17 you'll find this you'll find this on pages 1544 and 1545 and so 1st Corinthians chapter 7 reading verses 1 through 17 starting on page 1544 1 Corinthians 7, 1-17. 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. Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her. 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. 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. Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord, a wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife. But to the rest, I, not the Lord, say, if any brother has a wife who does not believe and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, but now they are holy. But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart. A brother or sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us to peace. For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife? But as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each one, so let him walk. And so I ordain in all the churches. As we look at our passage today, we're doing so with this theme, Paul teaches us the importance of marriage. Paul teaches us the importance of marriage. Now you know there are many wonderful things that God has given to us. He's created the natural world. I'm sure many of us have enjoyed going to the Georgia Aquarium. and being in front of that 65-foot glass. Isn't that amazing? And to see all of those sea creatures as they swim by. God has created the natural world, the creatures great and small, the sun, the moon, and the stars. That's a wonderful thing. He has made man in his image to engage in various creative activities. It was sort of alluded to then. Come on in. This was sort of alluded to today from Genesis chapter 2. And of course, back in chapter 1, it especially talks about, well, you see, as a matter of fact, in terms of Adam naming the animals. And in chapter 2 then, of course, or in chapter 2, followed on from chapter one, where he was to exercise dominion over the creation. And so he has made man in his image to engage in various creative activities. Another wonderful thing is he has provided salvation for us. That's, I guess, the most wonderful thing of all. He has enabled us to have fellowship with him and with one another. And that's great as we experience the fellowship here, even in our flock and in other examples of this as well. But the most intimate fellowship between a man and a woman, of course, is marriage. And that is also a wonderful institution and a tremendous experience. Now marriage goes back to the creation week in Genesis 1 and 2, we read from Genesis 2 today. God, of course, made Adam out of the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life. And God made Eve from a rib of Adam, so that he said, bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. It's been said that taking Eve from Adam's side points to the companionship that they would enjoy. Both man and woman, of course, are made in the image of God. There is no distinction here. God made man, male and female, in his own image. And yet, they are complementary. They are complementary. They fit with each other. They complete each other. And indeed, as the Bible says, as they come together, they become one flesh. This is a great mystery, as the Bible tells us. Now, as a matter of fact, they even start to resemble each other Now here, I have to make reference to one of the movies from my childhood, 101 Dalmatians, from about 1960. You remember? Remember in that cartoon, that Disney flick, where you had the different kind, besides the Dalmatians, you had the different kinds of dogs? And as the masters were walking them, the masters and the dogs looked alike. You remember that? Or the mistresses of the dogs. Remember that? Well, in a sense, that's what happens with man and wife. Matter of fact, the lady that came last week, that we were able to bring to church last week, she said, and I felt very complimented by this, she said, afterwards that Miss Penny and I, the First Lady and I, look like brother and sister. And so we've been married for 28 years. Now, as I said to her, the good news is I'm starting to look more like Miss Penny. We don't want it to go the other way, of course, here. She is much better looking than I. But isn't that interesting that she picked up on that? Because not just in terms of certain characteristics, but certain mannerisms and things. And even you start to complete the sentence, right? You start to complete the, you know what that other person is thinking. And it's really true. And this one flesh then that is talked about in scripture is deeper than the physical. They even, as I said, they even start to think alike. Now marriage, of course, is between one man and one woman. Polygamy, even though allowed in the Old Testament, is not God's ideal for marriage. And even here in our text, 1 Corinthians 7, notice what it says here, verse 2, let each man have his own wife, and let each man have her own husband. And so very clearly then, this is God's will, not polygamy, but having one man and one woman. Now there are three major points today that we want to look at. Benevolence, benefits, and bond. So benevolence, benefits, and bond. Now the term that's here, if you look at verse three, it's a very interesting verse. Let the husband render to his wife The affection duher, or if you look at the original King James, the due benevolence. The word there is jenoia, which means literally good mind. The you meaning good, noia, the nous, the mind. But the term then means goodwill and kindness. And of course, this is a very modest and very delicate term that Paul is using. Now notice, though, when we think about benevolence, we usually think about giving out of the heart, right? Giving whether we're obligated to do it or not. But what's fascinating here is that Paul says, let the husband render to his wife the affection that is her due, that is owed to her, if you will. And this, of course, is somewhat ironic, being tied with the idea of benevolence. Perhaps these two concepts being merged here is part of the mystery that the Apostle Paul talks about in Ephesians chapter five. He said, I speak of a great mystery between Christ and the church and between a husband and a wife. And indeed, there is a mystery. Also notice the word there for defrauding, for defrauding. And so there is also that concept there as well. So those are the terms that are used. So what is it that is owed? What are we to give that is owed? What owed, of course, is the conjugal act of love. And it's seen here in verse four. 