Undivided Devotion

I Corinthians 7:25-35 TNIV
"Now about virgins: I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy. Because of the present crisis, I think that it is good for a man to remain as he is. Are you pledged to a woman? Do not seek to be released. Are you free from such commitment? Do not look for a wife. But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this.
"What I mean, brothers and sisters, is that the time is short. From now on those who are married should live as if they were not; those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
"I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs - how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world - how he can please his wife - and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world - how she can please her husband.
"I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in UNDIVIDED DEVOTION TO THE LORD."

So what is Paul saying here? You can't ever disregard the cultural context of a particular verse - in fact, it is your responsibility to first consider it before attempting to apply it today. Obviously, 2000 years later, we realize that the time was not as short as Paul seems to say, but that may not be the point. In the grand scheme of ETERNITY, sure, our time on this earth is very short. But perhaps that spans much longer than any lifetime.

Perhaps we are thinking of this verse along the lines of the saying (albeit cheesy sometimes) "I want to be so in love with God that a guy/girl has to find HIM to find me" or whatever other variation on that theme you can come up with. Our responsibility is to be wholly devoted to God, and for our attraction to be more based on similar devotion with another believer. Maybe?

So when does the devotion to the Lord become "too much"? I have heard it said that if your job begins to infringe on your relationship with your family, then you should cool it on the job and reestablish your family time. But what if your job IS ministry? Your job is, in essence, devotion to the Lord? Or do we presume that one's devotion to the Lord has shifted to devotion to a ministry/job, and that there must be a redefining of motive and intention?

It seems a paradox, somewhat. God created marriage, and certainly we see that the first instance of it was in a direct relationship with God at the same time. But here, it seems that Paul may not believe in the ability of a married couple to remain wholly devoted to God.

I certainly understand the idea: One's devotion to God is truly challenged when there are worldly, and marital, issues at hand. The work and difficulty that is inherent in marriage are sure to draw attention aside. But I ask this: Aren't there just as many other things that do exactly that as well? Why do we pay particular attention to marriage as having the potential to distract from a relationship with God?

Relationship with video games? With money? With social situations? With the self?

There are plenty of other obstacles here. And they are things that you daily attempt to tackle by yourself. Could not a spouse, with equal understanding of a whole devotion to God, be the best thing for a person?

Perhaps that's what might be understood when Paul says, "Those who are married should live as if they were not." Two individuals, both with a strong relationship with God, living together and attacking the challenges of life together. Both understand that the first-and-foremost thing in their lives is their devotion to God - perhaps so much so that they become more concerned with those things than even their own relationship. But could that really work? Surely there are times in which one might say, "I need a little of your time now, please."

It seems difficult to me... On one hand, we were not created to be alone. We are discontent, alone. We need another half. But on the other hand, the very thing we, as human beings, need is the very thing that is suggested to distract us from God the most. Hmm...

So do I search out a spouse? Perhaps not actively. As Jesus Himself says, "I must be about my Father's business." But surely He felt this strain as well. He did, after all, experience and deal with all the things we deal with. So what were His thoughts? Do man and woman disregard each other for sake of their ministry to the rest of the world? Do man and woman attempt to unite for the sake of their ministry?

Maybe there is a person who has the exact same calling, to the exact same ministry as you. Perhaps you are passionate about the same exact thing, and therefore your relationship/marriage allows you to remain wholly devoted to God, even within your seperate lives.

Perhaps two people realize the identical nature of their calling, and just say, "Hey, I do this; You do this; Do you want to do this together, for the rest of our lives?" But does a relationship based heavily on a identical call to ministry stand? Shouldn't it? Wouldn't God bless that relationship?

Who knows? Do you?