In today's passage Paul is still addressing questions from the Corinthian church concerning marriage. He gives his opinion on what unmarried believers should do during the time of persecution that was coming against the church.
"Now about virgins: I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy. Because of the present crisis, I think it is good for a man to remain as he is." (1 Corinthians 7:25-26) There may be circumstances in life in which it is best for the single person to remain single, at least for a time. In Paul's day there was much persecution against Christians, and this is what he means when he says "the present crisis". A person who was sharing the gospel could do it more courageously if he (or she) was not concerned that the enemies of the gospel might beat, imprison, or kill their family. Paul did not intend his advice to be used by all single people in all periods of time. We need to keep that in mind today as we read his words.
"Are you pledged to a woman? Do not seek to be released. Are you free from such a commitment? Do not look for a wife." (1 Corinthians 7:27) He says, "If you are already engaged to a woman, don't break your commitment to her. Honor your promise to her and fulfill it. But if you are not already engaged, don't go looking for a wife right now. We don't know what's going to happen next or how fierce the persecution is going to become."
Paul has already said he is not speaking by commandment of the Lord, so the single person in Corinth does not have to obey Paul's advice about not getting married. "But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this." (1 Corinthians 7:28) Again we have to remember to keep Paul's words in the context of the times in which he was living. He's not saying that marriage itself brings troubles in life, but that marriage during persecution brings more troubles into a person's life. This is made clear by what he says in the next three verses.
"What I mean, brothers and sisters, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they do not; those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as though it were not theirs to keep; those who use the things of this world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away." (1 Corinthians 7:29-31) Some scholars believe Paul thought Christ was returning soon. Others believe he thought the persecution might become so horrendous that believers would be prevented from sharing the gospel altogether. I think he may have meant a combination of the two. For example, Paul did not know whether Christ might return at any moment, so he advised the believers to live each day as if Christ were coming that day. This created a sense of urgency in getting the gospel to people who were lost without Christ. In addition, I think Paul also felt an urgency about getting the gospel out because he knew that at any moment persecution could fall so heavily on Christians that those outside the church would be afraid to listen to them or to claim Christ as their Savior.
We should all be living as though time is short. Christ could return today, and we all know people who are lost without Him. On top of that, dislike for Christians continues to grow here in the United States. Right now it's taking the form of ridicule, exclusion, and passive types of discrimination, but we don't know what form it may take in the future. Fierce persecution may break out against us someday. We should strive to get the gospel to everyone we can while we can.
Paul is not telling anyone to shirk his or her responsibilities but to remember that the things of this life are not all that matters. He's saying something like, "Even if you are already married, you must courageously declare the name of Christ. You must not be concerned for the things of this world, such as your properties or other possessions. At any moment all these things could be taken away from us, but Christ can never be taken away from us. And Christ can never be taken away from those who are going to believe your testimonies about Him. This life is not all there is. We all have eternal souls, and we must live with eternity in mind. The things of this life are temporary; the things of the Lord are eternal."
There is a song a lady in our church choir sings about how this world isn't our home. One of the lines goes, "I'm living like I've nothing to lose." That's what Paul is telling the members of the Corinthian church: "Live like you've nothing to lose." That's how Paul lived his own life. He knew that the citizenship of the Christian is in heaven, not on this earth. (Philippians 3:20) He lived with eternity in mind. This world is temporary, and everything in it will someday pass away. But the kingdom of Christ is eternal. We can live every day for Him, knowing that no matter what befalls us in this life, we have an inheritance in heaven that can never be taken away from us. The Apostle Peter is another person who lived like he had nothing to lose. He was able to do this because he always kept in mind the fact that Christians have an inheritance waiting for us that "can never perish, spoil, or fade". (1 Peter 1:4)
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