Each Has His Own Gift from God

Reading:  1 Corinthians 7:6-11
    
    Paul is responding to the Corinthians’ questions by giving marriage advice.  He suggests that “because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband”(1 Cor 7:2), yet stresses here that this statement is “a concession, not a command”(1 Cor 7:6).  People don’t have to get married to please God or live fulfilled lives.  Paul says that “I wish that all were as I myself am”(1 Cor 7:7), meaning single (v. 8),  yet “each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another”(1 Cor 7:7).  Remaining single and happy is a “gift from God” that not all possess; Paul sees it as a blessing, especially in light of the “present distress”(see v. 26-35).  This is why he advises the “unmarried and the widows” to stay single unless they are unable to control themselves sexually (v. 8-9).  

    Married people, meanwhile, do not have the freedom to choose whether to stay married or be single again.  “To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord):  the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife”(1 Cor 7:10-11).  God wants married people to stay married.  Paul reminds us that it is the Lord (Jesus) himself who gives this instruction.  If divorce does happen (contrary to God’s will), Paul lists the only options as “(remaining) unmarried or else (being) reconciled to her husband.”  Notably absent is remarriage to another.  All of this is building toward Paul’s major point in this chapter:  remain where you were when you were called (v. 17, 24).

    Each one of us has his or her own gift from God.  Rather than viewing singleness as a burden, Paul sees it as a blessing.  Our gifts may involve our talents, relationships, financial states, or personal charisma, but all of them are from God.  Paul wants us to see ourselves as gifted, to give thanks to God, and to use those gifts to honor him.

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One Thing to Think About:  How is this view of singleness different from modern thinking?

One Thing to Pray For:  Wisdom to understand how to use my gifts to please God 
 

Married People Are Not Their Own

Reading:  1 Corinthians 7:1-5
    
    The Corinthians have written Paul asking his advice on certain topics, including marriage.  “Now concerning the matters about which you wrote:  ‘It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman’”(1 Cor 7:1).  I believe that Paul is quoting the Corinthians’ letter here.  Apparently they think that abstaining completely from sex is virtuous, even for the married.  Paul does not agree.  “But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband”(1 Cor 7:2).  Complete sexual abstinence will not be possible for all people (1 Cor 7:7) and marriage should not be disdained just because it involves sex.  The Corinthian perspective of total abstinence goes too far.

    But Paul also wants to advise married people about the nature of their sex lives.  “The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband.  For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does.  Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does”(1 Cor 7:3-4).  When we give ourselves to another in marriage, we belong to them in a unique way.  They now have authority over our body, and we theirs.  This has implications for the willingness to have sexual relations in marriage.  “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control”(1 Cor 7:5).  Refusing to have sex with our mates—unless by temporary mutual agreement—violates our promise to them and may lead to temptation.

    Paul has argued that “you are not your own”(1 Cor 6:19) because we have been bought with a price.  Married people are especially not their own.  Their bodies belong to Jesus and to their mates.  Marital sex strengthens the bonds of our commitment to one another and reduces the temptations of Satan.

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One Thing to Think About:  Why might the Corinthians have thought complete abstinence was best?

One Thing to Pray For:  Willingness to cede my rights to Jesus—and my mate 
 

You Are Not Your Own

Reading:  1 Corinthians 6:15-20
    
    The Corinthians are confused about the nature of “sexual immorality,” specifically regarding visiting prostitutes.  “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?  Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute?  Never!  Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her?  For, as it is written, ‘The two will become one flesh’”(1 Cor 6:15-16).  Our bodies matter.  They are “members of Christ,” meaning that they are connected to him and used for his purposes.  Part of the issue is that the Corinthians fail to understand the meaning of sex.  When we have sex, we are “joined to” that person in that same “one flesh” relationship that characterizes marriage.  Sex makes big promises.  Fornication is also a unique sin in that we “sin against (our) own body”(1 Cor 6:18), violating the very purpose for our bodies (see v. 13).      

     But Paul is especially emphatic that our bodies are already committed to Jesus.   “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?  You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.  So glorify God in your body”(1 Cor 6:19-20).  Serving Jesus is not just a mental experience.  It will involve our bodies as well.  Our bodies are “(temples) of the Holy Spirit” who lives in us as a gift from God.  “You are not your own, for you were bought with a price” connects our redemption with our ongoing commitment to live in God’s will.  We are under new management—including the sexual use of our bodies.  

