Quietly, while I was away, another couple in our church celebrated 70 years of marriage. Dr. Wiley Biles and Dr. Gloria Biles have been married for over seven decades. Is anybody else in awe? Once again, Melanie and I confess that our 32 years only qualify us as novices in a church filled with so many 50+ year marriages.
As a single adult, Paul weighed in on the subject of marriage in his letter to the Corinthians. Members of the church in Corinth wanted to know whether or not they should get married or could get divorced. On the one hand, Paul validates the beauty of singleness. Our single friends are not waiting to become complete by getting married. Like Paul, they find fulfillment in relationship with Christ. Paul argues that singleness affords the opportunity of singular focus on the work of Christ in the world. My single adult friends say they have less time, because the work in their household is not divided in multiple ways.
What would Paul say about marriage today? In the ancient world, dominated by Rome, Paul was fully aware of the variety of possible relationship configurations. Homosexuality was a common practice in the cities which Paul visited. In this chapter, he upholds the beauty and exclusivity of marriage between one man and one woman. Some will say, “But if only Paul understood the modern sensibilities in our cultural view of greater possibilities for relationships than the traditional model.” With Moses and Jesus, Paul addressed marriage as a relationship between one man and one woman. We love our friends who wrestle with their identity and temptations to enter relationships which the scripture forbids. It is not ours, though, to discount God’s unique design for marriage.
