09:39.590 persecution at this point that there had been 00:09:39.590 --> 00:09:43.409 some earlier. But looking at history we know 00:09:43.409 --> 00:09:46.409 that within ten years of Paul's writing this 00:09:46.409 --> 00:09:51.009 epistle, Emperor Nero would reign in Rome and 00:09:51.009 --> 00:09:53.889 would unleash throughout the Roman Empire a severe 00:09:53.889 --> 00:09:58.090 persecution against Christians. Perhaps Paul 00:09:58.090 --> 00:10:00.870 sensed that that was coming and he says in light 00:10:00.870 --> 00:10:04.059 of that It may be better for a father not to 00:10:04.059 --> 00:10:07.779 give his daughter in marriage, because to be 00:10:07.779 --> 00:10:11.620 married multiplies the sense of responsibility 00:10:11.620 --> 00:10:16.960 in a time of persecution. One who is facing persecution 00:10:16.960 --> 00:10:20.759 is concerned for his family, but for her family, 00:10:21.320 --> 00:10:26.580 who will care for them? The family suffers when 00:10:26.580 --> 00:10:29.960 the father or the mother suffers. The husband, 00:10:30.039 --> 00:10:33.460 the wife, suffers. Who will care for the family? 00:10:34.620 --> 00:10:38.500 Who will feed to its suffering? I think of those 00:10:38.500 --> 00:10:42.659 families who suffered greatly under the persecution 00:10:42.659 --> 00:10:46.580 of communism in Russia and the stories I have 00:10:46.580 --> 00:10:50.360 read in past years of fathers and mothers on 00:10:50.360 --> 00:10:55.159 occasion also being dragged off to prison and 00:10:55.159 --> 00:10:59.659 the family being left to its own. We can see 00:10:59.659 --> 00:11:03.039 why Paul would say, in light of the present distress, 00:11:03.799 --> 00:11:11.019 it might be better not to be married. The apostle 00:11:11.019 --> 00:11:13.519 suggests a second reason, and that is because 00:11:13.519 --> 00:11:16.860 of the shortened time. He talks about this in 00:11:16.860 --> 00:11:20.740 verses 29 to 31. Literally he says, the time 00:11:20.740 --> 00:11:25.159 is having been shortened. Now the question is, 00:11:25.159 --> 00:11:28.500 what is he talking about? What time? The word 00:11:28.500 --> 00:11:31.340 that he uses points to a particular appointed 00:11:31.340 --> 00:11:36.100 time. He says that time has been shortened. Is 00:11:36.100 --> 00:11:38.899 it the Lord's coming that Paul is thinking of? 00:11:39.759 --> 00:11:44.799 In Romans 13 he writes, And this be knowing the 00:11:44.799 --> 00:11:48.039 time that it is already the hour for you to awaken 00:11:48.039 --> 00:11:51.860 from sleep, for now salvation is nearer to us 00:11:51.860 --> 00:11:56.440 than when we believed. It may be he is saying 00:11:56.440 --> 00:12:00.200 the Lord's coming is imminent and therefore it 00:12:00.200 --> 00:12:04.480 may be better not to marry Or he may be pointing 00:12:04.480 --> 00:12:07.879 towards that same persecution that he had in 00:12:07.879 --> 00:12:13.379 mind by the present distress Either way you understand 00:12:13.379 --> 00:12:18.500 that phrase Paul is encouraging believers then 00:12:18.500 --> 00:12:23.340 and now to be detached from the world in a certain 00:12:23.340 --> 00:12:27.230 sense In the language that he uses here, he says 00:12:27.230 --> 00:12:31.970 that we must hold loosely to the affairs and 00:12:31.970 --> 00:12:36.389 the experiences of this life. We need to realize 00:12:36.389 --> 00:12:44.250 that the outward form of the world, its manner 00:12:44.250 --> 00:12:50.269 of operation, its way of doing things, is right 00:12:50.269 --> 00:12:53.529 now in the process of passing away, he says. 00:12:54.220 --> 00:12:58.220 So don't hang on to it too tightly. And he lists 00:12:58.220 --> 00:13:02.440 five common experiences that he says we ought 00:13:02.440 --> 00:13:05.460 not to hang on to very loosely, very tightly. 