Sermon Tone Analysis

*Oneness in Marriage. 1 Cor.

7:1-9*

*Maranathan Baptist Church.

Sunday January 29, 2006.

10:00 am*

In all the *events overshadowing last week*, perhaps you *missed an interesting report*.

A *new study for the federal Justice Department* says *Canada should get rid of its law banning polygamy*, and *change other legislation* to *help women and children living in such multiple-spouse relationships.

*

*The research paper* is part *of a controversial $150,000 polygamy project*, launched a year ago and *paid for by the Justice Department* and Status of Women Canada.

The paper by *three law professors at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont*., argues that *Sec.

293 of the Criminal Code banning polygamy* serves no useful purpose and in any case is rarely prosecuted.

Instead, *they argue*, *Canadian laws should be changed to better accommodate the problems of women in polygamous marriages*, providing them *clearer spousal support and inheritance rights.

*

The Justice Department project was *prompted* in part by an RCMP investigation into the *religious community of Bountiful in Creston, B.C*., where *polygamy is practised openly.

*

Although the Bountiful case raises immediate issues, *Canada is also faced* with a *rising tide of immigration from Africa and the Middle East*, where *polygamy is legally and religiously sanctioned*.

Immigration officers can refuse entry to individuals practising polygamy.

The Events that Paul faced in Corrinth were also one of sexual immorality.

*Written* *from Ephesus* during the Apostle *Paul’s third missionary journey from 53-57 AD*,  1 Corinthians 7 commences the second part or division of this Epistle, or, “the discussion of those points which had been *submitted to the apostle in a letter* from the church at Corinth, for his instruction and advice.

A *strategic commercial center*, *Corinth* was *one of the largest cities* in the Roman world and *one of the most corrupt* (Acts 18:1).

Full of *false teachers*, *immature believers* and people of all kind of ideas, the Christians in Corinth got into a lot of difficult situations considering Marriage.

If you recall *from the discussion on the end of 1 Cor.

7*: Some *Gnostics* argued that since the *material world was evil*, the spiritual individual should avoid it.

*Many now* seem to claim a *secret knowledge* likewise, and proclaim the *uselessness of marriage* and have *abandoned or redefined the concept*.

With the *Greeks in Corrinth* prostitution was an essential part of the Greek Like.

*William Barklay noted Demosthenes* has laid it down as the common *and accepted rule of life:* He said: “We have courtesans for the sake of pleasure; we have concubines for the sake of daily cohabitation; we have wives for the purpose of having children legitimately’ and having a faithful guardian for all our household affairs”.

*The Jews* revered neither women nor marriage.

*The Synagogue prayer book* stated that the man offer the daily prayer: “I thank Thee, O Lord, that Thou hast not made me a Gentile dog nor a woman”.

*An active and vocal feminist movement* had also developed.

*Some wives competed with their husbands in business* and even in *feats of physical strength*.

Many were *not interested in being housewives and mothers*, and by the end of the first century *childless marriages were common*.

*Both men and women* were *determined to live their own lives, regardless of marriage vows or commitments.*

*The early church* had *members that had lived together*, and *were still living together*, under all four marriage arrangements.

It also had those who had had multiple marriages and divorces.

Not only that, but *some believers had gotten the notion that being single and celibate* *was more spiritual than being married*, and *they disparaged marriage entirely.*

Perhaps someone was teaching that sex was “unspiritual” and should be altogether forsaken.

*Today* in *many regions* where *those who wish polygamy* come from the practice of *female circumcision* is practiced so the women understand that it her *her place to give pleasure to the man, but never the woman’s place to receive pleasure from the man.*

The question is, *since so many ideas exist on marriage*, *is oneness possible in Marriage*.

Is *independent singleness* the answer or do we *abandon the concept of oneness* in favour of as *open relations* as we possibly can?

·        *Do you know* how to *build spiritual intimacy* in your marriage?

*How can we* *take relationships one step deeper* by *growing together in Christ?*

*In 1 Cor.

7, oneness is centered around and understanding of an isolation issue of celibacy*

*In the first seven verses of chapter 7* Paul *starts with the question of singleness*.

He teaches that *celibacy* 1) is *good,* 2) that it can be *tempting*, 3) that it is *wrong for married* people, and 4) that it is *a gift from God*.

*1) celibacy*  is good

*1Co 7:1*  Now concerning the matters about which *you wrote*: "It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman."

Now concerning the matters about which you wrote

Remember that Paul sent the Corinthians a letter:

1Co 5:9  *I wrote to you in my letter* not to associate with sexually immoral people—

 

We don’t have this letter, but *1 Cor.

