Lesson 16 – 1 Corinthians Chapter 7:32-40 & Chapter 8:1-6

Paul has been talking to us about the positives and negatives regarding being married compared to being single. We know that Paul is single at this time, and through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he continues to give us godly advice.

When Paul wrote this letter, the persecution of Christians was very real and threatening, and the counsel he’s giving is if you find yourself single at this time, don’t go out of your way to get married. The reason for this was if the single person got captured and taken away, they only had themselves to worry about, while the married person had their spouse and children with which to contend.

Aside from persecutions and imprisonment, the single person had the total freedom to serve God in any way they chose to do so. We will pick up in verse 32…

1 Cor. 7:32:
“But I want you to be free from concern. One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord;”

The unmarried person has only themselves to answer to, thus they have the freedom to be concerned about the things of the Lord, how he (they) may please the Lord. Married couples have a sacred union, answering to each other and to the Lord.

1 Cor. 7:33-35:
“But one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and his interests are divided. The woman who is unmarried, and the virgin, is concerned about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and spirit; but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how she may please her husband. This I say for your own benefit; not to put a restraint upon you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.”

Paul is simply reiterating what he’s been explaining to us. I would suggest that when a person reads these Scriptures, they will receive instruction from the Holy Spirt on how to live their life, whether to marry or be single. Married Christians should in no way feel guilty about being married, and singles shouldn’t feel pressured to stay single or get married.

Marriage does not prevent genuine devotion to God, nor does singleness guarantee devotion. For every believer it’s good for them to desire and secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.

Undistracted, means without concern, having no anxiety or care. We could say, a person is able to be laser focused without any distractions.

The word devotion has the idea of waiting alongside the Lord as those who serve Him. To secure undistracted devotion to the Lord, is something each of us should desire to obtain.

1 Cor. 7:36:
“But if any man thinks that he is acting unbecomingly toward his virgin daughter, if she is past her youth, and if it must be so, let him do what he wishes, he does not sin; let her marry.”

This verse is a little complex, and the New Living Translation is very different…

“But if a man thinks that he’s treating his fiancée improperly and will inevitably give in to his passion, let him marry her as he wishes. It is not a sin.”

When Paul wrote this, it was very common to have pre-arranged marriages, and most likely it was the father that did the arranging. Another aspect of this is, the father would make a vow that his daughter would remain single, so that she could fully devote herself to the Lord… very admirable on the part of the father.

Let him do what he wishes, he does not sin; let her marry…

What Paul has taught so far is some people have the gift of singleness and others do not. So if a daughter does not have the gift of being single, it’s okay for the father to release her from that vow… after all, the father made the vow not the daughter. Keep in mind, the culture of that time is very different from our western culture of today.

As it pertains to today, it might be wise for couples wanting to get married to seek counsel from their parents, and perhaps from church leadership. Sometimes those looking in from the outside can see things a little differently and, of course, it should all be done prayerfully.

1 Cor. 7:37:
“But he who stands firm in his heart, being under no constraint, but has authority over his own will, and has decided this in his own heart, to keep his own virgin daughter, he will do well.”

In other words, if “daddy’s little girl” is okay with what daddy wants her to do, then everything is cool. Paul doesn’t see the daughter as a possession, but as a child of God… her thoughts do matter. For a father to desire that his daughter be fully devoted to God is a good thing.

1 Cor. 7:38:
“So then both he who gives his own virgin daughter in marriage does well, and he who does not give her in marriage will do better.”

Paul is repeating the marriage option, and as he talked about with singleness, it’s not about being right or wrong, but about good and better.

1 Cor. 7:39:
“A wife is bound as long as her husband lives; but if her husband is dead, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. But in my opinion she is happier if she remains as she is; and I think that I also have the Spirit of God.”

Romans 7:2-3 (NLT):
“For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her. So while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries.”

The point Paul wants to make clear is when it comes to marriage, it is to be taken seriously, it’s a life-long commitment. Marriage should never be taken lightly, and a believer should never marry an unbeliever.

But in my opinion she is happier if she remains as she is…

Paul is still advocating for being single. I wonder if his wife was somewhat of a burden to him… we can ask him when we meet him. Don’t get the wrong impression, Paul is in no way against marriage, we see this very clearly in Ephesians…

Eph. 5:24-27:
“But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.”

The way a husband lays down his life for his wife, and the way the wife submits to her husband, is a powerful illustration to the world at large… giving credence to the institution of marriage. Quite frankly, the world doesn’t need to see perfection in our marriages, but rather something remarkably different from what they see in society as a whole.

And I think that I also have the Spirit of God…

All that Paul has written is under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

CHAPTER 8

This is a continuation of Paul answering the questions of the Corinthian believers. He’s answered questions about marriage, and now we will start to examine Christian liberties and freedoms.