00:13:06.320 --> 00:13:10.419 The first one is marriage. He says if you have 00:13:10.419 --> 00:13:13.159 a wife, then maybe you should live as though 00:13:13.159 --> 00:13:17.600 you had none. He seems to point here to marriage, 00:13:17.779 --> 00:13:22.019 that although we enjoy marriage, And we treasure 00:13:22.019 --> 00:13:25.620 that relationship, and rightly so. We also need 00:13:25.620 --> 00:13:28.700 to realize that marriage is a part of this world, 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:32.480 and that marriage relationship is casting away. 00:13:34.480 --> 00:13:38.120 This is denied by some cults. The Mormons, for 00:13:38.120 --> 00:13:43.419 example, teach that men should marry, at least 00:13:43.419 --> 00:13:47.240 spiritually marry, many women in this world. 00:13:47.610 --> 00:13:50.429 because someday those marriages will be consummated 00:13:50.429 --> 00:13:56.269 in heaven. The Mooney talked about eternal marriages, 00:13:56.649 --> 00:14:00.210 celestial marriages. The Bible says that marriage 00:14:00.210 --> 00:14:03.149 is a part of this world and it as a relationship 00:14:03.149 --> 00:14:07.450 is casting away. And so, understanding in its 00:14:07.450 --> 00:14:10.830 context, he talks about weeping and rejoicing, 00:14:11.250 --> 00:14:14.870 both of those human emotions, weeping over losses. 00:14:15.740 --> 00:14:18.440 Well, we shouldn't weep too much because those 00:14:18.440 --> 00:14:20.980 things that we lost were passing away anyway. 00:14:22.299 --> 00:14:24.799 And did we rejoice over success or promotion? 00:14:25.139 --> 00:14:30.000 Understand that that's temporal. He talks about 00:14:30.000 --> 00:14:34.080 buying, getting involved in commerce, in investing, 00:14:34.980 --> 00:14:38.580 in business. That's part of life. We all do that. 00:14:38.600 --> 00:14:41.860 But he says, remember that that's not all that 00:14:41.860 --> 00:14:46.200 life is. And it's passing away. And then he talks 00:14:46.200 --> 00:14:49.580 about enjoying the pleasures of the world, the 00:14:49.580 --> 00:14:52.940 fifth experience. And likewise, God doesn't mind 00:14:52.940 --> 00:14:55.539 that we have pleasure in things, in this world, 00:14:56.740 --> 00:14:59.899 but the point is that if we focus on those, we've 00:14:59.899 --> 00:15:05.720 missed life. He says we are to hold loosely to 00:15:05.720 --> 00:15:08.360 the experiences of life, because the shortened 00:15:08.360 --> 00:15:15.309 time, we do not often extend. as much energy 00:15:15.309 --> 00:15:18.889 and resource on the Kingdom of God as we do on 00:15:18.889 --> 00:15:22.990 the things that are passing away. And that is 00:15:22.990 --> 00:15:26.730 to our shame. It is the eternal things, whether, 00:15:26.950 --> 00:15:29.529 that ought to matter. Those are the things that 00:15:29.529 --> 00:15:33.269 ought to preoccupy us, that ought to absorb our 00:15:33.269 --> 00:15:35.850 time, that ought to be the focus of our thoughts, 00:15:35.970 --> 00:15:38.769 that ought to be the source of our resources. 00:15:39.690 --> 00:15:42.149 We need to keep these things in perspective. 