1 Corinthians 7
June 23, 2022
“Now for the matters you wrote about: ‘It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.’” (v1)
Paul, here, is quoting something the Corinthians had asked him about, namely whether it was good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman, even in marriage. That’s because there was a group of Christians at Corinth, who were advocating for celibacy for everyone – probably as a reaction to those in the church who were promoting the kind of sexual promiscuity mentioned in 1 Cor 5-6. Paul though doesn’t agree with the proponents of ‘sexual freedom’ or universal celibacy. Instead, Paul champions how marriage (with sex) and singleness (in celibacy) are both gifts from God (v7) that reflect the gospel. As Sam Allberry says: “If marriage shows us the shape of the gospel, singleness shows us its sufficiency.” (7 Myths of Singleness, p121). This is why, Paul, who celebrates covenant marriage as a reflection of the gospel, simultaneously, champions celibate singleness as a sign of the sufficiency of the gospel. He even describes singleness as a “gift” (v7), one he wishes more of us had – so that we might be “undivided” (v35) in living our lives in such a way as to point others to the perfect marriage that’s coming, when Christ returns for us, His Bride.
Father, I praise You for the way that both marriage and singleness point to the gospel. Forgive those of us who are married for how often we’ve relegated singleness to a lesser, incomplete category of Christian. After all, Your Son and our Savior was the most complete human being to ever live - and He lived His entire life as a single, celibate virgin. I pray for Your encouragement over all those in the Trinity family who are single. May they know the sufficiency of the gospel, and (like those of who are married) find their identity in belonging to Christ, who is coming back one day to consummate the covenant with us for all eternity!
— Pastor Joshua Brooks
Use the following steps to guide your daily time with the Lord…
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Start with prayer. Ask God to open your heart to help you understand and receive His Word.
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Read and observe the passage carefully. As needed, read a second Bible version to help with understanding.
➡️ What does it say?
What does this passage teach me about God? What does it say about my sinful nature and my need for God’s grace? How does this passage point to Jesus?
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➡️ What am I going to do about it?
Does this passage include a promise to claim, an action/attitude to avoid/embrace, or a principle to apply? How can this truth apply to my life? What could my next step be? How can I share this with others? Is there a verse or section of Scripture I need to memorize?
