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Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me, it is good for a man not to touch a woman. Okay, what I want you to do is really think and remember the beginning of this verse here, what Paul says. Look at it again. Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me. So what this chapter is, it's literally a Q and A session with the apostle Paul. It's a one-sided conversation, in other words, where we get the explicit answers from Paul and through reading, through study, you get the implicit questions that these guys had had, okay? So that's the title of the sermon this evening, Q and A with Paul. It's really amazing because you got to get to look back and kind of see this interaction between the apostle Paul and these Corinthians, the saved, the Christians that were having issues and they had a lot of different questions. And Paul, throughout this chapter, a couple of different times, basically says, hey, this question that you have asked me, it's not found anywhere else in the Bible, but, and then he renders judgment. So we're going to take a look at that, okay? And I want to say a couple of other things before we get started. And that is one about singles, okay, about singles. Our society today puts off this disease. Our society today, and even a lot of churches do this, okay? They put this disease on our single people. And by disease, I mean pressure, okay? They make it seem like if you're single, you have a disease. We need to cure you and find you somebody. And there's always that matchmaker in a crowd is oh, you know, and you know, God bless them. All right, whatever, that's your thing, okay? But what I want to tell you this evening is that if you're single, you don't have a disease, okay? Well, hopefully you don't have a physical disease, but being single in and of itself is not a disease. It's going to be, what you're going to see tonight is it's perfectly fine. So the world and culture basically pushes this idea. Well, it's okay to be single for a little while, but it's better to be married. By the time you're done reading this chapter, you're going to see that reverse. You can see that, hey, it's actually okay to be married, but it's really good to be single, okay? And so we're going to get into this, and I know what you might be thinking. Yeah, but you're commanded to be fruitful, multiply the earth and blah, blah, blah and all the stuff. Go back and read those passages. Go back to Genesis 1. Read that command to Adam and Eve, okay? And then compare that to Genesis 8 and 9, where Noah's told that again, in a sense, be fruitful and multiply the earth, okay? There's something that both of those situations had in common, and that was, there was hardly anybody on the earth during those times. Now, again, of course, we need both. We need married people. You can't be a pastor. You can't be a deacon. Unless you're the husband of one wife. We need married people, okay? We're not against marriage, but we're also not against the single, okay? We don't want to be a church that's just like putting all this pressure on single people, and you single people need to be aware of this, okay? Because when your friends, your colleagues, the people around you are starting to bully you and put their expectations on you and say, you need to hurry up and find somebody. You need to be thinking about the wisdom in this chapter, and Paul is gonna make it very clear it is okay to be single, especially if that's your desire, okay? Now, if you desire to get married, amen, that's great. You're gonna see why you need to get married here very quickly, okay? So let's keep those things in your mind as we go through and study this, and let's get moving. Verse one, one more time. Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me, it is good for a man not to touch a woman, okay? Now I'll be honest with you, every once in a while in the world, I'll be doing something for work or, you know, at work, and some old lady will run up and just, you know, I gotta give you a hug, and you know, do this little cheek thing. I don't know why people like doing that, but the grandmas and stuff like doing that. Okay, fine, whatever, okay, that's fine. But you know, we also in church, what I would draw and what I would say is probably a good thing, we kind of practice this at this church for sure, is that we don't wanna establish a culture where, you know, guys are hugging girls all the time, okay? We don't want that. We wanna abide by this wisdom. Because what is Paul saying? Hey, it is good for a man not to touch a woman. Now this was several years ago, I'll tell you a quick story. When our church had first started, I preached, no, what happened is I knocked on a Satanist's door. Imagine that, okay, they are around here. I knocked on a Satanist's door, and of course she flipped out, got on Facebook, got on social media, and the next thing you know, you know, it's just this big ordeal around here. Our church became well known for a season, and you know, people were calling and harassing and sending letters and all of this stuff, and you know, during the process of time that this was going on, we hadn't even been here for like five months yet. You know, it was just a brand new church. The church was still in my house, and I knocked on this woman's door, and she, her eyes get all big, and she's like, I know who you are. She's like, you're that pastor that treats people really rude and you're very disrespectful. You're really mean. I can't believe the things you said, because you know, people were coming at me, and I was just being kind of blunt and kind of like how I am, you know, telling like it was, and people around here apparently have never seen that before. They're, you know, when people go to, you know, these apartment complexes, when the Mormons go out, their J-dubs go out or whatever, you know, these other churches go out and pass out their flyers, and they get kicked out, they're just like, oh, I'm sorry, I'll send you a gift card. Literally, that's what they do, whereas I'm like, come get me. You know, I'm not going anywhere, you know? Don't tell me what to do. I've got a law from the Lord, and that's what we're gonna follow. And they're just, oh, man, this community just couldn't bear it, you know? It was like during the times of Amos in the northern kingdom of Israel, you know, where they're just like, hey, the land cannot bury your words. So