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. So if you are married, you are no longer your own. You belong to another. You have struck a bargain. You have struck a deal. And part of the deal is that you belong to someone else. Again, this is part of the mystery, is it not? This is part of the mystery. It's not simply two individuals entering into a contract. It is that, but it's far deeper than that, is it not? You have been captured. You are a P-O-L, a prisoner of love. And so this intimacy then is an essential element of marriage, not simply because of the pleasure given to each other. But it is a symbol and a reality. It's a symbol and a reality of having given yourself totally to someone else. That's what's being talked about. As a result of that, of course, it is to be a sacrificial giving. In Ephesians 5.25, Paul says that the man may be called upon to lay down his life for his wife. even as Christ laid down his life for his church. Both man and wife, then, serve each other with a sacrificial spirit and also with a selfless spirit. 1 Corinthians 13, love seeks not its own and is not puffed up. Love in marriage, then, is not self-seeking, but it is selfless. It looks to the best interest of the other partner. So benevolence, and then secondly, benefits. What are the benefits then of marriage? Well, the first benefit we see here is avoiding temptation. The Bible is so down to earth, is it not? It's so down to earth, it's so real. And part of that is what we see here in terms of avoiding temptation. Marriage is a way of fulfilling the natural desires. Nothing wrong with those desires as such, but what is wrong is when those desires are directed in the wrong way or end. This is why in verse 9, Paul writes, for it's better to marry than to burn. And the new King James adds the words with passion. Furthermore, having your own spouse helps to fight Satan's temptations, verse 5. 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. Well, not only is it avoiding temptation, but one of the benefits is that marriage is a positive good. It is not good for man to be alone, but it is good for him to be with someone. As, and I speak from experience here, there is a strengthening of both partners. That's a positive good. This is what marriage does. It builds up both people. It gives you a sense of well-being, of satisfaction, of fulfillment. There are health benefits. The studies have shown this, have shown this over and over again. There are health benefits. There is an economic. benefit. Two can live cheaper than one. And of course there is a spiritual benefit as well. And so it is good for man not to be alone. Indeed it is a positive good for him to be with someone else. But notice that it is a blessing as well as the benefit. Christ himself blesses a couple that marries in the Lord. But not only that, did you notice what it says here in verse 12? If any brother has a wife who does not believe, she's willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. Don't walk away. A woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him, verse 14. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband. Verse 16, for how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife? In other words, patience, patience. I mean, marriage is hard enough, but if a Christian is married to someone who's not a believer, that's a challenge. but sometimes this is what, this is the patience to which we are called. Notice also in verse 14 that even the children are holy, even the children are holy. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy, that is to say dedicated to the Lord. And so we've seen then benevolence, secondly benefits, and now thirdly bond, bond. My friends, marriage is a symbol of union between God and His people. In Isaiah 62, in Isaiah 62, we read, you shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no longer be termed forsaken. Nor shall your land any more be termed desolate, but you shall be called Hephzibah and your land Beulah. The term there Hephzibah means my delight is in her, Beulah means married. For the Lord delights in you and your land shall be married for as a young man marries a virgin, So shall your sons marry you. And as the bridegroom rejoices of the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you. But you know that picture that we have of Yahweh, of Jehovah, of the Lord marrying his people, is particularly fulfilled in the relationship that the second person of the Trinity, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has with his church. As the Apostle Paul writes about this in Ephesians chapter 5, as he clearly teaches the relationship or the parallel, if you will, the parallel between marriage and the relationship that Christ has to his church. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her, that he might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself, for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. And so marriage then, being a picture, if you will, of the relationship between God and his people, just as that is a permanent relationship, so there is a bond between husband and wife. It is a permanent bond. If you look back to 1 Corinthians 7, just for a moment, if you look back at 1 Corinthians 7 in verse 15, but if the unbeliever departs, let him depart. A brother or sister is not under bondage in such cases. God has called us to peace. But verse 27, are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be loose. There is a bond here. This is one reason why Paul cautions in this present distress, maybe it's good for you not to marry in this present distress because of the persecution that the church was undergoing during this time. But if you do marry, Marriage is till death us do part, which I intend to preach on next Lord's Day. Even marriage with an unbeliever is binding unless he or she abandons the marriage. Now, two points of observation and then two points of application. The two observations are, first of all, let us be clear, there are only two sexes or genders, male and female. We live, academics notwithstanding to the contrary, we live in a binary world. This is how God has made the world, male and female. And the second observation is this, the norm is marriage. Now that's not to say that there aren't godly people who never marry. I'm sure each of us, I'm sure every one of us could think of people that we know who never marry and probably have never married and probably never will. It's not to say there aren't godly people who never marry. Nevertheless, getting married is natural and is customary. So two points of application today, and the first is this. Celebrate marriage. Celebrate it. And seek those of you who are single, seek it, unless you were called by God to singleness. This is what Paul says here. He said that he had the gift of celibacy, had the gift of singleness, and that's okay if God gives you that gift, but if not, then not only celebrate marriage, but seek it as well. And secondly, be faithful to Christ. Be faithful to Christ. because my friends, he is the one who has married his church. Amen. We please stand for prayer. Father, we do thank thee for thy word. We pray, Lord, that the Holy Spirit would take it and would apply it to our hearts and all for the glory and honor of Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen. As we remain standing, let us turn to Psalm 129.