00:15:44.590 --> 00:15:47.870 Paul says there's a third reason why he thinks 00:15:47.870 --> 00:15:51.070 it might be better not to marry, and that is 00:15:51.070 --> 00:15:56.610 because of the concerns of marriage. He speaks 00:15:56.610 --> 00:16:00.730 about this in verses 32 to 35, the concerns of 00:16:00.730 --> 00:16:05.490 marriage. Marriage carries certain responsibilities 00:16:05.490 --> 00:16:11.190 with it. It makes demands upon our time and our 00:16:11.190 --> 00:16:16.500 energy. It restricts us. It creates an encumbrance 00:16:16.500 --> 00:16:19.639 upon us. Just ask the young man who is used to 00:16:19.639 --> 00:16:23.460 playing softball all Saturday, every weekend. 00:16:24.279 --> 00:16:29.580 What happens when he gets married? Softball doesn't 00:16:29.580 --> 00:16:35.000 usually last very long. Because now he has another 00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:37.840 concern. He's distracted from that hobby that 00:16:37.840 --> 00:16:43.740 he had before by his wife. The concerns of married 00:16:43.740 --> 00:16:47.259 can be heavy. Married people must divide their 00:16:47.259 --> 00:16:49.879 interests between the things of earth and the 00:16:49.879 --> 00:16:54.080 things of heaven, and rightly so. But Paul says 00:16:54.080 --> 00:16:56.500 the unmarried, on the other hand, are able to 00:16:56.500 --> 00:16:58.759 concern themselves regarding the things of the 00:16:58.759 --> 00:17:05.339 Lord more fully, in body and in spirit. John 00:17:05.339 --> 00:17:07.579 MacArthur writes, it is not that the married 00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:11.599 believer has divided spiritual loyalty. or that 00:17:11.599 --> 00:17:15.619 the unmarried is more spiritually faithful, many 00:17:15.619 --> 00:17:18.079 married believers are holy in the sense of being 00:17:18.079 --> 00:17:21.660 highly devoted to the Lord, and many single believers 00:17:21.660 --> 00:17:25.819 are divided in their spiritual interests. He 00:17:25.819 --> 00:17:28.160 says marriage does not present great devotion 00:17:28.160 --> 00:17:30.700 to the Lord, and singleness does not guarantee 00:17:30.700 --> 00:17:37.160 it. But, singleness has fewer hindrances and 00:17:37.160 --> 00:17:41.319 more advantages. And so as Paul puts all these 00:17:41.319 --> 00:17:44.420 reasons together, he says, it's probably better 00:17:44.420 --> 00:17:48.140 for a father not to give his daughter in marriage. 00:17:49.700 --> 00:17:54.420 That's his counsel. But then, Paul makes a confession. 00:17:55.839 --> 00:17:59.299 And that confession is found in verse 28, where 00:17:59.299 --> 00:18:05.660 he says, marriage is not sinful. He says, I think 00:18:05.660 --> 00:18:08.670 it's better for you not to marry, but if... One 00:18:08.670 --> 00:18:12.309 does choose to marry. He doesn't tend in doing 00:18:12.309 --> 00:18:16.970 that. Marriage is not sinful. The point is that 00:18:16.970 --> 00:18:21.369 we need to be sure that it's God's will for us, 00:18:21.470 --> 00:18:24.509 and that it's not just social pressure forcing 00:18:24.509 --> 00:18:29.509 us into marriage. God has ordained marriage for 00:18:29.509 --> 00:18:34.049 the blessing of mankind, and it is a necessity. 00:18:35.150 --> 00:18:38.250 for the propagation of the human race, it is 00:18:38.250 --> 00:18:43.869 good, it is not sinful, but we have to recognize 00:18:43.869 --> 00:18:47.269 that marriage, blessing that it is, does bring 00:18:47.269 --> 00:18:50.950 trouble in this life. As Paul says here, the 00:18:50.950 --> 00:18:54.950 word trouble in this verse means pressure. There 00:18:54.950 --> 00:18:56.930 are difficulties, there are hardships, there 00:18:56.930 --> 00:19:01.089 are griefs that come with the blessing of marriage. 