***Commentaries by David Prior, Leon Morris and Simon Kistemaker have contributed greatly to this outline***

I.                   Introduction

I am really enjoying our time in 1 Corinthians and I hope you are as well.  We have covered a number of topics in our previous 20 weeks in this book.  It has been a while since we recapped the whole letter, thus far, so let’s take a minute to do that. 

1-4:         Divisions, specifically divisions in regards to teachers.  Not just preference but exclusivity.  The Corinthians were aligning themselves with one teacher (Paul, Apollos, Cephas) to the exclusion of other teachers.

              Wisdom and eloquence were at the top of the list of qualities that the Corinthians valued.  They aligned themselves with the teachers they determined to be the most eloquent or wise.  Paul reminded them that all teachers are just servants of God.

5:            Paul turned a corner in Chapter 5 and started addressing specific issues in the Corinthian church.  Chapters 1-4 were a little broader in nature, now he focused in on specifics.  In this passage he addressed the issue of incest.  A man was sleeping with his step-mother. 

              Paul said the way to handle that particular situation was to expel the immoral brother.  God’s church is designed to be a place that is different from the world.  When the church turns a blind eye to sin there is no distinction.  We must not judge those outside the church, that’s God’s job, but we are to judge those inside the church and encourage them to be holy.

6:            Sticking with the theme of judgment Paul addressed the issue of lawsuits.  He stated that non-believers have no business judging matters of disagreement between two believers.  Non-believers live under a different set of rules.  They are not qualified to judge matters of litigation between believers.  The grievances between believers should be litigated by those in the church.

              Because of the holiness of God’s church sexual immorality must be avoided.  The main reason that Paul gave for this is that our bodies don’t belong to us.  Christ died for the privilege of being in charge of our bodies.  They are temples of the Holy Spirit.

7:            In Chapter 7 Paul started addressing matters which the Corinthians had specifically questioned him about.  He starts off with his first “now concerning” statement that introduces each of these topics. 

              The first question that he answered was the notion that it was good to remain abstinent, even in marriage.  Paul says that a bunch of hooey!  Sex is good in a marriage relationship. 

              He then states that singleness is just as much a gift from God as marriage is.  Paul himself was single and wishes that more people would grab a hold of that idea and seek to live an unencumbered life in which God can move wherever He wishes.   Paul wants believers to live fully to God’s glory in whatever situation they find themselves in. 

That brings us to our current passage.  We’re going to continue to look at the idea of marriage and singleness.  However, he is addressing another specific question which they asked him because he starts again with, “now concerning.”

1 Corinthians 7:25-35  Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy.  (26)  I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is.  (27)  Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife.  (28)  But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that.  (29)  This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none,  (30)  and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods,  (31)  and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.  (32)  I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord.  (33)  But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife,  (34)  and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband.  (35)  I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.

II.                What to do?  Keep Going  (vv. 26-26)

Our outline this morning starts out looking a lot like last week’s.  Remember the title of last week’s message?  “Stay Where You Are But Keep Moving.”  That was Paul’s cry to the Corinthians about their contentment in the situations that they found themselves in.  Here he is talking specifically about marriage. 

The main imperative is that it is good to remain as you are.

1 Corinthians 7:25-26  Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy.  (26)  I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is.

We are met with another familiar phrase, here.  We’ve already touched on the “now concerning” statement.  Then there is the phrase, “I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment…”  That should remind us of earlier in this chapter (vv. 10, 12) when Paul said “not I, but the Lord” and “I, not the Lord”

There is a striking difference between these statements, however.  The statements in vv. 10 and 12 are followed by commands.  Both commands carry the same authority.  Here, however, the statement is followed by an opinion.  Paul is not giving a command.  He is offering his opinion based on life experience.  His experience and opinion is valid because he has been counted trustworthy by the Lord.

“In view of this present distress…” points us to the current struggles that the Corinthians were facing.  There is much debate (although not heated, because it is of minor significance) as to what the “present distress” is. 

Some think it to be eschatological in nature.  They believe that Paul had in mind the fact that the world was coming to an end, and, in his evangelists’ heart he knew there was much work to be done.  Therefore, his conclusion is that all should remain as they are and work with single-minded perseverance for the cause of Christ.

Others think that Paul is referring to specific persecutions that Corinthian (and Greek) Christians, namely, the persecution of Nero.  I have not done a lot of reading on Nero, but I have done enough to know that he wasn’t a very nice dude.  One of the persecution methods that he used was to wrap Christians in animal skins and threw them in with wild animals to have them devoured.  I do not need to give other examples, as that one illustrates his wickedness enough. 

