Evangelist Teen Ministry Question of Doctrine

1 Cor. 7:27, Art thou loosed from a wife? seek not a wife.

As long as you remain celibate, your divorce should be no issue.

 

The context of the passage quoted was of those whose marriages dissolved because of the conversion of one party. There would be no sin involved in their remarriage, but he admonishes them on a better way.

I don't know the circumstances of your divorce, but unless it was a direct result of your Christian conversion, or of the marital infidelity on the part of your wife, you have no Scriptural basis for remarriage.

If Paul's advice to those who could not sin by remarrying was to remain celibate, it would be hard for me to imagine that he would go easier upon those whose circumstances were questionable.

Again, I don't know what your circumstances are, but the advice is the same. I can tell you this, unless I was convinced you would remain celibate I would forbid any of my daughters from setting foot in a church where you held office [until you married.]

You said you wanted to hear what others thought and why. Well, there's my two cents .

(Edited to add section in brackets in next to last paragraph.)

[ August 13, 2002, 04:52 AM: Message edited by: Aaron ]

 

Evan, I have a somewhat different view than that of the other brother….

IMO, I think circumstances dictate how your ministry is to be carried out… 1. If you were a sinner during the time of your separation, even though divorce is wrong in the sight of God, you weren’t subject to the laws of God…. Roman’s 8:7-8

After that you are saved, your past sins should no longer be in consideration….. God forgave you of your past sins, and the wife that you’re with at that time, is one wife, not two… Your only wife in God’s eyes…

2. If you were a believer at the time of your divorce, the circumstances again dictate whether you can still hang on to the gospel plow…. The Bible says that those that look back after they have put their hands to the plow, is no longer worthy…. In other words, no longer a fit vessel to deliver the gospel… You won’t lose your salvation, but you would lose your office as a minister…

3. Here are the two circumstances that God would allow for a divorce, and still allow you to maintain your calling as a minister….
A. If you couldn’t get along with your wife and you divorce her, and you either remain unmarried, or reconcile to your wife…. This would also depend upon your wife, because if she married again, it would have caused her to commit adultery…
B. If a brother has an unbelieving wife and she is pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away…. BUT…. If your unbelieving wife isn’t pleased to dwell with you, if she leaves, then you are not in bondage in those cases… In other words, God won’t hold a man to blame for the actions of an unbeliever… If then that man marry again, he has not sinned… Neither should the church of God hold that man apart from the pulpit….

If God doesn’t hold that man responsible in such cases, then why should the Church… Even though, out of ignorance, most churches do hold a man blamable, as though he still had two wives… It’s like any other hard to understand scriptures, men take them and twist them around to suit their purpose…..

 

I think that a person who is divorced should not hold the position of a preacher, I Tim 3,taking into consideration verse 7. The sin of divorce was forgiven, but the consequences of sin remain.

This is the stand of our church and many other churches I have attended. I know of many of the more liberal churches that will welcome you, though. Why do you ask? Have you come up against some churches that refuse to allow you to come preach?

 

If your divorce was before your salvation you have absolutely no burden to carry. None. Peace.

 

But may God help you if your spouse cheats on you, abuses you, abandons you and steps out of your life completely after you are a believer because many Baptists will give you no end of grief about it.

 

Yes, it is true that all sins are forgiven, past, present, and future, once we are saved. But the consequences of some of these sins stay with us till death. And the sin of divorce, murder, and probably a few others, stay with us as far as consequences go.

Because of the position you hold, you would be under the same qualifications of the Pastorial Epistles, and thus, because of your divorce you would be disqualified from this position.

Also, another point to consider, you are a direct example for these teens, and because of a blemished past, what kind of example are you for these young Christians, especially with as much peer pressure they are under with the things of this world. You would be sending a mixed message and thus bring confusion for them in the passages of Matthew and the discoarse of Jesus about divorce and the Pastorial Epistles of I & II Thimothy, and Titus, written by Paul. Remember that God said in His Bible that you have to be beyond reproach. And you have admitted that you do occassionaly preach.

 

I know that this subject can be touchy. But in our Baptist circle, a divorced man cannot preach. He can be in a ministry, but the portions of scripture in I Tim and Tit are there as a guide for those desiring the position. As for you bringing it up, if the church takes a stand on this subject, then I would see it as deceptive behavior if you hide this fact. Maybe just stay away from this type of church if you don't feel you should bring it up to the pastor of that church.

And as Justified has said, you are an example to those teens. They may not care right now, because they aren't married. But what will this be to them if they have to face divorce. And not all of the teens you are standing before are saved. (Or did you mean conversion?) Yes, you are of one wife, but are you blameless and do you rule your house well? This is what the unsaved look at and use as excuse against us as Christians.

 

I have to agree with Aaron. As long as you do not re-marry there should be no problem. If you re-marry that will be adultry. Unless your ex-wife dies. Then you could or would be free to get married.

Also Aaron....if his wife was commiting adultry and he divorced her for this would it be ok for him to re-marry. I know who ever his wife would remarry would be commiting adultry right along with her...then...too...right? OR even vice versa.

Qualifications of Bishops 1 Timothy chapter 3

Bishop: A spiritual overseer in the christian church. In various churchs, a clergyman of the highest order.

Adultry: The sexual intercourse of two persons either of whom is married to a third person.

Instructions about Divorce: Matthew 19:1-15

......v9: "And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, comits adultry; and whoever marries her who is divrorced commits adultry.

...v11: But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given.

 

Oh and Evan...you could use the excuse you were not a saved person before....when you got divorced, and so yes, those sins have been forgiven.

...but now as a christian, you do know Gods word says if you are divorced, you can not remarry.

I showed you Gods word. That is the difference!

 

I have heard the name legalist put upon different individuals and have heard individuals spout things interpreted by the Greek but no one who deals with the qualifications of a leader in the church ever interprets the scriptures dealing with this correctly.

When Paul was speaking about the qualifications he was not dealing with the issue of men who had been divorced and remarried. He was dealing with men who were polygamist. Doesn't anyone on this board realize that polygamy was still practiced at this time among the Jews?

Why would God refuse to allow a man to preach
because he got a divorce before he knew Jesus?
Any group of deacons or preachers out there who stand in judgement of others who made mistakes and sinnes before they were saved need to give up their positions because they don't know what forgiveness is and they sure don't know what mercy is. These who stand in judgement are just like the Pharisees. Self righteous. Reminds me of Jimmy Swaggart who got up and bashed Jim Bakker and Marvin Gorman for their failures and then turned right around a year later and fell into the same sin.

There is a big difference when a person gets a divorce after they are saved and there is no justification for it. I also take exception to those who tell preachers they have to leave the ministry because their wives commit adultery against them and they get divorced. God does not hold that pastor or minister guilty because of their wives infidelity. Any one who thinks so
does not understand grace.

So many people are so dogmatic about these things until it happens to them then Katy Bar the Door the tables are turned and so is their belief.
I know of many preachers and deacons etc who were so dogmatic along this line until it happened to them and boy did things change. They got married again and dared anyone to ask them to step down.

I have heard people tell men in the ministry that they have to quit preaching because their wife died and they got remarried. This is such garbage. People tend to want to interpret scripture to fit their standards and their beliefs but don't want to look at scripture in the light of the reason it was written in the first place.

What a person did before salvation has been forgiven and washed under the blood of Jesus.
God said he won't remember those sins anymore and neither does anyone have that right to play God and drag it up. If God forgives and forgets so are we commanded to do so.