00:19:03.269 --> 00:19:07.210 Those troubles are due to our human fallenness. 00:19:08.630 --> 00:19:12.250 We are sinners, and because of that we also give 00:19:12.250 --> 00:19:16.069 birth to little sinners. And the result is that 00:19:16.069 --> 00:19:21.470 there are troubles that come with Mary. It can 00:19:21.470 --> 00:19:26.569 be summarized in words like anger, and forgetfulness, 00:19:28.190 --> 00:19:33.410 and dishonesty, pride, indulgence. Demand. Thoughtlessness. 00:19:37.609 --> 00:19:39.289 You see, all of those things come out of our 00:19:39.289 --> 00:19:43.450 humanness. And they come with us in marriage. 00:19:44.109 --> 00:19:47.049 And therefore, there's trouble. Marriage does 00:19:47.049 --> 00:19:51.450 not solve problems. For some of you who are single 00:19:51.450 --> 00:19:53.490 -thinkers, if I could just get married, it would 00:19:53.490 --> 00:19:58.230 solve my problems. It does not solve problems. 00:19:58.289 --> 00:20:04.200 What it does is magnify problems. The only thing 00:20:04.200 --> 00:20:06.160 worse than waiting to get married is wishing 00:20:06.160 --> 00:20:12.259 that you had. I'll tell you something, living 00:20:12.259 --> 00:20:17.180 in single blessedness is better than living in 00:20:17.180 --> 00:20:21.319 married cussedness. You need to think about that 00:20:21.319 --> 00:20:25.380 before you get married. There can be trouble 00:20:25.380 --> 00:20:29.519 in marriage. And so the bottom line that Paul 00:20:29.519 --> 00:20:33.640 comes to is this. Each father or each parent 00:20:33.640 --> 00:20:37.859 is free to decide for himself regarding the marriage 00:20:37.859 --> 00:20:42.039 of his daughter. This is verses 36 to 38. He 00:20:42.039 --> 00:20:47.299 may permit the marriage if he, in withholding 00:20:47.299 --> 00:20:53.940 the permission to marry, in thus acting unbecomingly 00:20:53.940 --> 00:20:56.700 toward his daughter, if in doing so he is creating 00:20:56.700 --> 00:21:00.690 pressure in her. that is unwarranted, then he 00:21:00.690 --> 00:21:03.130 should grant her the privilege to marry. If she 00:21:03.130 --> 00:21:06.970 desires it, probably because she doesn't have 00:21:06.970 --> 00:21:10.369 the gift of singleness, he says if she has passed 00:21:10.369 --> 00:21:14.670 the full blossom of her youthfulness, which doesn't 00:21:14.670 --> 00:21:16.970 mean necessarily she's an old maid, but she is 00:21:16.970 --> 00:21:21.230 mature enough to make up her own mind, Paula's 00:21:21.230 --> 00:21:23.609 saying you can permit the marriage, verse 36. 00:21:24.609 --> 00:21:26.950 But he says you can also not permit the marriage, 00:21:27.170 --> 00:21:31.549 verse 37. If that is a conviction, then don't 00:21:31.549 --> 00:21:34.710 permit the marriage. Now in our culture today, 00:21:34.730 --> 00:21:37.690 how does all of this apply? It seems to me it's 00:21:37.690 --> 00:21:40.529 this. Each one has to decide for himself regarding 00:21:40.529 --> 00:21:45.609 whether he should marry or not. Now we live in 00:21:45.609 --> 00:21:50.730 a culture that has sort of demeaned the single 00:21:50.730 --> 00:21:55.390 state. If someone is not married, then something 00:21:55.390 --> 00:21:58.890 must be wrong with them. is often how people 00:21:58.890 --> 00:22:01.569 view, at least in the past, have viewed singles. 