1 Corinthians 7:27

Now concerning virgins, I have no commandment of the Lord, yet I give my judgment as one that has obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful... Are you bound unto a wife? Seek not to be loosed. Are you loosed from a wife? Seek not a wife. But and if you marry, you have not sinned... Nevertheless, such shall have trouble in the flesh, but I spare you. But this I say, brethren, the time is short... For the fashion of this world is passing away. (1 Corinthians 7:25–31)

In a culture grasping to hold onto it all, Paul calls believers to a light grip on this fleeting world and a firm grip on the kingdom of God.

The Division at Corinth Over Marriage

Paul in 1 Corinthians 7 speaks at length on marriage because there was division within the church at Corinth. Those who came to Christ from a Jewish background held that marriage was the ultimate purpose of man and the ultimate desire of God—the man would marry and fulfill the first commandment in Genesis to be fruitful and multiply. They looked upon someone of marriageable age who was single with a frown, considering them perhaps even cursed.

But there were also Greek believers in Corinth, Christians from a Gentile background, who believed the best way to serve the Lord was to be wholly devoted to Him in singleness. There was a clear problem: some said singleness was best, others said marriage was best. From the beginning of the chapter, Paul makes clear that neither one is better, neither one is more spiritual or more blessed than the other. Singleness or celibacy is good, though it can be tempting; and marriage is good as well.

"I Have No Commandment of the Lord"

When we come to verse 25, Paul says, "Now concerning virgins, I have no commandment of the Lord." This is not a confession that the passage is uninspired, for all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is useful for doctrine and instruction. Paul means there was no commandment Jesus gave during His earthly ministry on this issue of virgins. So he speaks as an apostle, as one who has received mercy from the Lord and is faithful, giving his judgment and wisdom.

The word translated virgins is feminine; Paul is apparently addressing young ladies in the church who had never been and were not married. He says it is good for them, for the present distress, to remain single. The default assumption among both Jews and Greeks was that women would be married, and if a woman was not, they looked upon her as if something were wrong. Unfortunately, we still carry that mindset in our own culture. But Paul says it is okay for them to remain single.

When he adds in verse 26, "it is good for a man so to be," the word man is the Greek anthropos—though masculine, it speaks of humankind, both male and female. So for both men and women, being single is an okay and even good thing, not necessarily bad. The problem is the pressure our culture imposes on people to marry when God may have called them to singleness.

"Seek Not a Wife"

In verse 27 Paul says, "Are you bound to a wife? Seek not to be loosed." This is already established truth. But then he adds, "Are you loosed from a wife? Seek not a wife." We all begin life single, and once married we are not to become single again. So while single, it is important to recognize whether the Lord may be calling you to remain single as unto Him.

For some this is a difficult exhortation. The desire for marriage can be intense, especially under cultural pressure. But Paul says if you are not married, do not seek a spouse. The word translated seek means to strive to find or demand to get. Striving to find what God has not brought you may land you in a poor situation. Some have sought a spouse and found one—there are many single people in the world—but were not equally yoked.

This same word is used by Jesus in Matthew 6:33: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." The single individual needs to be wholly dedicated to seeking God and His kingdom, unhindered and unencumbered. If marriage is God's plan for you, it will be added. Think back to Eden: God brought the animals to Adam in twos, but no counterpart was found for him. Adam could have sought a spouse for himself—and the best he could have done was a nice good-looking ape. But that is not God's design. God caused a deep sleep to come upon him and brought him Eve. "This is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh." So seek first the kingdom; seek not a spouse.

Marriage Is Good—But Brings Trouble in the Flesh

Lest we assume Paul is against marriage, notice verse 28: "But if you marry, you have not sinned. And if a virgin marries, she has not sinned." Singleness is not better; marriage is not sin or superior. Marriage is a legitimate option—but it is good to first consider whether the Lord would call a person to walk in singleness, devoted to Him in purity.

"Nevertheless, you shall have trouble in the flesh." The Greek word is thlipsis, meaning to be pressed together or under pressure—elsewhere translated tribulation, affliction, anguish. Have any of you married couples experienced tribulation, anguish, or hard pressure in marriage? Marriage is not the solution to all problems. Single people often naively expect marriage to answer loneliness, lust, and immorality, but these are not eradicated when two are joined as husband and wife.

In fact, when two sinners are joined in marriage, the problems of human nature are multiplied, not diminished. They are still sinners, now bound to another sinner, and their sins become more apparent. How many of you didn't think you were all that selfish until you got married? You were always selfish—but now it is very clear. And when two sinners come together, they produce new sinners. Paul illustrates this further in verse 32: the unmarried care for the things of the Lord, how they may please Him, but the married care for the things of this world, how they may please their spouse. That is not sinful—it is simply a reality the single person does not experience.

