“Get married. Make babies.” That’s the annual clarion call from the Singapore government due to a declining population challenge. As a single woman living in this small country, I know the message is targeted at me.
Marriage is a hot topic in Singapore, but it’s also something the apostle Paul lifted up in his writings. In 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, he presented some helpful principles for marriage, found in a passage addressing the fact that the church in Corinth was courting false apostles. “Don’t team up” (2 Corinthians 6:14) can also be rendered “do not be yoked with unbelievers” (NIV). Paul was likely referring to Deuteronomy 22:10, “You must not plow with an ox and a donkey harnessed together.” A yoke or harness is the wooden device fitted around the necks of two animals that binds them together in service. So Paul taught that to be “yoked together with [an unbeliever]” (2 Corinthians 6:14 NIV) isn’t honoring to God and can lead to relational misery.
He went on to describe what healthy compatibility looks like in a marital relationship. When choosing a life partner, he said we should ask:
• Would we be good partners for doing what honors God?
• Could we share intimate fellowship in the light of God’s truth? (2 Corinthians 6:14).
• Is there harmony in our understanding of Jesus being our Savior?
• Do we share a common inheritance in Him? (2 Corinthians 6:15).
• Are we both set apart for God and serving Him? (2 Corinthians 6:17).
A yoke leads two creatures or people in the same direction. So as we carefully consider whom to date and marry, it’s evident that compatibility in Christ is vital. May we consider these things and honor God in our relationships and in the marital counsel we give others!
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Acts 22:30–23:22
More:
Read Ephesians 5:31-32 and consider why it’s vital for a believer in Jesus to marry a person who shares the same faith.
Next:
How do you view compatibility in marriage? What other biblical principles are important to consider when choosing a life partner?
Mike Wittmer on November 12, 2015 at 7:55 am
This is sound, biblical counsel. We need to remember that we are committing to stay together our entire lives, and that takes shared values–especially in regard to Jesus. We have much freedom to marry anyone, as long as we marry in the Lord.
godlove on November 12, 2015 at 10:54 am
This is a very pertinent issue for me too, I’m at that point in my life as well (but not in Singapore, too bad!). However, I think this is a debatable issue though. While I understand the importance of committing to spend the rest of one’s life with a fellow believer in Christ for numerous obvious reasons, I wonder what do you make of 1 Corinthians 7:12-16? Personally, I think more along along the lines of marrying an unbeliever as an opportunity to win a soul for Christ, as long as the partner in question is open to love me for who I am, my religious convictions and all and respects my religious values.
ifeoluwa on November 13, 2015 at 1:53 am
@godlove: In 1 Corinthians 7:12-16, Paul is referring to a believer who is already married to an unbeliever, he encourages the believer not to leave his/ her spouse if the spouse is ready to continue to live with him/her. But for believers who are not yet married, Paul does not encourage such union, just as the author, Poh Fang Chia has clearly explained.