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1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Jesus has promised to return one day to gather all His elect as He has stated in Matthew 24:30 (NKJV), “then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” Jesus goes on the say in Matthew 24:36, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” And in Matthew 24:44 Jesus instructs, “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” I believe that at Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus and for the following three days in which he spent in a room blinded by the glory of the Lord (Acts 9), that God revealed to him these things – the things in which he would spend the rest of his life preaching – things that he could only know by way of God’s Holy Spirit working within him.
In the Apostle Paul’s advice for marriage or not for marriage, his number one teaching point is to get one’s life right with God through salvation in Christ Jesus, for the time is short and the hour is not known when Jesus will return to gather His elect (Matthew 24:30, 36, 44). Paul is preaching that no matter of one’s marital status, the most important thing is to have an open heart to receive Jesus and His Holy Spirit to guide us all to salvation for eternity – in Christ.
This is a command to get one’s heart right with God through salvation in Christ Jesus.
This is a promise that no one knows the day or the hour in which Jesus will return.
As the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 7:31b, “For the form of this world is passing away.” He has given his own advice on two topics, not from God’s instruction, but from Paul’s own experience and understanding of the distractions of this world that can become our focus instead of God being our focus. But what Paul breaks down for us in 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 (and thus far in 1 Corinthians 7) is that there is no “one way” which is right or wrong in marriage but to each his or her own as God leads.
This study in itself, I believe, is a great example of just what Paul is referring to: he is giving instructions on marriage, but his goal is to preach the gospel – the lesson itself can be a distraction from keeping our focus on Jesus as we worry ourselves with earthly things. I believe it is good to take heed and realize that God created us all; He created woman to be man’s companion in this physical world as an example of the type of relationship He desires to have with us in regard to the dedication and obedience to one another that is a teaching point for us all regardless if we are married or not. But this world is temporary, and the things of this world are temporary. The teaching point is to learn to put and keep our focus on God and our salvation in Christ Jesus, and He will lead us through this temporary world to eternity with Him in heaven.
Dear LORD,
Please help us to realize and understand that as you have given us the sacred blessing of marriage in this world, it is not a requirement but a blessing to lead us to a better understanding of the dedication and obedience we should have with You through our salvation in Christ Jesus which leads to eternal marriage of our hearts, souls, and minds with You. In Jesus name I pray, amen.