25Now about virgins: I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy. 26Because of the present crisis, I think that it is good for you to remain as you are. 27Are you married? Do not seek a divorce. Are you unmarried? Do not look for a wife. 28But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this.
29What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none; 30those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; 31those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
Dig Deeper
When people ask my advice on the topic, I nearly always counsel that getting married while attending college as a full-time student is an unwise thing. It makes it very difficult for a young person to be a disciple, a good student, and a proper spouse. Although there is an element to the truth that being married will always divide one’s attention away from the Kingdom of God, there are are also many benefits to being married as a disciple. This advice, then, is not universal advice against getting married; I am not a marriage hater. In fact, if God has called someone to be married then they absolutely should. If He has gifted them to be single and has called them to do so, then they should do so with joy. My advice against marrying is very specific advice to people in a specific situation and time in their life. Yet, if for some reason, one of those college students chose to get married, it would not be a sin, it would just be a more difficult situation for them.
This is the case with Paul’s advice here, which can be quite confusing if we forget that he was writing specific advice based on specific questions at a specific time. Our job is to pull out the principles of Paul’s advice and apply them to our own situations, not to woodenly follow his words as though they were a new law that he was writing down. At the time that Paul was writing this, there apparently was a severe shortage of food, particularly grain, in that entire region of the world. This was particularly difficult for those that were poor, as apparently many of the Corinthian Christians were. It was a time of great trouble for those who would have a very difficult time providing food for themselves, let alone a family. Much of Paul’s words here then, must be seen through those lenses. He is offering advice through a difficult but limited situation, but there is a degree to which he thinks his advice has its advantages in general for the Christian who must always realize that their reality is the Kingdom of God not the present age. Thus, in a sense, Paul is referring to the crisis in the present time, but he always has an eye on return of Christ and the ‘age to come’. Christians should never settle in and start living as though the present age is all there is, and that we will be living in this reality forever.
The word translated ‘virgins’ here would be better understood by us if we read it as ‘unmarried’. It refers to those who have never been married. If they were unmarried, Paul says that they should remain that way because of the present crisis. Once again, he is reminding them that, as Christians, they should think situations through and not give into social pressures. To make sure that there are no misunderstandings, though, he covers all his bases by mentioning that if someone is already married, they should use neither the present crisis or the impending ‘age to come’ as excuses to get a divorce. If someone wanted to disregard Paul’s wise advice and get married for whatever reason, they were free to do so. They should not be made to feel like second-class citizens or disobedient Christians, but should realize that they will have to face the challenges of their situation. This section should be rather instructive for those who feel that all advice from a leader or another Christian should be followed blindly, or if they don’t it is sinful and prideful (following wise advice is usually the best medicine, though). It is also rather instructive for those who teach that being a Christian means having a trouble-free life. Paul would not endorse or agree with either of those attitudes.
Paul’s advice that begins in verse 29 must again, be understood as referring to the present crisis as well as having an eye on the Lord’s return. Verse 29 could be rendered “the present situation won’t last long.” If that is the case, then the second half of that verse could actually be advice to engaged couples rather than those who have wives (the word translated “wives” is much less specific than our English counterpart) in the sense that they are already married (it doesn’t make sense otherwise and would seem to be rather contradictory with what he has already written about not abandoning one’s marriage). He is telling them that during the present crisis, they may want to postpone their weddings until a better time. It is true, that although Paul reveres and respects the institution of marriage, he would probably rather see most Christians have the gift of remaining single as he had. He probably realized that the reality of that wasn’t practical or realistic, but that was his preference nonetheless.
Paul continues his thoughts about how to view the world, through the lenses of both the present crisis and the return of the Lord. His words in verse 30 and the first half of 31 are pretty straightforward. What Paul really wants them to understand is what he has been trying to explain this whole chapter. Any situations that they may find themselves in during this life, pale in comparison to their status of having their life in Christ. Being in Christ dwarfs any life situations, customs, or social pressures. As Paul will continue to stress, finally culminating in chapter 15, they need to completely rethink their worldview based on being in Christ and the reality of the coming resurrection. When the Lord returns, the righteous, both living and dead, are resurrected, and we enter into the ‘age to come’, none of the social customs or our status in the world will matter. All that will matter is did we remain faithful to our life in Christ in whatever strange circumstances we may have found ourselves.
Devotional Thought
What are the conventions or standards of the world that are most likely to influence you away from approaching the world as one who is in Christ? Is it the pull to climb socially, to get a better job, to become more educated, to have a great car or home, etc. How would Paul’s principles laid out in this chapter apply to things like that? What sort of advice might Paul give to you on this topic?
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