Still others believe that the “present distress” refers to a general distress that was going on in culture, as opposed to one that was directed specifically at Christians.  It is historically proven that there was a famine in Greece at this time and the Corinthians certainly would have been affected by that. 

Whatever view you take of the “present distress” the point is clear. In light of what’s going on in the world, and we can certainly bring this viewpoint into our current culture, the focus should be on the cause of Christ and advancing the kingdom.

There is an old saying that goes like this: “He’s so heavenly minded he is of no earthly good.”  I have tweaked the saying a little bit and would say that a lot of people are so earthly minded they are of no heavenly good.  We need to have an eternal perspective as we go through life. 

I’m not naïve.  This is very difficult.  There are so many cares of this world and they are constantly on our minds.  The economic struggles of our nation, the health issues in our families, the tragedies of life.  There are many uncertainties and cares.  I face them.  You face them.  And we are all burdened by them.  They rob us of our joy in Christ and they keep us from having peace.  That is why it is so important to constantly be in God’s Word and renewing our minds and refreshing our souls.  There is an abundance of comfort found in the pages of Scripture for those who belong to God.  It is there that we are reminded of our purpose and our eternal destiny. 

III.             What to do? Stop Seeking (vv. 27-28)

1 Corinthians 7:27-28  Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife.  (28)  But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that.

There are a couple of interesting things to notice in these verses.  First, are the two negative imperatives.  The phrase, “do not seek” is repeated twice in verse 27—once in relation to staying married and the other in reference to staying single. 

A lot of people will take this verse to mean that Paul has a low view of marriage.  We have addressed this issue in a couple of other passages in chapter 7, and we have concluded in those instances that he values marriage and singleness both as a gift from God.  So what’s the deal here?  He blatantly says not to seek a wife. 

The key word here is “seek.”  Seeking has the notion of being an all-consuming quest for something.  When a kid plays hide and seek the seekers sole purpose is to find the ones who are hiding.  It’s a very consuming process; one that is very stressful for a young kid!  That’s the idea with seek, here.  It’s a consuming quest.

People will go to great lengths to find a mate.  One of my favorite stories is about a man named David:

David Weinlick was tired of friends and families asking him when he would find a bride and get married. So, he set a wedding date—June 13, 1998. Never mind that he hadn't found a bride yet...

The solution? He appointed a "committee" of friends and family members to find the perfect mate for him. The committee selected Beth Runze as the perfect candidate. Weinlick and Runze were introduced, and they were married as planned that day.

It will be interesting to see how the "marriage by committee" stands up to the test of time. [Note: As of March 1999, David and Beth were still together!]

Paul’s point here is not that you can’t get married.  His point is that in light of the “present distress” your quest should not be for a partner, but for the cause of Christ.  I heard a pastor (Tommy Nelson, Denton Bible Church) illustrate it this way once.  Think of going through life in relation to running a race.  You are running the race with winning intensity.  The only purpose of a runner is to get to the finish line.  Think of the finish line as heaven and the race course as the one that God has mapped out for you.  As you run, you start to notice that there is someone running along with you.  You look over and wave.  They wave back.  You go back to running.  You look over again a little while later and that same person is there.  You smile and wave, they smile and wave back.  Back to the course; after a while you notice that this person in running the same course that you are running and at a speed that is comparable to yours.  So, you invite that person to come on over and run along with you.  You link arms and run together…all the while still headed for the finish line.

The quest is to get to the finish line.  What you’re seeking after is what God’s will is in each situation you find yourself in.  That’s what is consuming you.  If you are gifted for marriage you can be assured that God will bring that person along side of you.  You’re job is to notice them there! 

The second thing we notice is that Paul is very conscientious about clarifying that marriage is not a sin.  We wouldn’t expect him to say anything but that since marriage is God’s idea.  We draw from this that Paul is not commanding singleness, for that would be against God’s idea of marriage.  Rather, this is how we draw our conclusion that Paul is giving his opinion on what he believes to be the best way. If you’re married, stay married.  If you’re single, do not be consumed by looking for a spouse. 

The final thing that we notice from these verses is that those who are married will have worldly troubles.  In light of the “present distress” having a spouse and/or a family simply adds to the burdens of the persecution or the famine.  Paul’s opinion is based on his desire to spare his beloved Corinthians from the added burden of having a family during those struggles. 

IV.            Conclusion

The main point that Paul is trying to make is the uncertainty of life.  The context of this passage runs through the end of the chapter, but we don’t have time to cover all of it this morning.  Given the “present distress” and the fact that “the appointed time has grown very short” (vs. 29) Paul urged the Corinthians to have a gospel focus.  He didn’t want them to be consumed with searching for things that are not of eternal value. While marriage is certainly a gift from God it has no eternal value.  There is no marriage in heaven.