"But I Spare You"

Paul says, "You will have trouble in the flesh, but I spare you." You have to recognize the comedy in that little addition. It makes me wonder if Paul was married before this point—I think he probably was, and understood by experience the pressures of marriage.

Lest I get into trouble, let me be clear: marriage is a blessing, with many great blessings. However, our culture has over-romanticized marriage to the point where people enter it with unreasonable expectations that soon collide with the reality that marriage is work. Just before I got married, my wife's parents—married more than thirty years, which is the exception and not the rule—told me, "Marriage is not a fifty-fifty relationship. It's a hundred-hundred." Both husband and wife must give 100 percent. The divorce statistics make clear that many are unwilling to do that work. A good marriage does not just happen.

The Present Distress and the Shortness of Time

Paul is speaking to a specific church at a specific time experiencing "the present distress." In the mid-fifties A.D., when Paul wrote, Nero—one of the worst emperors Rome ever had—had come to the throne a couple of years before. The winds of persecution were beginning to blow. The Jews had been expelled from Rome, Christians were seen as a sect of Judaism, and persecution would grow until state-sponsored persecution under Nero in the mid-sixties A.D. So because of the present distress, Paul says it is not a bad thing to remain single and focus on the work of the Lord.

He continues in verse 29: "The time is short." Paul believed Jesus could return at any time for His church—an expectation we still hold two thousand years later. But beyond that, Paul knew that life in general is very short. Moses wrote in Psalm 90:10, "The days of our years are threescore and ten; and if by reason of strength, fourscore years." Amazing that thousands of years ago Moses pinned down twenty-first-century life expectancy—70 to 80 years. And he applies it in Psalm 90:12: "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom."

James understood it too: "You that say, tomorrow we will go into such a city... whereas you know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away" (James 4:13–14). And Peter, quoting Isaiah: "All flesh is grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the field. The grass withers, and the flower fades away." Man in his flesh does not like to recognize the shortness of life—that is why people don't like funerals. But ten out of ten people die.

How the Shortness of Life Should Change Us

Peter applies it in 1 Peter 4:7: "The end of all things is at hand. Be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves... As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." Since time is short, we ought to use the gifts God has given, love one another, and be a witness.

Paul says the same in Romans 13:11–14: "Knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep... The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light... put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof." Moses, James, Peter, Paul—the Scriptures make it clear: this life is short, so we must use our time wisely.

A Light Grip: The Pleasures of This World

Paul gives four things we ought to grip lightly, knowing the fashion of this world is passing away. We will look at them in reverse order, beginning in verse 31: "those that use this world, as not abusing it." The first thing to grip lightly is the pleasures of this world. God has given us many rich things to enjoy—1 Timothy 6:17 says God "giveth us richly all things to enjoy." But while we enjoy them, we cannot set our hearts on them, because they are fleeting and will all burn.

Too many, especially in our nation, live merely to have a good time rather than to glorify the Lord. By indulging the pleasures of this world to please themselves, they fail to recognize our ultimate purpose is to please God. Revelation 4:11: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." I believe God is pleased when He sees us enjoying His creation—but when those pleasures become our sole focus, it is an abuse.

Inordinate leisure time, the focus on early retirement or more comfortable homes, can dominate our minds and cause us to neglect the spiritual areas of our lives. Yet we must maintain balance, for the pendulum can swing to asceticism, where some Christians live like somber prudes, denying every enjoyment. That too is an abuse. We are to use this world, but not abuse it.

A Light Grip: The Possessions of This World

Paul says, "those that buy, as though they possessed not." We in twenty-first-century Western culture, especially in America, are governed by pleasure and preoccupied with possession. I have traveled all over the world, and America is the only place I have seen self-storage units. We hold on to so much that it can be said our possessions possess us—things move from the living room to the closet to the garage, until we rent a climate-controlled, secured facility to keep them safe.

How do we live unpossessed by our possessions? First, we must recognize we are stewards of all we have, not owners. In 1 Corinthians 10:26 and 28 Paul quotes Psalm 24, "The earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof." In Psalm 50:12 God says, "The world is mine, and the fullness thereof." Everything—including you and I—is the Lord's, given to us that we might be good stewards.

Our flesh wants to grab and hold: this is mine. So if it is holding you up or holding you back, give it away or throw it away—you can't take it with you. This starts young. Last night our nearly one-year-old daughter Addison sat in an empty block-basket, perfectly content, as if it were her whole world. Then her brother saw her joy and wanted the basket—there was almost a little war, but thankfully there were two baskets. "This is mine." No—the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. We are managers, not owners.