Represents* the *questions the Corrinthians have for Paul.*

*The NIV translation of this text* as “it is good for a man *not to marry*” is an *off mark interpretation* of the text.

The *idiom* to “touch a woman” occurs *nine times in Greek antiquity*, ranging across *six centuries* and a variety of writers, and *in every instance*, *without ambiguity* it *refers to having sexual intercourse*.

The word *“Man” is anthropos*, representing all of humankind, not the specific aner.

The Greek has the indefinite noun *gyne to represent woman* not wife.

“to have sexual relations with a woman."

Or *“To touch a woman” in other translations * was *a common Jewish euphemism for sexual intercourse.*

The phrase is *used in that sense in passages such as Gen.

20:6; Ruth 2:9; and Prov.

**6:29**.*

Paul uses it to state that *it is a good thing for Christians not to have sexual intercourse,* that is, *to be single*, *unmarried*.

*He does not say*, however, that *singleness is the only good condition* *or that* *marriage is in any way wrong or inferior to singleness.*

Heb 13:4  Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

Yet much confusion exists over creation and marriage: There is a *story of a Sunday School* that was teaching *how God created* everything, including human beings.

*Little Johnny* seemed *especially intent* when they told him how *Eve was created out of one of Adam’s ribs*.

*Later in the week his mother noticed* him lying *down as though he were ill*, and said, “Johnny, *what is the matter?”*

Little Johnny responded, “*I have pain in my side*.

*I think I’m doing to have a wife”.*

Please turn to Gen 2

*All people need companionship* and *God ordained marriage to be*, *among other things*, *the most fulfilling and common means of companionship*.

*God Himself declared at creation that:*

Gen 2:18  Then the LORD God said, "It is *not good that the man should be alone*; I will make him a *helper fit for him*."

*Gen **2:24*  Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and *hold fast* to his wife, and they shall *become one flesh.*

There is the story of a daughter that was *about to be married* who said *to her faither*, “Dad, I *don’t want to leave mom*”.

The Father smiles and said, “*I understand*, but *don’t let that stand in the way of your happiness*.

*Take your mother with you*”

*God institutes marriage* and declares oneness.

As we saw two weeks ago, it *was the false teachers*, reported in *1 Tim.

4:3* that were *forbidding marriage.*

*God allowed for singleness* and *did not require* *marriage for everyone under the Old Covenant*, but *Jewish tradition* not only *looked on marriage as the ideal state* but *looked on singleness as disobedience of God’s command* to marry.

What then is the *oneness* mentioned?

The Hebrew word (/dābaq/) behind holding fast or to *cleave* refers to a *strong bonding together of objects* and *often was used to represent gluing or cementing*.

Job used the word when he spoke of his bones clinging to his skin and flesh (Job 19:20; cf. Ps.

102:5).

It could also have the *connotation of following closely.

*The two ideas were, in fact, sometimes carried together, as in Ruth’s clinging to Naomi (Ruth 1:14) and the men of Judah remaining steadfast to David (2 Sam.

20:2).

Several times the term is used of the Israelites’ holding to the Lord in love and obedience (Deut.

10:20; 11:22; 13:4; Josh.

22:5; 23:8).

The idea of close bonding and interrelationship is seen in the modern Hebrew word for *marriage*, /kiddushin/, a word *closely related to the terms for holy and sanctified,* which have the basic meaning of being *set apart and consecrated*.

Notice how *the two … become one flesh*.

They are therefore indivisible and inseparable, except through death.

*In God’s eyes they become the total possession of each other*, one in mind and spirit, in goals and direction, in emotion and will.

*When or if they have a child* it *becomes the perfect emblem and demonstration of their oneness*, *because that child is a unique product of the fusion of two people into one flesh and carries the combined traits of both parents.*

But it is not, as some foolishly argue, that becoming *one flesh** in the sex act* is what constitutes marriage.

*If that were true, there would be no such thing as fornication*, *because as soon as an unmarried man and woman engaged in the sex act they would be automatically married*, rather than guilty of wickedness.

Please turn to Phil 2

·        How does the *one flesh look*?

What is the intent of God in how we *regard each other?*

* *

* *

*Phi 2:1*  So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and *sympathy,* Phi 2:2  complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Phi 2:3  Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility *count others more significant than yourselves.

*Phi 2:4  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

*Jesus said:*

*Mat 19:6*  So they are no longer two but one flesh.

*What therefore God has joined* together, let not man separate."

*God *is the one who *creates oneness.**