1 Corinthians 7:36-40
Ps Paul Cheng
~5 min read
Dear Bethelities,
The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever (WSC 1)! But how can this truth about the chief end of man be applied to marriage, singlehood or widowhood? Let us consider the Apostle Paul’s advice.
I. His advice to singles
In the preceding verses, Paul spoke about the present distress (v.26) and the trouble in the flesh (v.28) as reasons for why it was good to remain single. In regards to the present distress, he was referring to the persecution that would come from the wicked Emperor Nero, and the believers would be persecuted in ways they had never experienced before. On top of that, there were also the common problems and issues in marriages which the Corinthians would face which was the trouble in the flesh.
Following that, Paul gave his counsel with regards to remaining as singles.
But I would have you without carefulness. He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord. (v.32)
Paul wanted the Corinthians to be free from anxiety (carefulness), and spared from things that would weigh them down. This anxiety was not something sinful or inappropriate; it was the kind of anxiety that people would have to face when they get married.
What are the anxieties that the married person would have to face?
1. Material Concerns
If a person is a single person, in terms of clothing, food and accommodation, all he has to be concerned with is himself. But when he is married, not only he has to be concerned about the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the one he has married. And if he has children, his burdens would be multiplied.
2. Decisions
When a person is single, he is responsible for his own decisions. When he is married, he has to be responsible not only for his own decisions but including those he has to make for his family. He has to think through those issues, based on his understanding of his family, and how it would affect his wife and children (the opposite is also true if the person is a woman, she has to consider how it would affect her husband and children).
Husbands and wives do not always look at things the same way. Sometimes they struggle with their decisions; for example, the spouse may not agree with his job decisions (where to work), location decisions (where to live), education decisions (which school to send the children to), etc. One has to make all these decisions with a spouse who is an individual in his or her own right who may think differently.
3. Spiritual Concerns
If a person is single, he is only concerned and responsible for his own walk with God. But when he is married, he has the added responsibility of being a husband to care for the soul and spiritual well-being of his wife. Again, if he has children, his responsibility will be multiplied.
Having said that, one has to remember that all the above can also be great blessings. It is a blessing to share one’s life together in marriage, and to have a helper in life.
Paul was not saying it was not good to get married; he was giving his counsel in regards to the unique situation of the Corinthians, and in view of the impending danger they would soon face.
He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord. (v.32)
Here Paul was referring to the believer because only the believer would love the Lord and want to please Him. If one truly knew the Lord, he would want to please Him who has saved him, and his unmarried state would enable him to live with this single-minded devotion to please the Lord.
But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife. (v.33)
The married man is divided in his devotion to please the Lord. It does not mean that the married man does not love the Lord, but he has one added hurdle to cross, in his desire to please the Lord, and that is the cares of this world. It is no longer just him and the Lord, now he has to be concerned about your wife’s desires, for she has been entrusted to him and he has the responsibility to lead her. In the past, he sought to glorify God as an individual, now he has to glorify Him not only as an individual but also in the way he deals with his wife - to glorify God as a couple.
There is difference also between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman careth for the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit: but she that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband. (v.34)
To be holy is to be set apart. As believers, are to live a life that is set apart unto God, and there is a difference between the married and unmarried woman. It is easier for the unmarried woman to live such a holy life both in body and in spirit; both physically and spiritually. It does not mean that the married woman is worldly when the Bible said, she careth for the things of the world, but it means she is preoccupied with temporal things.
The married woman’s focus is on the home, and how she is to take care of her home in the midst of the world, so that she may please her husband. The married woman’s calling is to serve the Lord by being a home-maker, and to be a good helper to her husband. It does not mean she ignores the church, or neglects the ministry, but it means that her first area of responsibility is her home. The unmarried woman does not have that kind of concern.
Take the example of the office of deaconesses. The Bible gives the wise counsel about women who are called to be deaconnesses that it is good for them to be sixty years and above. 1 Timothy 5:9, Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man. A typical church session meeting could last for five or six hours, and if the meeting begins at night, then it could only end at midnight. Can you imagine the young married woman who is a deaconess, leaving her young children at home, to attend those session meetings until late in the night? But a woman who is sixty years old and above, even if she is not a widow, her children would all have grown up with her own families. She would be able to serve the Lord without compromising her responsibilities at home.
And this I speak for your profit; not that I may cast a snare upon you, but for that which is comely, and that ye may attend upon the Lord without distraction. (v.35)
The word ”snare” can mean to restrict, or to put one in a tight situation. Some of the Corinthians might be thinking, “Well, Paul, you are single, so surely you are advocating singlehood, and you are trying to force us to be like you.” Therefore, Paul was saying, “I am saying this not to snare you; not to restrict you, or to put you into my same situation. I am saying this, for your profit.” The phrase for that which is comely means for that which is noble and honourable. Singlehood, contrary to what the world may think, is a respectable and honourable estate.
It is honourable because it is the life that God has in store for you. It is honourable because God is seated at the throne of your heart. It is a life of undivided devotion to God. In some ways, it is easier to attend to the things of the Lord without distraction, when you are single.
With love in Christ,
Pastor Paul Cheng
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Singleness Or Marriage (Part 2)Singleness Or Marriage (Part 2)1 Corinthians 7:2-5
Divorce and Remarriage (Part 1)Divorce and Remarriage (Part 1)1 Corinthians 7:10-11
Divorce and Remarriage (Part 2)Divorce and Remarriage (Part 2)1 Corinthians 7:12-16, 39
Be Faithful to Your Calling (Part 1)Be Faithful to Your Calling (Part 1)1 Corinthians 7:17-19, 21-23
Be Faithful to Your Calling (Part 2)Be Faithful to Your Calling (Part 2)1 Corinthians 7:20, 24
Should I Remain Single (Part 1)Should I Remain Single (Part 1)1 Corinthians 7:25-28
Should I Remain Single (Part 2)Should I Remain Single (Part 2)1 Corinthians 7:29-31
An Undivided Devotion To The Lord (Part 2)An Undivided Devotion To The Lord (Part 2)1 Corinthians 7:36-40
An Undivided Devotion To The Lord (Part 1)An Undivided Devotion To The Lord (Part 1)1 Corinthians 7:36-40