     Paul does more here than say fornication is wrong.  He wants us to think differently about who we are.  Our bodies are Jesus’ members now, ready at his disposal for his purposes.  We are joined to him in both body and spirit.  The Holy Spirit lives within us and we must maintain purity and holiness in his “temple.”  I am no longer my own—setting my own agenda for my life, basking in my own identity and goals, or making decisions that please me.  I am under new management.

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One Thing to Think About:   How can I use my body to honor Jesus?

One Thing to Pray For:  A willingness to flee from evil (v. 18) 
 

Beyond Black and White

Reading:  1 Corinthians 6:12-14
    
    It appears that the Corinthians, in seeking to justify ongoing fornication (including visiting prostitutes), have a set of “spiritual sayings” that they repeat.  Some translations signify this by putting some of the words here in quotes, such as “all things are lawful for me”(1 Cor 6:12) and “food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”(1 Cor 6:13).  The implications?  Since all things are lawful, fornication is too.  Since sex is made for the body and the body for sex, fornication is natural.  Paul pushes back.  “‘All things are lawful for me,’ but not all things are helpful.  ‘All things are lawful for me,’ but I will not be dominated by anything”(1 Cor 6:12).  Instead of fighting their saying, Paul adds some other considerations.  Is it helpful?  Some perfectly innocent things still cause damage or become unwise.  Are we dominated by it?  Some perfectly innocent things become our masters, crowding out what is truly good.

    But when it comes to fornication itself, Paul does take issue.  “‘Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food’—and God will destroy both one and the other.  The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body”(1 Cor 6:13).  Sex is not like eating, where one partner is as good as another.  This is not why God made our bodies.  Paul speaks about God’s purposes here:  when God gives us a body, it is evil to use our bodies in violation of his purpose for it.  “And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power”(1 Cor 6:14).  Paul also urges us not to treat our bodies as if they are separate from who we truly are; God will raise us bodily.

    Paul forces us to think beyond black and white so that we can develop moral discernment.  In addition to whether something is lawful, we should ask:  is it helpful?  Am I dominated by it?  What is God’s purpose for me?  What does God want regarding this matter?  Beyond black and white, we need wisdom because we still have choices to make with serious consequences.

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One Thing to Think About:   In what “gray areas” do I struggle discerning God’s will?  How might this help?

One Thing to Pray For:  A deeper awareness of God’s purpose for my body, my thinking, and my work 
 

Such Were Some of You

Reading:  1 Corinthians 6:9-11
    
    Rather than absorbing the wrongs others do to them, the Corinthians “wrong and defraud—even your own brothers!”(1 Cor 6:8).   This behavior is more than just being bad at relationships.  “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?”(1 Cor 6:9).  By doing wrong to their brothers, the Corinthians are becoming “unrighteous” (the word means “wrongdoers,” as in v. 8).  When we are consistently unrighteous, we will not be saved.  “Do not be deceived:  neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God”(1 Cor 6:9-10).  Persistent sexual sin—whether fornication, adultery, or homosexuality—makes us unrighteous.  Persistent theft of what is not ours—whether we are “thieves” or “swindlers” or simply being “greedy”—makes us unrighteous.  Paul warns that if the Corinthians continue to do wrong, they become wrong—and that has consequences.

    But there is good news.  “And such were some of you.  But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God”(1 Cor 6:11).  Paul’s list is not a diatribe against the world, but a reminder that we all have firsthand experience with sin.  In fact, we have lived in sin to the point that it began to define us.  We did not just steal; we became thieves.  But God changed us.  He “washed” and “sanctified” and “justified” us, removing our sins from us and dedicating us to his service.  We wear the name of God’s Son and have God’s Spirit within us (see 1 Cor 6:19).  We have hope of inheriting the kingdom of God (see 1 Cor 6:9).  We can’t live the way we used to anymore.

    Paul’s words simultaneously remind us of our past sins and challenge us to live above them.  We have been cleansed, sanctified, and justified, so now we must live like it.  Wronging our brothers—or any other pursuit of sin—reopens a part of our lives Jesus closed.  We become wrongdoers again.  Praise God for washing us clean, but remember:  we can’t live the way we used to anymore!

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One Thing to Think About:   Why is it so important to remember what’s been done for us?

One Thing to Pray For:   Gratitude for God washing, sanctifying, and justifying me