Godly Advice to the Unmarried
In years past, there was a thing called courtship. Many today call it dating. This is when a man and woman would get to know each other and see if they were compatible to be husband and wife. The man would woo a woman by taking her out to dinner, bringing her flowers, or other tokens of affection as acts of kindness. He would show to her, by his continual actions, that he was kind, generous, outgoing and a lovable type of person, marriage material, if you will. She would show him the same by her words and actions.
Today, courtship or dating has become living together, fornicating and using one another for self-gratification. People engage in sexual activity with anyone they want, at any time, without much thought, many times with no intention of even continuing a relationship - much less marriage. This is considered lascivious in the Bible, which is being loose or indulging in improper lustful desires (Mark 7:22; 2 Cor. 12:21; Eph. 4:19 KJV). Yes, people have turned what was designed by God to be beautiful, into a nightmare of continual sin. How far removed we are from what was intended for our own good by a loving Creator.
If a man looks upon a woman with lust, he has already committed adultery or fornication with her in his heart, says Jesus Christ our Creator and Sustainer (Matt. 5:28). How much more has one sinned, when enticing a man to lust after her, by removing her clothes and exposing her body for him to gaze upon.
People do not realize that God is the one who brings sinner’s ways back on their own heads (Psalm 125:4; Jer. 4:18; 26:3, 13; 32:19; Ezek. 7:3, 9; 11:21; 18:32). Shouldn’t we, then, make all our ways pleasing to the Lord so He can bless us instead of curse us? The Lord is righteous in all His Ways and kind in all His deeds (Psalm 145:17). God wants us to make all our ways right before Him. He wants us to make all our deeds righteous and kind so He can bless us and answer our prayers.
God hates sin and sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). God loves purity, decency and morality. God is against adultery, fornication, or sexual experimentation.
The advice to an unmarried person is, if that person cannot demonstrate self-control sexually, then marry, for it is better to marry than to burn. We are warned and admonished by the word of God to flee immorality (1 Cor. 6:18). When you join yourself to another through intercourse, you become one flesh or the same as married in God’s word (1 Cor. 6:16; Matt. 19:6). This being so, you must now follow God’s commandments on marriage (1 Corinthians Chapter 7). However, if you do not honor that relationship, as if you were married, and go and have intercourse with someone else, now you have committed adultery (Matt. 5:31-32; 19:8-9).
Because of immorality, let every man have his own wife (1 Cor. 7:2). We are constantly warned not to act immorally (1 Cor. 10:8). The Bible says immoral persons will go into the lake of fire, which will be located in Jerusalem, and this is the second death (Is. 31:9; Rev. 21:8).
It is not a sin to think immoral thoughts, only to dwell on them. It is Satan’s job to tempt you. When you put immoral thoughts out of your mind, you resist Satan and he will flee from you. What you premeditate, you normally do, sooner or later. So premeditate doing good for God and overcome evil by doing good (1 Peter 3:11; Rom. 12:21; Rom. 2:7; 2 Peter 2:6; Jude 1:7).
Many people do not know that the tests we go through in this life are from God. He wants to see whether or not we will obey Him and cry out to Him in our time of need. God hears the prayer of the righteous—those who do good and not evil continually; those who are the sheep and not the goats (John 9:31; Matt. 25:33-46). Remember always, God is watching us from a distance (Psalm 33:14).
Galatians 5:19-21; Mark 7:21-23; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Ephesians 5:3-5; 2 Timothy 3:2-5; and Malachi 3:5 cover the acts of our sinful nature, which we are to put to death with the help of God’s Spirit (Rom. 8:13).
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things, God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient (Col. 3:5-6). Therefore, do not be partakers with them; for you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light. The fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth. Find out what pleases the Lord and engage in it daily for repentance (Eph. 5:6-10, 17; Matt. 3:2).
In Bible times, those who were true disciples of Jesus Christ were overcoming evil by continually doing good for the Lord (Rom. 2:7; 12:21; Psalm 37:27). Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever, and so is His message of overcoming (Heb. 13:8). We need to put His words into action daily and do God’s Will so we will abide forever (John 8:51; 1 John 2:17). Remember, there is nothing impossible for God’s disciples to overcome (Luke 1:37; Matt 17:20). It just takes daily determination and fighting the good fight of faith for God (1 Tim. 6:12). You can do all things through Him that strengthens you (Phil. 4:13).