Sermon Supplements
Sunday Sermon Supplement--August 4, 2025
Welcome to our Sunday Sermon supplement. On certain Mondays, I will be putting together short articles to address some issues or questions from our sermon texts that we did not get to cover on Sunday. Sunday sermons are limited in size and scope. As a result, we cannot always address every issue or question raised by the text. And so, I will try to supplement our sermons with short articles as needed. I had originally considered doing videos, but from a logistical standpoint articles are easier for me.
Yesterday, on August 3, we studied 1 Corinthians 7, looking at Paul’s words to unmarried Christians. The goal of our sermon was to answer the question: What is better for an unmarried Christian? Should an unmarried Christian stay single, or should they seek a spouse? In our sermon, we looked at how Paul answered this question both for those who had never been married and for people whose spouse had died. For the never marrieds and for widows or widowers, Paul said there was great freedom. Paul believed that single people would have greater devotion to Jesus if they remained unmarried. But Paul certainly did not consider marriage a sin. Recognizing that the world was full of sexual temptation, Paul said that marriage might be the better option for many single people.
So, during our sermon, we saw Paul’s words about marriage for those who were never married or widowed. But we did not look at Paul’s words for those who are single by way of divorce. Are divorced people free to remarry in any and every circumstance? And does Paul even allow divorce for a follower of Jesus? Paul has a number of things to say about divorce in 1 Corinthians 7.
In 1 Corinthians 7:10-11, Paul gives instructions about divorce. Based on the verses that follow, we know this instruction is given to a married couple where both the husband and wife are Christians. Paul writes: “To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband. 11 But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.” Notice carefully what Paul says here. He says that these words about divorce are a command. Yesterday, as Paul talked about whether never marrieds or widows should remarry, he did not speak of commandments. There was no command about whether a never married person or a widow or widower should remarry. But now, Paul does speak of a command in regard to married Christians and divorce. Paul refers to his instruction here as a command because it comes directly from the Lord. Jesus gave commands about divorce in Matthew 19, Mark 10, and Luke 16. Paul was aware of Jesus’ teaching in this matter. And so, he tells the Corinthians that his instruction here is mandatory.
Paul’s conclusion is simple. A husband and wife must not get divorced. Now, note that in verse 10, Paul does not tell a wife not to divorce her husband. Instead, Paul tells a wife not to separate from her husband. Only the husband is told not to divorce the wife. In the ancient world, a wife could not legally file for divorce. The Roman courts would only grant men divorce. If a woman wanted to leave the marriage, all she could do was separate from her husband. Today, both men and women can file for divorce. And so, I believe that if Paul were writing these words today, he would tell both woman and men in Christian marriages not to seek divorce.
Now, common sense would tell us that Paul is not counseling a wife or husband to stay in an abusive situation. Paul recognizes that there will be marriages where divorce is the only option. That is why even as Paul commands against divorce, he permits it. In verse 11, Paul says “But if she does…” Paul recognizes that there will be situations where divorce is unavoidable. Divorce will occur. Even Christians will end their marriages to other Christians. So, after the marriage ends, what comes next? Are Christians allowed to remarry after divorce? Paul answers that question in verse 11. Look there again. Paul writes: “But if she does (if she separates from her husband) she must remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband.” Paul seems to say for the divorced person there are only two options. Option one is to remain unmarried. Option 2 is to be reconciled to your ex.
Now, let’s complicate Paul’s answer here a little bit. Note that Paul tells women not to remarry after divorce (unless they are remarrying their ex-husband). But Paul does not tell men that they cannot remarry. Why? Well, some would say that women aren’t allowed to remarry because when they left their husbands, they weren’t legally divorced. Remember women couldn’t sue for divorce in Roman courts. And so, women still had a legal marriage that prevented them from marrying anyone else. Men didn’t have that problem. They could legally dissolve a marriage. And so, some would say that Paul did permit remarriage after divorce. His words were only intended for women who could not legally dissolve their union. Today, as we said before, both men and women can dissolve the marital union. And so, many would conclude that Paul allows remarriage after divorce when the divorce is a legal reality.
