Here Paul lays out his reasons for his statements that people who are unmarried do well to remain unmarried. And in this passage we get a good idea of the responsibilities of marriage. What do we see marriage as in 1 Corinthians 7.25-40? We see it as a commitment to care for your husband or wife for the rest of that person's life.
Lest Paul's statements should drive people away from a desire to be married, I should observe that Paul is living and writing during a time when the entire body of Christ is subject to periods of severe persecution. If someone believes on Christ he can expect his life to be ended in the relatively near future. Recall that only one of Jesus' twelve apostles died of natural causes in his old age. This passage of Scripture must be understood in its context. See how in verse 32 Paul talks about "anxieties." Knowing that I must provide for a wife and that I am unlikely to live very long should make me very hesitant to marry. It will be quite difficult to provide for her in the event that I should die soon and she should live a long time.
How do we deal with a passage like this in 21st century America? We don't deal with it by deciding it would be a really bad idea to commit ourselves to caring fora family. We don't deal with it by deciding that truly spiritual people free themselves from a desire to keep God's command of Genesis 1-2 by marrying and having offspring. All Scripture is God's word.
Paul's statements are grounded in the anxiety and care that we have for the person we marry. We should be more concerned about that person's well being than about our own. We should be concerned about what will happen to that person if we should die. And that is a very serious concern in every age. In almost every instance, one member of a married couple outlives the other. What will happen to your husband or wife when you die? How will he or she deal with losing you and being alone? This should be a concern, a matter of no small prayer and consideration.
Yet as we strive to make sure we can care for those people we commit to, let us also remember the end of verse 36. It is no sin at all to marry. It is a good thing. We do well to marry, if that is our desire.
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