1Corinthians 7:38-40(NLT)
“So the person who marries his fiancée does well, and the person who doesn’t marry does even better. 39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. If her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but only if he loves the Lord. 40 But in my opinion it would be better for her to stay single, and I think I am giving you counsel from God’s Spirit when I say this.”
After reading this passage, you might come away thinking that God prefers that believers remain single, but this isn’t the case. While it’s true that there are many advantages to remaining single, there are just as many to the ministry of marriage. God has given us free-will, and we get to choose which one is right for the kind of life we want to live. The Apostle Paul’s counsel in 1Corinthians 7:38-40 goes to the heart of our purpose as children of God and brothers and sisters of Christ. He’s instructing us about both service to God as well as marriage, and there’s no question that in this passage, he is prioritizing service to our Heavenly Father.
King Solomon affirms the importance of prioritizing our relationship and responsibilities to God in Ecclesiastes 12:13(NLT). He said, “That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.” This is the Will of God for us, but we have allowed the pull of all the distractions of modern times to occupy our minds and hearts. We live in a very different time and our culture is far away from the kind of dedication and honor towards God that believers had two thousand years ago. Worship, praise, and service to our Heavenly Father was not only their lifestyle, they viewed it as their livelihood, occupation, and recreation. Many of us haven’t quite seen it this way.
In several of the epistles, Paul refers to himself as a slave to God and to Jesus Christ. He was fully persuaded in the Lord and dedicated his entire life to serving God. Today, our schedules are packed, and our agendas are to work and take care of all the many things on our plates. The truth that God teaches us through Paul is that it’s better to simplify our lives as much as possible, so that our walk with Heavenly Father is unencumbered with the cares of the world.
Marriage will bring new complexities and complications. Because our hearts are so heavily invested, these can potentially take our focus off God and off the business of His Kingdom. When this happens, our relationship with Heavenly Father, our faith, and our spiritual growth can slip to second place. This will cause further unhappiness because God is the glue that holds a marriage together, and our relationship with Him must be prioritized correctly. He tells us to put Jesus Christ in the highest place of leadership in the marriage. When this isn’t done, and we take our focus off Jesus, things begin to unravel.
All of us have probably known women that are unhappy being single. They want to meet someone and fall in love. When this finally happens for them, they’re happy for a time, and loves the way the new man makes them feel, but in many situations, this doesn’t last. After that initial phase of newness, some are left feeling as sad as they were before they met this man. This happens when the love of Christ is not the center of our existences. We don’t have the spiritual bandwidth to withstand some of the rigors of relationship. Our Heavenly Father doesn’t want this happening to any of us. If we remained anchored in Him, a lot of this disappointment and heartache can be avoided.
Beginning relationships with the best possible footing requires our full faith and confidence in the truth that God is the Source of all happiness. Paul said in Philippians 4:12-13(NLT), “12 I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” Paul conveys his ability to handle whatever comes his way. Whether he has a lot or a little, he succeeds because of the strength that Christ gives him. We are no different. We are empowered through our Lord and Savior, and to remain in his strength, we must submit wholeheartedly to God.
We must recognize that every good thing that we accomplish in life has Christ at the center of it, and this includes marriage. We make a mistake when we think that another human being can be the source of our happiness when only the Lord can. Marriage is indeed a blessing from God. It requires that faith isn’t just something we go to at a point where it seems the relationship is fizzling. Faith must be anchored in our minds and hearts before we get into relationships, so that we are not just dating to be dating. When our faith is in God through the Lord Jesus Christ, we date with God’s purpose in mind. We should never want to waste emotional resources becoming invested when the person was never meant our destiny partner.
1John 5:4(NLT) tells us, “For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.” Victory is when we are prepared through Jesus Christ to stand on the Word of God no matter the plots, tricks, and traps the enemy sends against us and our unions. When our faith is firmly anchored in God, we can stand strong.
Now is the time to be honest in your assessment of your faith. If your happiness is not in God alone, you must change your agenda, because it should be about pleasing God with your whole life. Understand that He will take care of every detail of our happiness when our faith is firmly planted in Him. So, if there’s any possibility that you are not where you need to be in the faith, pray and get into God’s Word more, then watch as He rewards your increased commitment to put Him first. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
“Your Happiness in God Alone”, written by Kim Times, edited by Reverend Fran Mack and KLizzie for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.