1 Cor. 8:1:
“Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies.”

(NLT) “Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that “we all have knowledge” about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church.

For the most part, we have two different groups within the Corinthian church, as we do in most churches… mature and knowledgeable believers and babes in Christ, the immature believers.

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols… in the Greek, this can be reduced to the phrase; “idol sacrifices.”

When it came to these sacrifices, it was primarily just meat. Within the city of Corinth there were lots of temples dedicated to all different kinds of idols and gods. They had a god of war, a goddess of love, a god of travel, a goddess of justice, and so on. It was to these gods and idols that the sacrifices would be made. A portion of the meat sacrifice would be consumed on the alter. Another portion of the meat would be given to the priest, which turned out to be way more than what they could eat. So, the remainder of the sacrifice would then be sold in the local markets, which were called “shambles.” The “shambles” would then sell this meat at reduced prices… a “blue light special” to be sure. Maybe this is where we get the expression that something is in shambles.

When you get down to the nitty gritty of these sacrifices, it was believed that evil spirits were constantly trying to possess human beings, and that the easiest way to do that was to attach themselves to food before it was eaten. The only way to get rid of these evil spirits was through its being sacrificed to one of the gods.

The way these pagans perceived this was it had served a dual purpose: number one, it would appease their god, and two, it got rid of any demons in the meat… killing two birds with one stone as they say.

It was very common that the meat sacrificed to idols was served in various places. It was hard to avoid, as you would see it at social events, weddings, and banquets… most anywhere people gathered. It was as common as pizza pie is today.

Now the problem was there were Gentile believers who were brought up in pagan households, and eating this meat would bring back bad memories for them. Also, if someone were to see them buying or eating the meat, they would be tagged as reverting back to their old pagan ways.

On the other hand, the Jewish believers were afraid of being served the meat because such food would be seen as being against their dietary laws, which many of them still followed.

Then there were the “mature believer” who were rock solid in their faith. They knew these idols and gods were non-existent, and that evil spirits can’t contaminate food, that meat was meat… and besides, it was cheap. How many of us don’t like a good bargain?

We know that we all have knowledge…

This is where a little bit of pride can sneak in. Paul is pointing out that these “mature believers” had more than enough knowledge and understanding of the Scriptures. They knew that all this sacrificing to gods and spirits invading meat was just a fallacy. To them, it was just food. In their minds, they felt like they could eat whatever they wanted, “All things are permissible, right Paul?”

Knowledge makes arrogant…

Let’s be careful not to look at this the wrong way, knowledge of God’s Word is extremely important.

Col. 1:9:
“For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,”

Paul makes it clear that knowledge can puff up a person, but love can do so much more, by building one up.

John MacArthur says, “To have love but no knowledge is unfortunate; but to have knowledge and no love is equally tragic.”

The Corinthians regrettably had a “know-it-all” attitude, and when you see it head on, it is really quite obnoxious to be around.

At the heart of their “know-it-all” behavior lies a paradox: while these believers may appear confident and self-assured on the surface, their actions often stem from deep-seated insecurities and a fragile sense of self-worth. So, to combat their insecurities they may have become braggadocious, especially around the lesser mature believers.

1 Cor. 13:4:
“Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant,”

Knowing that idols were nothing more than false gods, and the meat sacrificed to them did not corrupt them spiritually, was helpful knowledge to be sure.

Ah, grasshopper, you are smart, but where is the love my friend? The Corinthians were good at loving themselves, but weak in the brotherly love department.

The problem was, they had an uncaring attitude toward everyone else… they were just thinking of themselves.

But love edifies… (oikodomeō) it means to promote growth in Christian wisdom, affection, grace, virtue, holiness, and blessedness… all good things.

1 John 4:20:
“If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.”

The Corinthians needed to blend their knowledge with love.

1 Cor. 8:2-3:
“If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know; but if anyone loves God, he is known by Him.”

(NLT) “Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn’t really know very much. But the person who loves God is the one whom God recognizes.”

From this we see the Corinthians had the right knowledge, but they lacked understanding. The irony is, by not caring about those who were immature in their faith, they themselves were acting immature.

In defining knowledge, it can be said that it is “the process of passing from the unconscious state of ignorance to the conscious state of ignorance.”

But if anyone loves God, he is known by Him…

You may have heard the phrase, “to know me is to love me.” This expression suggests that a deeper understanding and knowledge of someone will inevitably lead to affection or love toward that person.

It is impossible the know God and not love Him.

1 John 4:19:
“We love, because He first loved us.”

The word know… (ginōskō) means to understand, perceive, to have knowledge of. It also speaks of intimacy, as a husband knows his wife. There are many people who know about the Lord, but they don’t know Him intimately. As believers, one of our main missions in life should be always growing in the knowledge of the Lord, pursuing an intimate relationship with Him.