we knock on this lady's door, and she just gets nuts, and I just say, hey, look, you know, why don't you just step out, you know, put a jacket on, right, and come outside. Let's have a talk. Okay, we talked to her. She actually, I was able to calm her down. She came to church, you know, and we kinda became somewhat friends with her. I mean, she wound up saying, okay, you're not as bad as I thought. She's like, I just never heard this stuff before. Well, fast forward, she was in the process of moving, so we grabbed some guys, and we actually helped her move. And I'll never forget this. We went to the Goodwill to drop off some stuff that she didn't need, and she was super thankful, very, very, very grateful that we did that. And at the end, she's like, all of you guys are getting a huge hug, okay? Young girl, and all of us froze, and I heard this one voice. This one voice goes, it's good for a man not to touch a woman. And I look over, and it was Kayden. I was like, thank you, Kayden, very good, very good. And she's like, what is that even from? And then, you know, we told her, well, you know, we don't practice that, because it's good for a man not to touch a woman, and we just wanna, you know, maintain that standard. She wasn't offended, she understood. So just kinda, that's what I think of when I see this verse here, so hopefully that makes sense, but. Let's move on here. Look at verse number two. So look what he says. Hey, it's good for a man not to touch a woman. So he's basically saying, hey, you know, if you're single, hey, it's good if you can abide that way. That's great, and he'll explain why here later in the chapter. Nevertheless, though, look at verse two. Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband, okay? So he's being brutally honest here, and letting us know that most people, okay, don't have that gift. A lot of people don't have that gift, and so what he's saying here is, hey, to avoid fornication, you know, let people get married, okay? Let them have that. Don't be against that. Now, remember, they're asking questions. They wrote to Paul a letter, and had all sorts of questions about marriage, being single, is it wrong to get married? Is it wrong to be single? Hey, you know, are my cultures pushing a virgin on me? What do I do? Okay, we're gonna get into all of that, and Paul right off the bat says, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife. Now, one thing that you may not have seen by reading that, is there is this doctrine out there in some churches, none like ours, okay, but some churches, there's some schools of thought out there, real weird, oddball ones, that say, well, okay, the physical relationship is just too appropriate, that's it, okay? There are some small groups out there that actually claim that, and that's not what you see here, okay? Because Paul's like, look at the verse, he's not like, nevertheless, in order to bear children, and so on and so forth, let every man have his own wife. No, he's like, hey, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, let every woman have her own husband, okay? Meaning that that relationship is perfectly fine within the confines of marriage, okay? Now, I should have said this at the beginning, some of you younger munchkins in here, tonight's sermon's gonna go right over your head, that's cool, when you're 20 years old, and your mom says it's cool, or you get married, go back and watch, and it'll make sense, okay? It's just designed that way on purpose. So let's move on, look at verse three. Let the husband render unto the wife do benevolence, and likewise, also the wife unto the husband. So again, Paul's giving great advice here on marriage. And what he's saying is that both husband and wife are basically indebted to each other, okay? The wife has certain needs met, she needs to have kindness, have benevolence. The Bible says that we are supposed to dwell with them according to knowledge, meaning we're supposed to consistently and continuously get to know our wives, and help them out, and meet their needs that way. Likewise, men have a certain drive that women are supposed to meet, and you're gonna see that here as we progress, okay? Look at verse number four. The wife hath not power over her own body. Now, that's where a lot of people wish the verse just stopped, okay? A lot of people just wish that verse stopped right there, so that they could just go and manhandle you and do whatever they want, but you gotta keep reading. But the husband, and likewise, also the husband hath not, I'm sorry, also, let me start that over, look at verse four. The wife hath not power over her own body, but the husband, and likewise, also the husband hath not power of his own body but the wife. So basically, he's saying, okay, that not one person is more important, or something like that, over the other, okay? That both husband and wife, okay, are honestly both equal in the sight of God, but yes, the roles are different. Obviously, the husband is the provider, the husband is the protector, the husband does lead the family, the wife guides the household. We get that, we understand that, but neither party should be withholding anything from the other party to get what they want, okay? That's really what he means here. Now, look at verse number five, and then he goes into it. Look what he says, okay? Defraud ye not. Remember, husbands, wives, okay, are supposed to meet each other's needs. That's what we just got done looking at. If that does not happen, look at verse five. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer, and come together again. And here's the dangerous reason, or the dangerous thing, if you don't follow this, look what it says, that Satan tempt you not for your in-contenancy. Big word there at the end, basically referring to a lack of self-control, okay? What Paul's saying is that a husband, wife, can only go a certain amount of time before they're gonna begin to experience this in-contenancy or this lack of self-control, okay? And during this time, while both husband and wife are in this defraud phase, the devil, remember his job, what does he do? Well, he walks about as a roaring lion, looking to see who he can destroy. That's what he does. That's his job. He's a constant rover, and he's just looking. Where can I slip in? Where can I get in? And when he sees that, he salivates, he loves that, he capitalizes on that, starts to mess with your thoughts, starts to appeal to the flesh, and then the next thing you know, you've got absolute hell on your hands. So Paul's advice is, hey, don't be defrauding unless it's gonna be for something spiritual, unless it's gonna be for an agreement. Both parties agree, okay? We're gonna stop this activity and things of that nature so that we can fast and give ourselves a prayer, and then after that, we will restore to the way that things work, okay? So hopefully that makes sense. Verse number six says, But I speak this by permission and not by commandment. Okay, so again, these guys are asking good questions here. Okay, the Corinthians are asking some good questions. They're a little bit concerned that the things that they're doing aren't right, okay? It's kind of interesting when you think about it. They're kind of concerned about all these issues, whereas they're suing each other. You know, they're like, well, my apostle's better than your apostle. We've got more subscribers than you, and we've got more videos on YouTube than you, so we're just better than you, okay? You know, and so he's just dealing with all this, not to mention they were tolerant, right? Chapter five, just putting up with fornication that even the world's like, whoa, man, like, what are you guys doing? We've never even heard of stuff like that, but here they're like, we're really concerned about marriage and stuff like that, so kind of goofy, but nonetheless, they're asking questions where Paul's like, you know, that is viable, that is very good, and so he says in verse six, but I speak this by permission and not by commandment, so he's like, hey, you know, Jesus did not directly tell me this, and I'm not speaking based off of anything in the commandments, this is my judgment, okay? And he's gonna tell you later on that he's obviously saved, filled with the Holy Ghost, and he is guided by the Holy Ghost, and so therefore, his judgment or his wisdom, his advice here is very good for us to follow. Look at verse seven. For I would that all men were even as I myself. As I myself. Well, that was Paul. You know, some scholars will say, oh, he was a member of the Sanhedrin, and that means he had to have been married, so he was widowed here. Eh, extra biblical, you can't prove that. You have no idea if that's true. This is what we have right here about the Apostle Paul. For I would that all men were even as I myself. So Paul's saying, look, I wish that everybody could just contain, we could just be fruitful and multiply the kingdom of heaven by getting a bunch of people saved, and then go to be with the Lord. Just end this whole thing right here, okay? But look what he says next. For, verse seven, for I would that all men were even as I myself, so single, obviously, but every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner and another after that. What you're gonna find that fits well into that statement there is some people have the gift, they're single, and that's their life. You oughta be content with that. If you wanna get married, pray and ask God. He will bring the right person to you. And then he says, what does he say? He says, but after this manner and another after that. Other people married, he's like, okay, well, hey, follow this wisdom here, and things will be well with your soul, you'll be fine. Look at verse number eight. I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, it is good for them if they abide even as I. So again, he's saying this is good. Okay, the world says it's not good for you to be single. It's not good. Now, yes, obviously God said it's not good for man to be alone, but you know, there are people, there are guys that are gifted. I've met several of these guys. I've met several of these gals that are gifted to be single. They don't have a desire to get married, and they're absolute wrecking balls for the kingdom of God. Okay, I'm telling you, they devote their lives to making sure that the church they go to is a well-running machine. They're at every soul-winning event. They're thinking about things while the pastor's gone at work. I mean, they're just doing it big time. Okay, these people are amazing, and that's basically what Paul's referencing, okay? He's not contradicting the Old Testament. Okay, we get it, it's not good for man to be alone, but by and large, there are some people that are just gifted to remain single, and they can be absolute blessings to the kingdom of God. Look at verse number nine. But if they cannot contain, and again, I would submit to you guys, it's probably a lot of us, okay, it's probably most of us, but if they cannot contain, let them marry, for it is better to marry than to burn. Remember the first time I read that, I was like, must be burned with lust. You know, that's probably what he's talking about. And I reread it, and I, okay, that's definitely the conclusion. And I used to joke around with people and be like, you know, the Bible says it's better to marry than to burn in hell, and they're like, yeah, who does? And I'm like, no, I'm just joking, that's not what it says. I actually knocked on someone's door, I want to say like a year ago now, and they actually told me that if you don't get married, their church teaches, if you don't get married, you're going straight to hell. I was like, how did you come to that? He's not talking about hell at all in this passage here. It's better to marry than to burn. If you follow the thought process, he's saying, hey, let every man have his own wife, let every woman have her own husband, to avoid fornication, that burning desire in the flesh. It's that simple, okay? Now let's move on here to the next category. He's going to talk about marriage and divorce. And some of these things are, you know, hard pills to swallow, okay? Now let me just say this, you know, we've had people, we know the divorce, come to church, that's fine. I've met people and gone to church with people that were single, you know, married, divorced, and said, you know what? I can't contain, I'm going to go out and get married. Okay, we don't kick those people out of church. We don't mock them. We just, there's a seat, man. You know, come on in and let's serve God. Okay, so don't let these things offend you. But this is the word of God, and this is truth. Look at verse 10. It says this, and unto the married, I command, yet not I, but the Lord. Let not the wife depart from her husband. Okay, what is the United States government right now trying to facilitate? They're trying