1. FIRST CORINTHIANS How to Live in a Pagan World

2. 1 st Corinthians 7:1-16 1 Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. 2 Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. 3 Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband.

3. 4 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. 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. 6 But I say this as a concession, not as a commandment.

4. 7 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. 8 But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am; 9 but if they cannot exercise self- control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion. 10 Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from her husband.

5. 11 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. 12 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. 13 And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him.

6. 14 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. 15 But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases. But God has called us to peace. 16 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? New King James Version

7. Two Mega-Themes In 1 st Corinthians Living as Christians in a pagan world. Being the Church in a pagan world.

8. Two Mega-Themes In 1 st Corinthians Living as Christians in a pagan world.Living as Christians in a pagan world. Being the Church in a pagan world.

9. Living as Christians in a Pagan World 1.God’s People: Living as a Minority Group 1:18-2:16 2.Living as God’s People in a Litigious Society 6:1-8 3.Living as God’s People in a Sexually Immoral Climate 6:9-20 4.Living as God’s People in a Culture of Divorce 7:1-40 5.Living as Free People with a Cause 8:1-9:23 6.Living as God’s People in an Idolatrous Age 9:24-10:33 7.Living Steadfast, Knowing How It Turns Out 15

10. Living as Christians in a Pagan World 1.God’s People: Living as a Minority Group 1:18-2:16 2.Living as God’s People in a Litigious Society 6:1-8 3.Living as God’s People in a Sexually Immoral Climate 6:9-20 4.Living as God’s People in a Culture of Divorce 7:1-40 5.Living as Free People with a Cause 8:1-9:23 6.Living as God’s People in an Idolatrous Age 9:24-10:33 7.Living Steadfast, Knowing How It Turns Out 15

11. Living as God’s People in a Culture of Divorce 7:1-40 1.Marriage, celibacy, and the avoidance of immorality 1.Marriage, celibacy, and the avoidance of immorality 7:1-9 2.Married Christians contemplating divorce 2.Married Christians contemplating divorce 7:10-11 3.Christians married to non- Christians contemplating divorce 3.Christians married to non- Christians contemplating divorce 7:12-16 4.Unmarried Christians considering marriage 4.Unmarried Christians considering marriage 7:17-40

12. 1. Marriage, Celibacy, and the Avoidance of Immorality 7:1-9

13. The Value of Celibacy Vs. 1 “Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for a man not to touch a woman.” Vs. 1, HCS “About the things you wrote: "It is good for a man not to have relations with a woman." ” Vs. 1, NLT “…Yes, it is good to live a celibate life.” 1. Marriage, Celibacy, and the Avoidance of Immorality

14. The Gift of Celibacy Vs. 7 “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.” Vs. 7, NLT “…God gives some the gift of marriage, and to others he gives the gift of singleness.” 1. Marriage, Celibacy, and the Avoidance of Immorality

15. Marriage and Avoiding Immorality Vs. 2 “But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.” Vs. 9 “But if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.” 1. Marriage, Celibacy, and the Avoidance of Immorality

16. 2. Married Christians Contemplating Divorce 7:10-11

17. The Basic Principle 7:10 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 7:11 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. 2. Married Christians Contemplating Divorce

18. 3. Christians Married to Non- Christians Contemplating Divorce 7:12-40

19. Your First Choice 7:12 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. 3. Christians Married to Non-Christians Contemplating Divorce

20. Consider Your Influence 7:14 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. 7:16 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? 3. Christians Married to Non-Christians Contemplating Divorce

21. Think About the Children Vs. 14, Amplified “For the unbelieving husband is set apart (separated, withdrawn from heathen contamination, and affiliated with the Christian people) by union with his consecrated (set-apart) wife, and the unbelieving wife is set apart and separated through union with her consecrated husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean (unblessed heathen, outside the Christian covenant), but as it is they are prepared for God [pure and clean].” 3. Christians Married to Non-Christians Contemplating Divorce

22. When the Choice is Taken Out of Your Hands Vs. 15 But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases. But God has called us to peace. Amplified: “in such [cases the remaining] brother or sister is not morally bound” 3. Christians Married to Non-Christians Contemplating Divorce

23. 4. Unmarried Christians Considering Marriage 7:17-40

24. The Key to the Passage because of the present distress7:26 “I suppose therefore that this is good because of the present distress—that it is good for a man to remain as he is” in these critical days7:28, Phillips “Yet I believe that those who take this step are bound to find the married state an extra burden in these critical days, and I should like you to be as unencumbered as possible” 4. Unmarried Christians Considering Marriage

25. Because of the Present Distress… 4. Unmarried Christians Considering Marriage Dayna Curry (left) and Heather Mercer answer questions during a Dec. 8, 2001 press conference in Waco, Texas. The two were held in Afghan jails for 104 days on charges of preaching Christianity to Muslims. Baptist Press Photo by Joe Griffin

26. The Need of the Hour 7:30, Phillips “…and indeed their every contact with the world must be as light as possible” 7:35, NIV “…that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.” 4. Unmarried Christians Considering Marriage

28. Translations That May Have Been Used: Abbreviations & Copyright Info AMP or Amplified: © Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation ESV: The Holy Bible, English Standard Version © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. HCSB: Holman Christian Standard Bible © 2001, Broadman & Holman Publishers, LifeWay Christian Resources 127 Ninth Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37234 JPS: The Holy Scriptures (Old Testament) By the Jewish Publication Society All rights reserved MSG or Message: The Message © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson NAS: Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NAS) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE. Copyright 1960, 1988, by The Lockman Foundation, California. All rights reserved. NAS95: Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NAS95) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE. Copyright 1960, 1995, by The Lockman Foundation, California. All rights reserved. NET: The NET Bible, New English Translation (NET) Copyright © 1996, 1997, 1998 By Biblical Studies Press, LLC. All Rights Reserved The Holy Bible: The NET Bible(r) Copyright © 1998 By Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved www.netbible.orgwww.netbible.org NIV: Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by The International Bible Society. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. Scripture quoted by permission. NJKV: Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NKJV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW KING JAMES VERSION. Copyright (c) 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved. NLT: Quotations designated (NLT) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW LIVING TRANSLATION Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois, 60189. All rights reserved. New Living, NLT, and the New Living Translation logo are registered trademarks of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. NRSV: Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NRSV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION. Copyrighted 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, and are used by permission. All rights reserved. RSV: Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (RSV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: REVISED STANDARD VERSION. Copyright 1946, 1952, 1973 by National Council of Churches of Christ. All rights reserved. Weymouth: WEYMOUTH NEW TESTAMENT: NEW TESTAMENT IN MODERN SPEECH by Richard F. Weymouth 3rd Edition (1912)-- Revised & edited E. Hampden-Cooke YLT: Young's Literal Translation of the Holy Bible by J.N. Young, 1862, 1898 (Author of the Young's Analytical Concordance)