Pastor Jon Courson writes, “Become solid in theology… but as you do, make sure that love has the priority. Make sure your love for God is preeminent. The Word will confirm God’s leading and correct your misunderstanding. But it must not be a substitute for walking with Him day by day, or talking with Him about every situation. It must never take the place of your walking with Him in intimacy and dependency.”

The only ones who know the Lord and are known by Him, are those who have a relationship with Him. You would never marry someone you didn’t know intimately or have a good relationship with them. So, in the context of our verse, knowledge without love doesn’t have much value.

1 John 5:1-2:
“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments.”

When you think about the Corinthians’ overall behavior, it would be kind of humorous if it wasn’t so sad. One of the main obstacles for them was “pride” and “self,” and Paul was exposing it for what it was.

Christian behaviors need to always have love in the mix.

Phil. 2:3-5:
“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,”

How many times do we hear this Scripture and never really put it into action? When we take the time to think about others, and not just our Christian brothers and sisters, Christ’s love in us begins to shine. Paul says we are to approach this “with humility of mind.” This is the opposite of selfish ambition and empty conceit.

In the Greek and Roman cultures, to show any form of humility was seen as a sign of weakness. It’s no surprise that worldly standards are contrary to God’s Word.

A wise man said, “Love sets the limits of Christian liberty.” This is something the Corinthians needed to digest.

1 Cor. 8:4:
“Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there is no God but one.”

Here, Paul is affirming what the mature believers had knowledge of. Again, these Corinthian believers were right, that the idols and gods that were being offered sacrifices were nothing more than pieces of stone and metal. The problem was, they were content to keep that knowledge to themselves.

One pastor writes, “When I was in Hawaii some years ago I visited a Buddhist temple. An old lady was bowing down to a large brass statue of Buddha and throwing small stones toward it. The stones were rolled somewhat like dice, and the way they landed indicated a good or bad fortune. Other people came and brought food offerings, which they left in front of the idol. I had a strong desire to tell them, “Nobody’s there. Nobody’s home. There’s nothing there but brass.”

That there is no God but one…

Exodus 20:3-5a:
“You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,”

Isaiah 44:6:
“Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me.”

1 Cor. 8:5:
“For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords,”

These so-called gods are in the minds of unbelievers, the only reality about these gods is that some are manifestations of demons.

Paul was very good at labeling and denouncing false gods and idols; we see this in the book of Acts. Many times he even caused riots to take place.

Acts 19:23-26 (NLT):
“About that time, serious trouble developed in Ephesus concerning the Way. It began with Demetrius, a silversmith who had a large business manufacturing silver shrines of the Greek goddess Artemis. He kept many craftsmen busy. He called them together, along with others employed in similar trades, and addressed them as follows: “Gentlemen, you know that our wealth comes from this business. But as you have seen and heard, this man Paul has persuaded many people that handmade gods aren’t really gods at all. And he’s done this not only here in Ephesus but throughout the entire province!”

Yes, Paul was good at calling a spade a spade, even if it got him into trouble.

Psalm 115 describes idols quite nicely…
(4-7):
“Their idols are silver and gold, The work of man’s hands. They have mouths, but they cannot speak; they have eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but they cannot hear; they have noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but they cannot feel; they have feet, but they cannot walk; they cannot make a sound with their throat.”

There is only one God and we see Him in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

1 Cor. 8:6:
“Yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.”

Idols exist, and gods exist (small g) in the minds of men and women, but they are not real no matter how much they believe, no matter how many sacrifices they perform to them.

There is only one true God!

Deut. 10:17:
“For the Lord your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe. “

From whom are all things and we exist for Him…

Gen. 1:1:
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

And one Lord, Jesus Christ…

God came down to this earth through the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and He presents us to the Father.

By whom are all things, and we exist through Him…

John 1:1-3:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God…… All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.”

Everything is by the Son, and everyone who comes to the Father comes through the Son.

Col. 1:16-17:
“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities… all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

And we exist through Him…

1 Cor. 12:27:
“Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.”

Eph. 1:22:
“And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”

The Corinthians existed through Him, Paul existed through Him, and we exist through Him. It’s nice how that works out.

From eternity past, all believers in Jesus Christ are part of the body of Christ. We are eternally connected to one another through our faith in Jesus Christ, who is our powerful source of unity and strength.

We’ll close with this…

Those who bend the knee to Christ and make Him Lord of their life, emphasize the enduring and unbreakable bond that transcends all time and matter.

Securing this eternal bond by faith, instills a hope and peace that surpasses all understanding, into the hearts of all who believe.

There is only one God, and He exists in the Trinity… Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Corinthians had that part down, but the concept of love was missing, and it showed by their lack of concern for those around them. Hopefully, by Paul emphasizing this, it would hit them in the heart.

Our take away should be that we are living in an age where there are countless people who cling on to their gods and idols, thinking everything will work out. What we need to do is be ready to show them the love of Christ who lives in us.