00:22:02.990 --> 00:22:08.470 That is so unscriptural, unbiblical. To be single 00:22:08.470 --> 00:22:11.470 has great advantage, and it is a blessed fate 00:22:11.470 --> 00:22:16.589 from God, it is a gift from God. And so I come 00:22:16.589 --> 00:22:18.829 back to my main point this morning, and that 00:22:18.829 --> 00:22:22.890 is this, that we need to live wisely using God's 00:22:22.890 --> 00:22:26.279 gifts to serve Him in the world. And if God has 00:22:26.279 --> 00:22:28.960 given you the gift of singleness, my friend, 00:22:29.420 --> 00:22:34.279 thank God for that and use it. And do not feel 00:22:34.279 --> 00:22:38.720 pressured into marriage. Now that brings us to 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:42.579 a final question, verses 39 and 40, and that 00:22:42.579 --> 00:22:46.900 is the question, should a widow remarry? Or we 00:22:46.900 --> 00:22:51.940 can say, should a widower remarry? God's principle... 00:22:52.240 --> 00:22:55.099 as is clearly seen here, is that marriage is 00:22:55.099 --> 00:23:00.380 until death. Now that wasn't his ideal. God's 00:23:00.380 --> 00:23:03.099 ideal was Adam and Eve would live on in that 00:23:03.099 --> 00:23:07.140 relationship, in their innocence and not know 00:23:07.140 --> 00:23:11.700 death. But because of the influence of sin and 00:23:11.700 --> 00:23:16.799 death, God's ideal was reduced to marriage between 00:23:16.799 --> 00:23:21.059 a man and woman until death. Now Paul has three 00:23:21.059 --> 00:23:24.980 notes here. It seems to me regarding his counsel 00:23:24.980 --> 00:23:28.500 to widows and whether they should remarry. Frankly, 00:23:28.700 --> 00:23:32.220 most widows that I know would laugh at this question. 00:23:32.400 --> 00:23:34.900 Should a widow remarry? You've got to be kidding 00:23:34.900 --> 00:23:41.900 me. But Paul's first note is this. It's a note 00:23:41.900 --> 00:23:45.579 about liberation, that death frees the survivor 00:23:45.579 --> 00:23:49.759 to marry again if he or she wishes to do so. 00:23:50.779 --> 00:23:56.660 Most don't will. And that's fine. And that time 00:23:56.660 --> 00:23:59.240 of life, although it can be lonely, can also 00:23:59.240 --> 00:24:03.319 be a very fruitful time of life, as that singleness 00:24:03.319 --> 00:24:09.059 is used for the glory of God. But then Paul's 00:24:09.059 --> 00:24:10.900 second note in the stipulation says, you may 00:24:10.900 --> 00:24:15.059 be married, but in the Lord, it must be to a 00:24:15.059 --> 00:24:18.819 believer. And then he gives a consideration, 00:24:18.819 --> 00:24:21.890 and that is, A greater happiness will be found 00:24:21.890 --> 00:24:25.710 in following his earlier advice to stay single, 00:24:26.710 --> 00:24:28.410 particularly in light of the present distress. 00:24:30.049 --> 00:24:33.450 So those are Paul's few words, as it turns out, 00:24:33.690 --> 00:24:37.009 to whither they should remarry. Now, to put a 00:24:37.009 --> 00:24:39.150 line under this and sum it up, I want to talk 00:24:39.150 --> 00:24:43.349 about five observations about marriage that we 00:24:43.349 --> 00:24:46.769 glean from this chapter. The first is this. Only 00:24:46.769 --> 00:24:50.230 you can decide if married will help or hinder 00:24:50.230 --> 00:24:53.829 your life mission. That is God's purpose in your 00:24:53.829 --> 00:24:56.529 life. Only you can