to make it as easy as possible for divorce, for one party to essentially take advantage of the other one and cause destruction. That's literally what our government pushes. But the word of God says, hey, don't let this happen. Don't let them depart. Verse 11, but if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband, and let not the husband put away his wife. Okay, obviously we all know there's other religions out there that say, you know what, just go ahead and divorce. Oh, you know, oh, he did that to you, she did that to you. You know, maybe it's time that you just push them out. I know churches that do that. I've seen Nazarene churches push that. I've seen certain Baptist churches preach that. I've seen Pentecostal churches preach that. I've seen all sorts of quote unquote churches teach that, well, I'll just let them depart. They do the exact opposite of what's in the word of God here, and it's wrong. Look at verse 12. It says, but to the rest speak I, not the Lord. If any brother hath a wife that believeth not. Okay, so now we're talking about what's referred to as an unequally yoked marriage. One party believes, the other does not. So he says, but unto the rest speak I, not the Lord. If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away. Okay, so very simple. They were probably asking like, well, hey, you know, we've got this family where the husband got saved and the wife didn't, or we've got another one where the wife is saved. She's on fire for the Lord, but the husband's not. Do we have to like tell them they can't stay married and just like separate that family? And Paul's like, no. He's like, no, if they're pleased to dwell with the other party, leave it alone. Okay, don't get involved. Don't be playing games and trying to wiggle your way in there and separate them. Verse 13, and the woman which hath an husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him. Very straightforward, very simple. That's the law of God, okay. Verse 14, now here's where it gets complicated. And here's where people really come up with some super strange doctrines, okay. Look at this, verse 14, for the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband. Else were your children unclean, but now are they holy. Okay, wow, what does that mean? You know, people say, oh, see, I think what that means, and I've had people tell me this, like if the wife's saved, then the husband, if he dies, he goes to heaven. Is that how we're saved by proxy, just by being around or in someone's family? We've had people, people tell us this out soul winning all the time. You know, you knock on somebody's door and you're like, hey, you know, if you were to die today, are you sure you'd go to heaven? Well, my great, great grandfather on my first cousin's side was a preacher. So of course, I'm good to go, right? People say that to us all the time. That's not what this is talking about, man, okay? Not at all. Look at the language, okay, let's slow down, verse 14. For the unbelieving husband, another word for that would be unsaved, okay? Somebody without everlasting life. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified. It doesn't say saved, it says sanctified. What does sanctified mean? Well, it means to separate, okay? Separate, that's what it means, okay? So the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband, elsewhere your children unclean, but now are they holy? Holy is another word for sanctified or separate, okay? So really what this verse is teaching is when you have this unequally yoked marriage and there's children involved, okay, that unbelieving husband or that unbelieving wife actually gets kind of grafted in blessing-wise by the saved person. So God will still form a hedge of protection around that entire family because of that one saved party, whether that be the husband or whether that be the wife. And therefore the children also are partakers of that. However, if they were unbelieving to die, they would go to hell, okay? And he's gonna kind of get into how to get them saved here in just a moment. Okay, but this is not teaching that as long as one person gets saved, everyone's just grafted in good to go. That's false doctrine, that is not what this teaches. In fact, it's gonna be very clear that that's not what he's teaching. Now look at verse 15. But if the unbelieving depart, let them depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases, in such cases, but God hath called us to peace. Okay, so what does that mean? Does that mean a license to just, you know, your unbelieving spouse gets you upset, you go, ah, you know, get out of here. Done with you, I've got peace, I'm, you know, out of this here, right? I got permission to divorce, kind of like Peter and them wanted, you know? That's not what it's talking about, okay? But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart, a brother or sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace. So in other words, let's say, you get the unbelieving husband, he leaves, okay? But he's still calling and saying, hey, I need this from you, I want this from you, okay? I want you to make my lunch and do all these other things. I want you to fulfill your duties as a wife, okay? You know what? You can say, well, you bounce, so bye. Okay, stay over there. I'm not in bondage to you, you left. So my responsibilities as far as fulfilling the benevolence and so on and so forth are now null and void until you get your head right and come back. That's what he's saying. And you can be at peace with that because that is the instruction that God has given. This is not saying, well, let him depart, cut them divorce papers, right? Obviously, we want that union restored if possible, okay? Now, there are some nightmare cases out there that I'll just come right out and say, I'm not dealing with those tonight. I've dealt with them in the past. I typically keep those private and are advice for those private. So if that issue ever arises, don't be afraid to come bring it to me. We've dealt with it before. We'll deal with it again. Look at verse 16. For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shall save thy husband? So see, Paul's telling you that this unbelieving person's not saved, okay? So again, remember, there's a difference between the words saved and sanctified, okay? Big difference there. Now, if you're saved, you're automatically sanctified, okay? But those who are unbelieving in that marriage are sanctified as far as a hedge of protection goes. That's what he's talking about. So verse 16. For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shall save thy husband? Well, how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife? Keep your place right here. I'm gonna have you turn one place. So I'm gonna have you go forward in the New Testament to 1 Peter chapter number three. 