God has created us as sexual beings that we will procreate; it is a part of the plan to build a kingdom of people and without people, there is no kingdom. It only stands to reason that our enemy, the devil, would try to infiltrate procreation to pervert its concept and bring disruption.
We can see the disruption, distraction, and devastation, the devil has caused. Armed with an arsenal of assault weapons, he aims at our children in hopes he may cause them to struggle with sexuality their entire life.
Corinth had dens of filth throughout the city. Perversion had ripped a hole in their society and as people were added to their church, the perversion was becoming acceptable as if it were a force you could not fight and must concede to.
In Corinth you could find cults followings of the gods of Egypt, Rome, and Greece. At the summit of the city was a temple built in worship of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. This temple was visible and respected throughout the city for the most perverse acts were openly displayed in orgy worship feasts.
Yet, Corinth was riddled with temples and people would follow a circuit of feasts to the different Gods drunken perversion was the climax of the evening.
Paul realizes that because of this perversion of procreation it would be best if people did not get physically involved until they marry.
Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. 1 Corinthians 7:1-2 (NKJV)
Two becoming one is a Godly concept; it was the instruction to Adam and Even in the garden and a union to be respected and passed on to all generations.
Made in the image of God, people have this understanding built in and without instruction they find it important to cling to a partner and to be zealous for each other. It is only when temptations are given into, people become jealous, hateful, and feels the pain of disrespect. Sin tears at the fabric we are made from; as the devil attempts to tear down the image of God in our life.
Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that Satan does not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.1 Corinthians 7:3-5 (NKJV)
Many of us, if not all, have felt the pain of relationships broken. This is why Paul says it is best not to have close relationships which leave behind the broken lives of others.
Children born out of wedlock lose their family identity when a partner moves on. They feel the crush of losing a parent and bare those scars the rest of their life.
The Bibles direction on the sanctity of marriage and the building of wholesome relationships is to be embraced, for by them we can find true happiness as we build upon this image of God we are created in.
Not only has perversion and temptation been used as a weapon against us, public opinion has been passed along to discredit Biblical teaching on relationships. There is a hatred which has permeated society as these concepts have been labeled as tools used by the church to control people.
What was offered to us as help, many people have labeled it as a breach of their own rights to do as they please. The result is the debacle of the pureness of relationships, marriage, and commitment.
Our society bears the results; broken lives, disease, pain, heartbreak, and violence are common place and currently people are attempting to view these results as common and a byproduct of being human. Therefore, society teaches people to accept perversion as a right and the results as normal.
One of the greatest problems in society is the people in the church are not perfect and it sends a message to the world that the promptings of scripture are unattainable and therefore, not worth the effort. They believe we should just let life take its course.
Could the church be perfect this could change perception; but we are all sinners saved by grace and are subject to like passions. However, since judgment begins in the house of the Lord we, the church, have an opportunity to rise up shields against the onslaught of the enemies attack.
Paul’s mention of “due benevolence” means a married couple looks out for their partners well being. In so doing, the partner becomes the ultimate servant of the other and helps them through sexual tensions which could cause a person to lust. However, never should this passage be viewed that one partner can demand intimacy when they want it. Intimacy does not happen on demand and must be spontaneous.
When two become one, one is not dominate over the other. Yet some men think they are to be the head of the house and the head of the wife and rule over them. This could never be a larger perversion of the scriptures and a trap for good men. A man is to be, to the woman, like Christ is to the church.
Christ serves the church. He gave up His kingdom, His glory, and His power to become a man. As a man, He became a servant of the church, helping to teach it and bring to it knowledge of the Father. Jesus gave His life for the Church that Christian men and woman can have salvation and grow in grace. Never did He demand the church to fulfill His needs.
But I say this as a concession, not as a commandment. For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that. But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am; but if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion. 1 Corinthians 7:6-9 (NKJV)
Why let the enemy have a foothold of your life? Paul was without a partner and yet found he was able to do so. With his missionary journeys, it made it easier; a family following him could have slowed him down. Yet Paul still understood he was making a large sacrifice in his own life to the glory of God and found it sustainable; yet he knew this was not for everyone.
Paul spent much time in prison, incarcerated for preaching the gospel. A partner in prison would not be a good environment for raising children and therefore, Paul saw the burden it may cause not to be a proper choice.
Neither should unmarried couples only consider their God instilled passion for each other to be an avenue to explore before marriage. They must consider sexual relations to be the method of procreation and realize that family’s happen.
If a couple cannot keep themselves from each other, they should marry. No matter the difficulty in raising a family, struggling together is better than struggling alone. It is better for the couple, the children, and society as a whole; including the reputation of God’s church.
It is God’s plan for men and women to have a partner that they can serve. So let us not try to change the work of God in our lives, but skillfully maintain it. It is when we deny God’s plan that we get into trouble.
Lastly, it is a conscious fact, which all know, that too many partners is not good; one partner is God’s design.