The problem with this view is that Paul seems to say very clearly that a marriage is only truly dissolved if one of the spouses dies. Near the end of chapter 7, Paul states that the death of a spouse is the only God-recognized end to a marriage. In verse 39, Paul writes: “A woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but he must belong to the Lord.” Presumably, the opposite is also true. By coming near the end of the chapter, this sentence serves as a summary of what Paul has been teaching. One of Paul's main moral principles is that marriage lasts for lifetime. It is only when a spouse dies that someone is free to remarry. I think there can be little doubt that Paul allowed Christians to get divorced, but Paul saw divorce as a legal fiction. In Paul’s mind, a marriage was still intact until somebody died, no matter what the courts might say. In Paul’s mind, both men and women had two options after divorce. Those options were to remain single or be reconciled to your ex. Note that Paul makes no exceptions to this rule. He doesn’t say a divorced person may remarry if their spouse committed adultery. Paul issues a very blanket statement here, and he says it is a command.
So, we have seen what Paul teaches about Christians getting divorced. But what if a Christian is married to a non-Christian? Paul addresses this situation in verses 12-16. “To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. 13 And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him. 14 For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. 15 But if the unbeliever leaves, let it be so. The brother or the sister is not bound in such circumstances; God has called us to live in peace. 16 How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or, how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?”
The Corinthians likely knew that Paul did not allow marriage between a Christian and a non-Christian. Paul is explicit about that teaching here in verse 39. Paul says if a widow gets remarried, she must marry a Christian man, someone who belongs to the Lord. Paul did not want Christians marrying non-Christians. But in Corinth, there were many individuals who became Christians while their spouse did not. That meant that they were now married to a non-Christian, the very thing that Paul said should not occur. So, should those Corinthians who became Christians leave their spouses who were not believers in Jesus?
In verses 12-13, Paul says that a Christian should not divorce an unbelieving spouse if the spouse is willing to stay and take part in the marriage. Paul says in verse 14 that the unbelieving spouse is sanctified through the Christian spouse’s presence. What does that mean? Can an unbelieving spouse be saved by their husband or wife’s faith? I would explain Paul’s words this way. My wife Tammy works for a major bank. Being an employee of that bank comes, with many perks. For example, working for the bank allows you to purchase things like cars, computers, or vacations at deep discounts. Now, I am not an employee of that bank. I work for the church. Nonetheless, I get many of the perks of working for the bank simply because I am married to Tammy. I can buy things on deep discounts just like an employee. Now, the bank does not pay me. I am not an employee. But still, my marriage to a bank employee allows me to benefit. A non-Christian married to a Christian benefits from some of the blessings that God gives the believing spouse. They are not a Christian. But some of the joy and peace and answered prayer from the believing spouse spills into their life. The unbelieving spouse also has a unique chance to hear the Gospel. So, if an unbelieving spouse is willing to stay and to fulfill the duties of the spouse, the Christian should stay in the marriage. They are not obligated to leave, and they are not free to leave.
Paul recognizes that not all non-Christian spouses will want to stay married to a Christian, however. Many non-Christians might resent their newfound spouses’ faith and want to leave. An unbelieving spouse may not like some of the new moral restrictions that come upon a marriage when one person starts following Jesus. In that case, Paul says the Christian is free to divorce. The Christian should not try to keep their non-Christian partner in the marriage. There is no guarantee that a non-Christian will become a Christian simply because they have a believing spouse. Paul knows that peace is an important value to God. And so, it is better for the spouse to leave than to have constant friction between two people.
But is the Christian spouse allowed to remarry? This is a difficult question. Paul says in verse 15 that if the unbeliever leaves, the Christian is not bound. The word here is a word that was used for the obligation that a servant had to their master. Paul seems to be saying that a Christian is not bound to keep fulfilling the duties of a husband or wife if their non-Christian partner decides to leave. Some people say that not being bound also means that a Christian is free to remarry. But that teaching is not explicit in the text. And that teaching would violate what Paul teaches in verse 39. Remember that principle about marriage that we already looked at: “A woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but he must belong to the Lord.” Paul believed that marriage lasted until there was a death. And so, it is hard to believe that Paul thought a Christian could remarry after divorce, even after divorcing a non-believing spouse. Paul seemed to consistently teach that when a marriage ended there were two options: stay single or remarry your spouse. So, Paul had no command for the never married or the widow or widower, but he did have a command for those who were divorced. His command was to stay single or be reconciled.
In a culture that is rife with divorce, this is a very difficult teaching. As you consider this teaching, make sure that you answer the right question not the wrong question. The wrong question to consider here is “how do I feel about this teaching?” The better question to ask is “Is this teaching true? Is this teaching God’s best for me?” Our feelings don’t determine what is best for us. The teaching in God’s Word shows us what is true. So, make sure you follow God’s truth not your heart.