decide that. Your mom and 00:24:56.529 --> 00:24:58.750 dad can't decide it for you. Your friends can't 00:24:58.750 --> 00:25:00.890 decide it for you. Be they single or married, 00:25:00.910 --> 00:25:05.529 don't be pressured by them. Only you can decide 00:25:05.529 --> 00:25:09.990 if marriage will help you or hinder you in accomplishing 00:25:09.990 --> 00:25:12.630 God's mission and purpose in your life. I think 00:25:12.630 --> 00:25:17.130 back to Jim Elliott, who waved this a long time. 00:25:17.480 --> 00:25:22.599 before he asked Elizabeth to marry him. Because 00:25:22.599 --> 00:25:26.480 he was very serious about being devoted to the 00:25:26.480 --> 00:25:30.019 Lord. And finally he decided marriage indeed 00:25:30.019 --> 00:25:34.619 would help him. But only he can decide that. 00:25:34.920 --> 00:25:38.880 Secondly, parental involvement and pastoral counsel 00:25:38.880 --> 00:25:42.940 in the decision are important. You will make 00:25:42.940 --> 00:25:45.819 a big mistake if you don't include your parents. 00:25:47.759 --> 00:25:50.900 in the process of making the decision, should 00:25:50.900 --> 00:25:55.380 I marry this person or not? You need to listen 00:25:55.380 --> 00:25:59.380 to their counsel because they know you better 00:25:59.380 --> 00:26:04.279 than anybody else. And Paul is here giving pastoral 00:26:04.279 --> 00:26:06.579 counsel, and that's why I say I think it's important 00:26:06.579 --> 00:26:10.359 to talk to a pastor. We use a test here in our 00:26:10.359 --> 00:26:12.599 church as part of the pre -married counseling. 00:26:13.230 --> 00:26:16.390 That is a tremendous tool in helping a couple 00:26:16.390 --> 00:26:20.190 see whether or not they're compatible. And to 00:26:20.190 --> 00:26:23.230 understand what issues they're going to face 00:26:23.230 --> 00:26:29.130 in their marriage should they proceed. It is 00:26:29.130 --> 00:26:32.650 important to get that kind of counsel as you 00:26:32.650 --> 00:26:35.410 are thinking about marriage. Third, marriage 00:26:35.410 --> 00:26:40.450 brings both joys and cares. That's obvious. And 00:26:40.450 --> 00:26:44.559 before if you marry, Marry only in the Lord. 00:26:45.920 --> 00:26:49.400 Somebody said if you're a child of God and you 00:26:49.400 --> 00:26:51.440 marry a child of the devil, you're going to have 00:26:51.440 --> 00:26:58.119 a lot of trouble with your father -in -law. God 00:26:58.119 --> 00:27:01.579 commands us to be married only in the Lord, only 00:27:01.579 --> 00:27:06.920 to other believers. Number four. Number five. 00:27:07.299 --> 00:27:10.019 Whatever your marital state, use it for the glory 00:27:10.019 --> 00:27:14.079 of God. and the advance of His kingdom. That 00:27:14.079 --> 00:27:16.359 brings me back to my point again, and I repeat 00:27:16.359 --> 00:27:23.799 it. Live wisely, using God's gifts to serve Him 00:27:23.799 --> 00:27:28.119 in your world. And as Paul points out in this 00:27:28.119 --> 00:27:31.299 chapter, do that because you don't have long, 00:27:33.200 --> 00:27:37.940 the Lord may be coming soon. We may be facing 00:27:37.940 --> 00:27:46.589 persecution in our country. Life is short. The 00:27:46.589 --> 00:27:49.990 time is short. Therefore, use your gifts to serve 00:27:49.990 --> 00:27:58.930 the Lord. A man that I was pleased to be able 00:27:58.930 --> 00:28:04.990 to call a friend in recent years was Judge James 00:28:04.990 --> 00:28:09.789 Knutson. Some of you knew Judge Knutson in Anoka 