A Light Grip: Our Emotions

Paul says, "those that weep, as though they wept not; and those that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not." Our emotions should have a light grip on us. Christians are not to be emotionless, but neither are they to be dominated and controlled by emotion. When affliction surfaces—a loved one diagnosed with a terminal disease, or someone dying without warning—our hearts will be moved. But in that affliction the mature Christian will not lose hope, purpose, or motivation for living.

Likewise our rejoicing should be measured by reality. This past Monday the San Francisco Giants won their first World Series since 1954; the whole dugout emptied to celebrate. But it is a measured joy, because in a few short weeks they must prepare for another difficult season with opponents gunning to dethrone them. The victory of today does not assure victory tomorrow. So we should know how to rejoice in victory and how to sorrow in loss, but never lose sight that there is more to do until the Lord comes. Our weeping ought not to derail us, and our rejoicing ought not to distract us.

A Light Grip: Marriage and the Right Priorities

Thirdly, marriage: "they that have wives be as though they had none." This does not mean spouses are to neglect one another—Paul already said in verse 3 that husband and wife are to render to one another and not defraud. Rather, married couples must work double time to fulfill their responsibilities both to their spouse and to the Lord. Having a spouse does not reduce our obligation of devotion to God. In Genesis 2:18, Eve was made to be a helpmate in the work of God, not a distraction from it.

I find it interesting how a couple will serve in a ministry while dating and engaged, then quit serving once married—"I've got to focus on the family." I understand focusing on the family, but where does it say you ought not also serve the Lord? This brings me to priorities. Our church culture says: God first, then family, then the work of God, then employment, then leisure. I suggest two and three have been flipped. It should be God, then the work of God, with everything else flowing from that.

Why? Serving God means serving our wives and families. Devotion to God overflows in faithful service to our employers, and the love of God is expressed even in how we care for His temple—our bodies—through rest and leisure. So the work of God encompasses family, employment, and leisure; they are all part of His work. We must be balanced: God first, the work of God second, and all these things as part of His work.

The Fashion of This World Is Passing Away

Every one of these four areas—pleasures, possessions, emotions, marriage—is part of the schema, the fashion of this world, and it will pass away. Jesus makes clear in Matthew 22 there will be no marriage in heaven. The next life will be different. The things we possess, the things that please us, the things that emotionally stir us in this life will not carry over. Our focus, therefore, should be on what is eternal—God and His work, which continues into eternity.

It is amazing how we reorder our lives and schedules for worldly things—this practice, this class, this activity—while the work of God falls down the list. You would do well to engage your family in the service of the Lord. Some say, "We're having family night"—watching Friday night TV. I guarantee that bringing your children along to serve the Lord has more eternal effect than that. This does not mean you can never simply enjoy your family, but our lives must be balanced.

First John 2:15–17: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world... For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever." The things of this world are passing away, but he who does the will and work of God abides forever. Are we invested in things of eternal value, or grasping at the wind of a fading world?

The Witness of the Abundant Life

Marriage, sorrow, rejoicing, possessions, pleasure—they all have their proper place in the Christian life, but they become sinful when they dominate our behavior and thoughts. Paul's exhortation is: do not overvalue earthly things; keep them in perspective. There is a battle between flesh and spirit—the flesh wants to grab and never let go; the spirit recognizes that the best thing we can do is let go and grab onto the Lord, seeking first His kingdom and righteousness. This is completely antithetical to our culture and even to the mindset within the church. But God's word is revolutionary, living, and powerful; it cuts deep.

The world needs to see this witness. Jesus said in John 10 He came to give us life more abundantly. We have wrongly thought the abundant life means joys, pleasures, and rejoicing—but often those are illusions set before us by the thief who comes to steal, kill, and destroy. The abundant life means having a light grip on the things of this world. No other culture clings so hard—people even cryogenically freeze themselves hoping to come back one day and still have it all. But it is all fleeting and it will all burn. Only that which is done for Christ will truly last.

Closing Prayer

Father, I ask that as we prepare to leave today, that You would by Your Spirit cause this word that's been sown to be sown deep in our hearts, not to be easily taken away by the enemy, the cares of this world, or the hardness of our hearts. Father, that we would receive from You Your word, even though it is challenging to our way of thinking and the way we live. Lord, we want to be those that shine as bright lights of what the abundant life is all about. Clearly, as we study Your word, we see that Your view of the abundant life is different than the American view. So God, transform us by the renewing of our minds this week as we meditate upon these things. For we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.