The Christian View of Single Life

The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod's study on human sexuality that we are reviewing begins by examining our sexual duality—we are male AND female. This does not mean that everyone of us must enter the order of marriage. Celibacy or the single life is also in accord with God's will. The apostle Paul addresses this:

Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: "It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman."

But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband.

The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband.

For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.

Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

Now as a concession, not a command, I say this.

I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another. (1 Cor. 7:1-7)

Paul's authority for making this statement was the Holy Scriptures. Based on them (e.g. Leviticus 18:1-20) he could declare that having sexual relations with a woman outside of the bonds of marriage was immoral. The words "sexual immorality" are a translation of the Greek word porneia from which we get our word porn and pornography. However, in American culture pornography is not illegal. It may be immoral in our eyes as Christians, but in America it is not illegal. In fact, what Paul refers to as porneia is portrayed and encouraged in thousands of ways every day. And we all know what XXX stands for. So we understand that all this is a very in house discussion among us who are committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and to His guidance on how we are to make use of our sexuality.


Given that, we can point out that those who do not enter the order of marriage also please God. In fact, as Paul says, "each has his own gift from God." Celibacy, the ability to resist the temptation to sexual immorality (also in your heart and soul) and remain single is a gift from God. Relatively few of us have this gift. Paul did and he offered it back to his Lord God by committing himself to proclaiming and teaching the Gospel. Others in our day may use it by committing themselves to pastoring a church, caring for the poor, teaching, a career in music or a whole variety of other callings. They are thus unencumbered with the responsibilities and details of marriage and family life and free to commit themselves totally to that life to which the Lord has called them. We all know of such wonderful people and we must emphasize to them that the single life is in no way inferior to the state of those who are married, as the study says.


The difficulty lies with the fact that medieval Christendom "institutionalized celibacy as a way of life more acceptable to God than the marital union of husband and wife." This view persists, most especially among Christians who are part of the Roman Catholic Church. And that touches the rest of us and corrupts the Scriptural presentation of the Gospel as well as our view of marriage. Celibacy is not more pleasing to God or a holier vocation than marriage. As the CTCR study says, "the fellowship of man and woman is ordered toward the physical union which stands at its center and is the most intimate form of this fellowship. Indeed marriage is the very order that portrays Christ's relationship to us. We are His bride, His marriage partner for all eternity (Ephesians 5:31-32).


Given that, in my next blog we will explore what Jesus means when He teaches us that in the resurrection there is no marrying, that the order of marriage belongs to this life and not to that to come.