00:28:09.789 --> 00:28:13.170 County. He passed away in February at 80 years 00:28:13.170 --> 00:28:17.329 of age. I knew the judge from a certain relationship, 00:28:17.450 --> 00:28:22.130 but I did not understand the depth of his influence 00:28:22.130 --> 00:28:26.670 in the lives of people. His memorial service 00:28:26.670 --> 00:28:31.529 was probably close to two hours long, as selected 00:28:31.529 --> 00:28:36.289 people got up and talked about how he had cut 00:28:36.289 --> 00:28:42.829 their lives. in a variety of ways. And then, 00:28:42.990 --> 00:28:46.829 I think it was the pastor of his church who got 00:28:46.829 --> 00:28:50.529 up and read a poem that Judge Knutson wanted 00:28:50.529 --> 00:28:54.210 read on that occasion. Because it summarized 00:28:54.210 --> 00:28:59.710 how he saw his life. It was a poem written by 00:28:59.710 --> 00:29:03.950 Samuel Shoemaker. He entitled it, An Apologia 00:29:03.950 --> 00:29:09.690 for My Life. That is, a reason for my life. It's 00:29:09.690 --> 00:29:14.410 entitled, I stand by the door. Listen to these 00:29:14.410 --> 00:29:19.250 words. I stand by the door. I neither go too 00:29:19.250 --> 00:29:23.009 far in nor stay too far out. The door is the 00:29:23.009 --> 00:29:27.089 most important door in the world. It is the door 00:29:27.089 --> 00:29:32.490 through which men walk when they find God. There's 00:29:32.490 --> 00:29:36.109 no use my going way inside and staying there. 00:29:36.519 --> 00:29:39.880 And for many are still outside, and they, as 00:29:39.880 --> 00:29:44.839 much as I, craze to know where the door is. And 00:29:44.839 --> 00:29:51.359 all that so many ever find is only the wall where 00:29:51.359 --> 00:29:54.579 a door ought to be. They creep along the wall 00:29:54.579 --> 00:29:58.000 like blind men with outstretched groping hands, 00:29:59.200 --> 00:30:02.779 feeling for a door, knowing there must be a door, 00:30:03.079 --> 00:30:08.980 yet they never find it. so I stand by the door. 00:30:10.980 --> 00:30:13.059 The most important, the most tremendous thing 00:30:13.059 --> 00:30:17.079 in the world is for men to find that door, the 00:30:17.079 --> 00:30:20.880 door to God. The most important thing any man 00:30:20.880 --> 00:30:24.299 can do is to take hold of one of those blind, 00:30:24.420 --> 00:30:28.619 gulping hands and put it on the lap, the lap 00:30:28.619 --> 00:30:32.359 that only clicks and opens to the man's own touch. 00:30:34.400 --> 00:30:38.579 Men die outside the door as starving beggars 00:30:38.579 --> 00:30:42.099 die on cold nights in cruel cities in the dead 00:30:42.099 --> 00:30:46.299 of winter. Die for want of what is within their 00:30:46.299 --> 00:30:52.660 grasp. They live on the other side of it. Live 00:30:52.660 --> 00:30:56.819 because they have not found it. Nothing else 00:30:56.819 --> 00:31:01.799 matters compared to helping them find it and 00:31:01.799 --> 00:31:11.970 open it. and walk in and find him. And so I stand 00:31:11.970 --> 00:31:20.609 by the door. Isn't that what using our gifts 00:31:20.609 --> 00:31:24.569 to serve God is all about? Isn't just living 00:31:24.569 --> 00:31:33.380 wisely to stand by the door? Life is quickly 00:31:33.380 --> 00:31:38.299 passing. Harry Ironside included this poem in 00:31:38.299 --> 00:31:43.259 his sermon on this text. Life at best is very 00:31:43.259 --> 00:31:46.940 brief, like the falling of a leaf, like the binding 00:31:46.940 --> 00:31:53.299 of a chief. Be in