6.1 Key themes⤒🔗

• Marriage and singleness are gifts from God.
• We must be devoted to Jesus Christ, no matter what our situation in life is.
• If we think of the Word of God, day and night, then we will be like a tree that bears good fruit in every situation.
• One day, the only important questions will be if you believed in Jesus Christ and if you glorified him with the life that he gave you.

6.2 Psalm 1:1-3←⤒🔗

^1:1 How blessed is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand in the pathway with sinners, or sit in the assembly of scoffers!

^1:2 Instead he finds pleasure in obeying the LORD’s commands; he meditates on his commands day and night.

^1:3 He is like a tree planted by flowing streams; it yields its fruit at the proper time, and its leaves never fall off. He succeeds in everything he attempts.

© NET Bible

6.3 – 1 Corinthians 7:31b-35←⤒🔗

^7:31b For the present shape of this world is passing away.

^7:32 And I want you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord.

^7:33 But a married man is concerned about the things of the world, how to please his wife,

^7:34 and he is divided. An unmarried woman or a virgin is concerned about the things of the Lord, to be holy both in body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the things of the world, how to please her husband.

^7:35 I am saying this for your benefit, not to place a limitation on you, but so that without distraction you may give notable and constant service to the Lord.

© NET Bible

6.4 Single or married?←⤒🔗

Marriage and family are two things that can cause a lot of worry for us in this life. A person who is unmarried can also feel a lot of stress because of it. That is why this lesson will focus on marriage and family.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul is answering some questions that the church in Corinth asked him. One of these questions was, Is it better to marry or to stay unmarried? One reason why they asked this question was because persecution was getting worse and worse. Paul called the persecution a “crisis” (1 Corinthians 7:26). You can imagine how difficult it would be for a man if his wife was put in prison because of their Christian faith. Or for a wife if her husband was caught and killed for his faith. These situations would make it difficult to stay faithful to Jesus Christ.

In our passage, Paul says, “I would like you to be free from concern” (verse 32). Here he is not speaking about a good concern. He is speaking about a concern that can take your attention away from the Lord. A married person should be careful of such concerns. If you are married, your “interests are divided” (verse 34). You cannot only think about serving God. You also have to think about serving your husband or your wife.

That is why it can be a good thing if a Christian does not marry. Sometimes we think that there is something wrong with a man or a woman who does not marry. But according to God’s Word, this is not true. An unmarried Christian can have a very full life. He or she can also play an important role in the church. Such a person can have more time to pray and to serve other people. The same is true for a widow or a widower (someone whose husband or wife has passed away).

That does not mean that marriage is bad. Paul had a lot of respect for marriage, even though he was not married. In 1 Corinthians 7:2-5, Paul gives instructions for married people. In Ephesians 5:22-33, he says that marriage is like the relationship between Jesus Christ and his church. It is a very precious thing. Marriage is a gift from God, and to be unmarried is also a gift (1 Corinthians 7:7). The important thing is, how do you use the gift that God gave to you?

6.5 Undivided devotion to the Lord←⤒🔗

As we saw in the last lesson, when we put Jesus first, everything else will fall into the right place. Psalm 1 gives a beautiful picture of this. It talks about a tree that is planted next to a river. When the time comes that there must be fruit on this tree, you will always find fruit on it! This tree will always be beautiful and green — its leaves will not dry out.

The Word of God is like a river. If you are always busy with the Word of God, thinking about it “day and night,” then you will be like a healthy tree. It does not matter what your situation is. Perhaps you are married, or unmarried, or in a difficult marriage. But if the Word of God is feeding you day and night, you will bear good fruit. Your life will be beautiful to God.

We must live in “undivided devotion to the Lord” (1 Corinthians 7:35). Just like a slave who is always standing ready to serve his master, we must always be ready to serve the Lord. Nothing must take our attention away from him. If we are married, we must be married for him. If we raise children, we must raise children for him. If we are single, we must be single for him.

That is why it is very important to make enough time every day to read the Bible and pray. Do it on your own and with your children. If you have a Christian husband or a Christian wife, also read and pray together with him/her. Go to church every Sunday. Do not become so busy that you cannot do these things anymore. Make them your first priority, “day and night.” Then Jesus will stay first in your life, and everything else will fall into place.

6.6 This world is passing away←⤒🔗

Paul reminds the Corinthians, “This world in its present form is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:31b). One day, it will not matter if you were married or unmarried. It will not matter if you were rich or poor. All of these things will be over on the day when Jesus Christ comes again. Then the important questions will be, Did you believe in Jesus Christ, who came to take away your sin? Did you glorify him with the life that he gave to you?