1 Peter chapter number three real quick. Let me kinda show you what Peter says this process actually looks like. So obviously, it's better if both, you know, husband and wife start off believing the same thing or, you know, believe the same thing, but it doesn't always work like that, okay? It doesn't mean you're without hope. There is hope. There is some redemption, okay? Look at what Peter says about this. So he says this in verse one, 1 Peter chapter three, verse one. It says, Likewise, you wives, be in subjection to your own husbands, right? Not to other people's husbands, not to just any man, because he's a man, but to their own husbands, that if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won. Notice it doesn't say saved, but won by the conversation of the wives. Okay, note that word there, conversation. Look at verse two. While they behold your chaste, so your honest conversation, coupled with fear. Now let me just talk about this and break this down, okay? So what Peter is saying here, okay, is really what Paul would like to get into and what Paul's kind of referencing here. Say you've got an unbelieving wife and you got a believing husband or the other way around, doesn't really matter, okay? If you want to get that person saved, you need patience and you need a chaste conversation. Okay, what does that mean? It means you gotta be talking about the Bible 24 seven, so that he hears it through the wall and is like, okay, I'm gonna get one. No, okay, as a believer, you are made up now. Literally, you're literally two people. You're the old man, you carry around the flesh, which is who you were before you got saved. And then you have the new man inside of you who God created the moment you heard the word of God and believed, you're saved. So you got the new man, okay? So what Peter's saying here is if you converse, meaning you spend more time with the new man and you actually walk the walk and talk the talk, okay? The unbelieving partner in that marriage is gonna constantly look at that and have respect to that and hopefully be won by that and then be open to hear the word of God and be saved. That's what he's talking about. Now, go back to 1 Corinthians chapter number seven. So verse 16, again, Paul continues here and he says, "'For what knowest thou, O wife, "'whether thou shalt save thy husband, "'or how knowest thou, O man, "'whether thou shalt save thy wife?'" Okay, meaning you don't know. So don't ever give up. If you know anybody in this situation, don't give up because it's not over. You may be able to pull this off. Verse 17, "'But as God hath distributed to every man, "'as the Lord hath called everyone, so let him walk, "'and so ordain I in all churches.'" Okay, so Paul's saying, hey, in every church, this is the law. There is no exception. This is how it is, okay? So if the unbelieving depart, let them depart. However, you can be at peace knowing that you don't have to fulfill your roles and obligations while that person is gone, while they're departed. However, you still don't wanna let go of your conversation. You don't wanna just throw your Christianity aside and be like, I'm just gonna go live in the world for a while. Okay, now obviously, I'm not saying that you can lose your salvation or throw your salvation away. That's impossible. We know once you're saved, you're always saved. However, he's saying, don't just hop in the flesh. Don't give up on that person. Keep living for the Lord and let the word sort out this problem, but it's gonna take time. Okay, it's gonna take some time. So look at verse number 18. Is any man called being circumcised? Let him not become uncircumcised. Is any called an uncircumcision? Let him not be circumcised. So here's what Paul's saying. He's saying, hey, look, guys, you know, do you have a saved person that's circumcised? Don't shame him for it. Did you guys get somebody saved who's uncircumcised and they're asking questions? Well, don't get him circumcised because that no longer means anything. It has nothing to do with anything anymore. That was a picture in the Old Testament about having your heart circumcised, meaning you're becoming saved. You've shed the world. You accepted the word of God and so on and so forth. We'll have to do a study on that sometime. But look at verse 19. He explains this further. It says circumcision is nothing. Hey, boys, say that to the hospitals around here or the Jews around here. They get upset. What do you mean circumcision's nothing? That's what it says. Do we believe the Bible or not? I mean, circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing but the keeping of the commandments of God. Can you say, how does that make sense? Well, go to Galatians chapter five. So go for just one, two books in your Bible, in your New Testament. Go to Galatians chapter number five real quick. Let's take a look at something. Look at verse. All right, let's look at verse number two. Galatians five, look at verse two. Behold, I Paul, saying to you that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. Okay, now, don't we have people today that are like making a big deal out of this? Like, well, I am circumcised. Who's ever knocked on a door and they're like, I'm Jew, I'm Jewish, or I'm Messianic Jewish. Like, go away. Like, I'm so much better than you, my DNA is better than yours, my hair follicles are better than yours, my skin's better than yours, my joints are better than yours, my tendons are better than yours, okay? I'm Jew, dude, I am better than you. We've all had that, okay? We've all had that. But here, Paul's like, hey, guess what? The flesh is gonna rot. It doesn't mean anything, okay? All that matters is your faith. Verse two, behold, I Paul, saying to you that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. Verse three, for I testify again to every man that is circumcised that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Now again, like I said this morning, okay, these Galatians were dealing with Judaizers coming in and trying to change things and saying, oh, you gotta get back to following the customs and the traditions and the laws or you're not saved. Paul's like, that's hogwash, that's not true, okay? Verse four, Christ has become of no effect unto you whosoever of you are justified by the law, you're fallen from grace, okay? He's talking about an ideology here. He's saying that if a person is teaching, a person is preaching that you're not saved by grace through faith, well then, in your mind, you have fallen from grace. You don't understand that doctrine. He's not saying you've fallen from your salvation, okay? We'll talk about that this Sunday. Let's see here. Verse five, for we, through the Spirit, wait for the hope of righteousness by faith, not by circumcision, not by burnt offerings, not by following laws, okay? It's by faith. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. That is what the Bible teaches. Verse six, for in Jesus Christ, neither circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love. And then he says this in verse seven, you did run well, who did hinder you that you should not obey the truth? Okay, let's go back to 1 Corinthians chapter seven. So again, okay, when people push this, oh, well, we're special because we got this circumcision or we're special because we didn't. Hey, you're carnal at this moment, okay? You don't understand the word of God because in Christ, none of that matters. We're all sinners and we had to be saved by him, okay? That's what Paul is addressing here. So verse 19, circumcision is nothing. Uncircumcision, nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God. Verse 20, let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. So if you're single, abide there, okay? Abide there, follow this wisdom. If you're married, abide there, follow this wisdom in this chapter. Don't be discontent. Don't be, oh, what was me? I'm married, I wish I was single, okay? Millions of married guys say that. And you know, vice versa, okay? Don't be like, oh, I'm single. You know, if you will desire to have a spouse, ask the Lord, okay? And he will provide that for you if that's what he deems is right. You know, I've heard somebody recently saying, you know, I had this person all lined up and, you know, I feel like God and, you know, my heart goes out to people when they get heartbroken, you know, but this person was just like, I feel like God just ruined my plans and I feel bad for even feeling like this. And I felt like typing back, you know, to this individual saying, you know, what if God ruined your plans so that your plans wouldn't ruin you in the future? You know, you gotta think like that, okay? You gotta think like that. He is in control. He takes care of his children. All right, let's move on here, verse 21. Art thou called being a servant? Care not for it, but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather. Okay, so he's like, hey, are you a servant? Meaning, you know, have you agreed, let's say, to work for somebody for X amount of years back in these times, okay? He's like, hey, you know, you're a servant to that household, you're a servant to that job. Abide there. Do what you said, do your job, be content, but if you get free, hey, use that opportunity. Don't throw that away. Verse 22, for he that is called in the Lord being a servant is the Lord's free man. Likewise, also he that is called being free is Christ's servant. Now don't let that word called there throw you for a loop. The Calvinists like to say, oh, you know, called means chosen, okay? Now it's just describing order, it's describing the place that you're in, okay? That's what it's, you know, did you accept the word of God and get saved? Awesome, well guess what, you're called. Hey, do you have a desire to be a servant, to serve the Lord Jesus Christ and go out and preach the word of God and do these sorts of things? Well hey, praise God, abide in that, but understand something. Just because you're a servant to the Lord Jesus Christ doesn't mean you aren't free. In fact, you are free. That is true freedom because you serve Jesus who we learned about this morning is truth. Somebody asks you, hey, what's the definition of truth? It's Jesus Christ, it's the word of God. That's what truth is. Verse 23, ye are bought with a price. Be not ye the servants of men. And again, we talked about that a lot this morning, didn't we? Be not men pleasers, don't serve man. Understand who you serve. We were bought. We didn't buy ourselves, we didn't chip in, right? That's what most people are doing today, aren't they? Well, you know, yeah, I get it, he died on a cross. I believe that, but man, you gotta chip in constantly. You gotta constantly be paying. You know, every day you gotta get on your knees and kneel on a bed of rice and just keep asking for forgiveness. If you forget a day, you're going to hell. False doctrine, hey, that's horrible. That's probation, that's works. We don't like that. It's not what the Bible teaches. We are bought. Jesus has purchased us, plain and simple. Every page of the Bible describes this. Verse 24. Brethren, let every man wherein he is called therein abide with God. So that's the idea. Wherever you're at in life, abide with God and he will direct your paths. He will take you where you need to go. Now let's move on to some more complicated questions from the Corinthians here. Look at verse 25. It says, now concerning virgins. So apparently the Corinthians had wrote, they had some questions about virgins, some issues with the virgins in the church. Now concerning virgins, he says, I have no commandment of the Lord. Again, so this is awesome here to kind of see this conversation. People ask us questions all the time and it's like, it's not explicitly in the Bible and you got to kind of think sometimes. You got to use your judgment, use your experience from reading the word of God and coming to church to answer those questions. So he says, I have no commandment of the Lord yet I give my judgment as one that has obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful. Okay, guess what? You have that same right, you have that same ability. You're saved, you have the Bible here, you are able to judge. But of course the world says, hey, don't judge, no judgment. Well, then you're not spiritual. The Bible says the spiritual judges all things. That's what it says. Verse 26, here's his judgment. It says, I suppose therefore that this is good for the present distress. I say that it is good for a man so to be. So again, you're