time. Ferris flowers soon decay, 00:31:53.480 --> 00:31:57.299 youth and beauty pass away. Oh, you have not 00:31:57.299 --> 00:32:06.000 long to stay. Be in time. And if you know today 00:32:06.000 --> 00:32:08.480 without Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, 00:32:10.059 --> 00:32:16.400 be in time. Don't wait. Don't put off the decision 00:32:16.400 --> 00:32:21.119 to trust Him because life is short. The Bible 00:32:21.119 --> 00:32:24.019 says that today is the day of salvation. You 00:32:24.019 --> 00:32:28.279 are not promised tomorrow. And if you know Jesus 00:32:28.279 --> 00:32:31.900 Christ as your Savior, let's stand by that door 00:32:31.900 --> 00:32:37.779 and be there in time. and use whatever gifts 00:32:37.779 --> 00:32:41.000 God has given us, be we made or single, to use 00:32:41.000 --> 00:32:44.019 those gifts that He has given us to serve Him 00:32:44.019 --> 00:32:49.059 in the world and live life. Let's pray together. 00:32:56.680 --> 00:32:58.900 As we talked about the advantage of the single 00:32:58.900 --> 00:33:03.309 life this morning, You may thank God that you're 00:33:03.309 --> 00:33:05.589 single, or you may be a very frustrated single 00:33:05.589 --> 00:33:12.970 person. May I encourage you to stop focusing 00:33:12.970 --> 00:33:17.990 on your singleness, and to focus on the door, 00:33:20.690 --> 00:33:23.650 to focus on God's will and mission in your life, 00:33:24.890 --> 00:33:27.390 and determine to live wisely using the gifts 00:33:27.390 --> 00:33:32.819 He's given you. And if He brings you into a marriage 00:33:32.819 --> 00:33:37.819 relationship, then bless God for it. If He does 00:33:37.819 --> 00:33:40.660 not, then bless God that He has given you the 00:33:40.660 --> 00:33:45.539 single opportunity to serve Him and praise Him 00:33:45.539 --> 00:33:53.119 for the advantage of it. Married Christian, marriage 00:33:53.119 --> 00:33:55.960 has its troubles, doesn't it? I'm not telling 00:33:55.960 --> 00:34:01.460 you anything you don't know. But will you use 00:34:01.460 --> 00:34:05.480 your Mary, that gift from the Lord, to serve 00:34:05.480 --> 00:34:12.579 Him? Will you get your eyes off of the troubles 00:34:12.579 --> 00:34:18.099 and on what the Lord has given you in this town, 00:34:18.800 --> 00:34:24.619 that wonderful gift, and determined by His grace 00:34:24.619 --> 00:34:28.739 to work through the troubles? so that you can 00:34:28.739 --> 00:34:33.559 accomplish your mission, Bing Wade, I hope you 00:34:33.559 --> 00:34:38.659 will. I know it may be tough. I know you have 00:34:38.659 --> 00:34:40.599 some things to work through that may be very 00:34:40.599 --> 00:34:45.440 hard, but God will be with you. God will bless 00:34:45.440 --> 00:34:53.159 you and drive it. Father, I pray that whatever 00:34:53.159 --> 00:34:58.449 our street that we will learn to be content, 00:35:00.250 --> 00:35:03.369 and that in this state that you have called us, 00:35:04.829 --> 00:35:11.070 we will choose to live wisely, not holding tightly 00:35:11.070 --> 00:35:15.489 to the things that are passing away, but focusing 00:35:15.489 --> 00:35:18.429 on that which is eternal, standing by the door 00:35:18.429 --> 00:35:23.630 and using the gifts that you've given us to serve 00:35:23.630 --> 00:35:30.289 you in the world for which you've put it. would 00:35:30.289 --> 00:35:35.730 strengthen our resolve to be fully devoted followers. 00:35:39.690 --> 00:35:44.650 In Jesus name I pray. Amen.