Freedom in Knowing Thyself

Reference

I Corinthians 7:36-40

Sermon Notes

I Corinthians 7;36-40.pptx

›I Corinthians 7:36-40
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself
36 If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed, if his passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. 37 But whoever is firmly established in his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed, he will do well. 38 So then he who marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.

(I Corinthians 7:36-38, ESV)

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39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. 40 Yet in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.

(I Corinthians 7:39-40, ESV)›

Main Point
› Paul shows that when two good choices are available making one rather than another will not lead to sin
› There is room for wisdom and folly
› We are meant to be reasonable people who can weigh the options and choose well
› Both options bring their own unique holiness and godliness in their own way

›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself
– Out of all the things he has been challenging us with, however, it is the concept of knowing oneself and the freedom given to make decisions
– Consider the Roman Catholic tradition
– There is a belief that celibacy makes one holier
– We see the spiritual vs physical element brought into the Church
– This was challenged during the Reformation
– Luther (an Augustinian monk) married Katherine (a nun) and they had 6 children
– This marriage was a direct challenge to the concept of celibacy
– Luther argued that the insistence of clerical celibacy was from the devil and that marriage was honorable
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›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (2)
– This does not mean Luther necessarily endorsed a view in which marriage was the only correct action
– Most congregations today would refuse to ordain an unmarried man (a direct contrast to the Roman Catholic tradition)
– Both views force an unnecessary paradigm onto us
– It can cause unnecessary harm to fall into one or the other
– George was a true believer, kind, giving, and loving toward everyone
– Also he was a bachelor
– There was an expectation that he should be married
– A coworker I know who has told me some have said things along the line of, “We need to get you a wife.”
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›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (3)
– What harm is there in this?
– The harm comes from the fact that these individuals may not be called to marriage
– They could be like those in today’s passage
– Of sound mind, not convinced being single is holier or godlier than being married, and have control over their sexual passions
– The response from the Church should be to encourage them
– The same is true of any woman who makes such a choice
– Let’s say an individual does know themselves
– They know their passions and it causes an incredible amount of temptation
– How should we encourage them?
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›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (4)
– We should acknowledge that having sexual passion is not sinful
– There is a belief that sexual passion stems from fallen nature (False!)
– It is not that such passions are a part of the fall, but what we do with the passions
– The many warnings against adultery
– The many reminders to hold fast to ones spouse
– It is in marriage where these sexual passions are to be unleashed
– There are only two relationships which are so deeply physical and spiritual
– God and a spouse
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›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (5)
– God knows us through and through
– We give all of ourselves to this God who loves us so deeply
– In marriage we find something similar
– We can have a certain type of physical relationship with others
– We can have deep spiritual connections with people (through conversation, prayer, reading the Bible together)
– In only one human relationship can we reveal our sexual passions
– Only one human relationship we can remove the fig leaves and be utterly vulnerable
– Only one human relationship allows us to be connected both body and soul

›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (6)
– This is incredibly important to talk about for two reasons
– The first is we are often very negligent when we talk about sexuality
– Sexuality is a good thing and deeply personal
– We should acknowledge this openly without fear
– Sexual passion is not sinful
– Did you notice something about these marriage relationships?
– Is it possible, sexual passions aren’t the problem, but our lack of caring about it is?
– We must be made aware of the beauty of it, the significance of it

›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (7)
– Another reason is because we need to be more encouraging with the knowledge people have of themselves
– Imagine the consequence of an individual who gets married but who has all their sexual passions under control
– What if the reason they got married was because they were constantly told that’s what they were supposed to do
– If such an individual gets married then it will be incredibly difficult for them to understand their spouse
– One got married with the expectation that this is the place where sexual passions are to be released
– The other with the belief that everyone should have the same amount of self control!

›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (8)
– The point is that it will make their marriage difficult because of the different deeply personal expectations
– Both sides rid the fig leaves and bare it all out in hopes of coming to an understanding
– Such concerns and anxieties could have been avoided should the one spouse been told, “It’s ok to know yourself”
– It’s ok to not have sexual passions and to devote yourself to something other than being a husband or wife
– We see the third way
– Where those with sexual passions have a place where it can be met, and a place for those without as well
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›Application Points
›Freedom in Knowing Thyself (9)
– Marriage is for the former where sexual passions can find their freedom and that is good
– The celibate lifestyle in which those passions aren’t there, and such individuals can find their freedom elsewhere
– Both cases are good, both are holy, both are pleasing to the Lord
– One has more anxiety and concerns
– That we would stop separating the physical from the spiritual
– To encourage each other to know ourselves unto the Lord
– The Christian is free to understand these things
– The Christian is free to take themselves into consideration
– The Christian man or woman is free to pursue God with their unique identity
– We should encourage one another to honor God with the decisions we have made