gonna see this over and over. If you're single, you know, you don't have a disease, it's fine, abide there. You know, you're good to go. If that's your desire, don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Verse 27, aren't thou bound unto a wife? You see that language, are you bound unto a wife? You know, the old ball and chain. Come on, I had to say it, Jess is back there fuming, but that's all good. It's what it says, aren't thou bound unto a wife, seek not to be loosed. Okay, just understand you're bound. That's what he's saying. Aren't thou bound unto a wife, seek not to be loosed. Aren't thou loosed from a wife, seek not a wife. Verse 28, but, and if thou marry, thou has not sinned, and if a virgin marry, she hath not sinned, nevertheless, such shall have trouble in the flesh. So Paul's saying here, and he's answering their questions, because they were writing and saying, what about a virgin, are we keeping virgins forever? I'm sure a lot of the dads are like, yeah, we're keeping my girls forever, you know. Of course all dads want to do that, but you know, we oughta desire what's best for them. Okay, what are their desires, what do they want, so on and so forth. So Paul's like, hey, they haven't sinned. If you give up your virgins, you allow them to get married, it's totally fine. They're not sinning. Verse 30. I'm sorry, verse, verse 28 again. Notice what he says at the end of that verse there. He says, nevertheless, shall have trouble in the flesh, but I spare you. Okay, so guys, get this right. Everybody who gets married, look, you're gonna have some problems. I don't care how sweet you are, I don't care how good of a Christian you are, you at some point will have trouble, which is why you need this book in your life, because this book is gonna help you to get through those troublesome times. Okay, and so he says, but I spare you. How so? By giving us scripture, giving us the word of God. Verse 29. But this I say, brethren, the time is short. It remaineth that both they that have wives be as though they had none, and they that weep as though they wept not, and they that rejoice as though they rejoice not, and they that buy as though they possess not. So Paul's saying, hey guys, look, your life is nothing but a vapor. Okay, don't get so hung up and focused on all this stuff, all marriage, this and that, and the other single. Hey, life is real quick. You're here, and then you're gone. Okay, it will be like you were never married. So make the time that God has given you in the here and now count. Edify the brethren, take care of each other, take care of your families, and go out and get people the word of God. That's all that matters. Those things are what are gonna last in eternity. Now, let's see here, look at verse 31. He says, and they that use this world as not abusing it, for the fashion of this world passeth away. Again, hey, there's nothing wrong with you and I using this world. We just don't want to abuse it. We can gain materials, we can work to gain money, we can take care of our families, but we just don't want those materials to gain control of us. Okay, that leads to obviously covetousness, idolatry, things that are not good. Look at verse 32. It says, but I would have you without carefulness. He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord. How he may please the Lord, but he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife. So what he's saying here is what I've already mentioned. There are people that are single, like I've told you guys, male. We've met female. We've met all sorts of them. And like I said, it's like they live at church. They're just always there, always doing things. Always helping out and they have that time. Whereas married, hey, you gotta take care of that spouse and there's nothing wrong with that. And so Paul's just saying, hey, there are benefits to both. So wherever you find yourself, be content. God has your back. That's the lesson. That's the idea. Verse 33, but he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife. Verse 34, then he says this. There is a difference or there is a difference also between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman careth for the things of the Lord that she may be holy, both in body and in spirit. But she that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband. He's speaking generally here. This is typically how it goes, okay? But single people have more time to devote to the Lord. Now this is not justifying the nun program. It's not what this is doing, okay? I've heard people, I've had people tell me that, you know, give me a verse on nuns. Where is that in the Bible? First Corinthians chapter seven. Nope. Apparently you only read verse 34 and you twisted it at that, okay? We read everything. Verse 35, and this I speak for your own profit. Not that I may cast a snare upon you, but for that which is comely, that which is orderly or good is what he means. And that ye may attend upon the Lord without distraction. That's the goal, right? We want to serve God without distraction. That's one of the things we often pray for. When we're going out sowing, Lord, please help us to be able to serve you, minimize distractions, lose distractions from us, okay? That's what he's talking about here. Verse 36. But if any man think that he behaveth himself uncommonly toward his virgin, if she pass the flower of her age and need so require, let him do what he will. He sineth not, let them marry him. Now this is a tough one. Hey, remember, Paul or Peter told us, hey, Paul has written some things that are very difficult to be understood. This chapter is not easy, okay? What does this mean here? And let me just give you my thoughts here. What I think this is talking about. First of all, verse one, okay? If you don't get verse one, it's gonna be hard to understand this. This is a Q and A with Paul. They had asked him these questions here. So with that in mind, look at verse 36. But if any man think he behaveth himself uncommonly, so that's not good, toward his virgin, if she pass the flower of her age, okay? If you're old enough to know what that means, you know what it means. If not, ask your parents. If you're an adult, you don't know what that means, I'll tell you after the service, okay? That's how we're gonna, that's how we're just gonna leave it right there, okay? And need so require, let him do what he will. He sineth not, let them marry. So what you're, if you study history, one of the things that was very common in this culture back then, is that people were assigned a virgin. They were assigned a wife, okay? People would say, hey, you, you're destined to marry this person, okay? Remember, Christianity was new here during this time. This culture, we talked about this when we started this study. This culture was very wicked, very evil. They were without hope, lost, no God, just doing what the world does, okay? But one of the customs that they had, apparently was assigning a virgin to somebody. And some of these people are like, hey, you know, she's 15 or whatever, you know, this is kind of weird. You know, 14 for that matter. Paul's like, hey, during this timeframe, if she has passed the flower of her age, you can fulfill your obligation, okay? Now we've had some people, okay, and I've had one person in particular, who's a scumbag, basically take this verse and say, well, that means I can go after all the young ones, 14, 15, 16, I like them young, I like the high school girls because they never age, okay? They have that mentality, okay? I don't like that, that is not what this is teaching. This is a answer to a problem that they were having in their time. In our day, how old do you have to be to get married here in Idaho, is this 16? I think it's 16, okay? But here's the thing, you ain't marrying my girls at 16, I'll kill you, I will hurt you. Yes, I'm that protective one, okay? There's what the Bible says, if you think you're gonna come to me and get my daughters, we're gonna go, it's on, like I, look, this is bad, okay? Not gonna happen, ain't gonna happen. I got high standards for those girls and you're gonna beat them or you're gonna beat feet and you're gonna have a rough life. And if you do, for some reason, get past me, you're not getting past my son, I'll tell you that right now, and you're probably not getting past the redhead or the dark one who's a ninja. But anyways, let me move on before I turn this into a different sermon, okay? Let's explain this, make sure we understand this. Look at verse 37, it says, nevertheless, he that standeth steadfast in his heart, having no necessity but hath power over his own will and has so decreed in his heart that he will keep his virgin doeth well. Okay, so he's basically saying, look, if somebody has assigned, somebody's giving you, arrange this marriage however it is, okay, and in your heart, you are okay with this, you understand that she is going to be your wife, she has passed the flower her age, you're okay with this, Paul is basically saying, in that timeframe, let it happen. Okay, how does this apply to us today? Does this mean that we get to take guys that are in their 20s and say, hey, we've got these 14-year-old girls here, you know, we're gonna give them, no, we ain't doing that. Okay, like I've already told you, I don't force marriage on other people, I'm not a matchmaker, I really don't like doing that sort of stuff. Every once in a while, yeah, I meet people, I'm like, oh yeah, that would probably work out, okay, but ultimately, I'd probably be an absolute horrible matchmaker, okay, it's just not in the cards for me, kind of like being in the kitchen, it's just not in the cards for me, kind of like singing, you know, there's a lot of things that, you know, God just said, you know, that's not your thing, that's not your gift, I got other people that can take care of that stuff and those things for you, okay, so hopefully that kind of makes sense, that's my take on this here, that's what I believe it's talking about, I don't believe he's saying that, you know, this is just a carte blanche license for guys to just, you know, you're 45 and you want a 16-year-old, get ready to meet these knuckles, man, it ain't happening, not in this church, I'll tell you that right now, that's when I will step in, okay, that's definitely when I'm stepping in and I've already had to deal with people like this and I'm telling you, I do not react very kindly, we are very protective of our young girls in this church and all churches like this, it's the same thing, look at verse 38, so then he that giveth her in marriage doeth well, but he that giveth her not in marriage doeth better, okay, so Paul, again, he's saying, hey, the people that don't give, they're virgins up, don't arrange these marriages, okay, they're better, however, in your culture, in your custom, if that's what's going on, as long as she's past the flower of her age, okay, she's able to give birth, things like that, if you, in your heart, you're steadfast, you're gonna take care of her, you're of a good witness, then this is fine, you haven't sinned, okay, that's what Paul's saying, difficult passage, but let's move on, verse 39, we're almost done, he says, the wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth, but if her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will only end the Lord, so he's saying, hey, look, you know, if the husband dies, you know, make sure you don't go marry some unbeliever just because you're lonely, okay, end the Lord, somebody who's saved, because you don't wanna go through that pain, verse 40, but she is happier if she so abide after my judgment, and I think also that I have the Spirit of God, so Paul kinda leaves him with a little of that sarcasm that we've gotten used to over the last six chapters, so that's the end of that, again, the sermon wasn't meant to be all about marriage, it's to get the content out there, hopefully explain some things that are a little bit difficult at times to grasp and to understand, is to get you, when you go back through in your reading, you're like, okay, okay, that makes sense, you start putting things together, internalizing, and being better at passing these things on to other people, that's the goal, that's the idea, so next week, we will be in chapter number eight, and we're gonna talk about the old battle of diets and all sorts of stuff, and it's gonna be great, so let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer, thank you again so much, Lord, for allowing us to be able to gather here today and to be able to fellowship with one another and to listen to your word and to sing songs of praise to you, we just pray that you'd bless the fellowship Lord, we thank you so much for being here today, and we look forward to the service, and bring us again safely, Lord, on Wednesday, in Jesus' name I pray, amen. One more song, and then we will be dismissed.