Marrying Out of Your Faith and the Consequences
Intermarriage between different faiths has been a problem since the beginning of time. It is important to choose a mate who shares your faith and beliefs and who will support you in your spiritual journey through life. There needs to be a sharing of a common faith. There needs to be a sharing of the basic foundation of the LORD. We have been made a holy people unto the LORD and should not be unequally yoked together with an unbeliever. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18
Paul teaches us about not being unequally yoked together with unbelievers by using a comparison/contrast questioning. Paul is speaking to the Corinthians like he would speak unto his children in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18. His message is not to be “be unequally yoked together” with unbelievers. Unbelievers are the unfaithful, faithless, and incredulous, without trust in the LORD God. (#571 Strong, 2001). Paul asks who would have fellowship with the righteousness with the unrighteousness. What communion or association has light of truth and its knowledge, together with the spiritual purity the power of understanding especially moral and spiritual truth with darkness the ignorance respecting divine things and human duties, and the accompanying ungodliness and immorality, together with their consequent misery in hell?
What agreement has Christ with belial meaning worthless or wicked and another name for satan. (#955 Strong, 2001). What does those have that believes with an infidel or unbelievers. What agreement has the temple of God which is the spiritual temple consisting of the saints of all ages joined together by and in Christ has with idols whatever represents the form of an object, either real or imaginary or a false god? We are the temple of the living LORD God; and as the LORD God has said He will dwell in those who follow Him, and walk in those who follow Him, He will be our LORD God and we shall be His people.
The LORD God said we are to therefore come out from among those, and be separate, and do not touch the unclean things; and we will be received by the LORD God and He will be a Father unto us, and we shall be His sons and daughters. This was said by the Lord Almighty.
Jesus invites us to take his yoke upon us and learn of Jesus. Jesus tells us He is meek meaning gentle and mild. (#4235 Strong, 2001). Jesus also tells us he is lowly in heart which denotes the center of all physical and spiritual life, the soul or mind, as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors. (#2588 Strong, 2001). Jesus tells us we shall find rest unto our souls. His yoke is easy and His burden is light. (Matthew 11:29-30). We are to giving up our self-will, to be in submission to the will of God, content to be in the lowest place; and such will find rest to their souls.
God made a covenant with you. Deuteronomy 7:6 reminds us that we are a holy people unto the LORD our God: the LORD our God has chosen us to be a special people unto Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. This is through predestination into the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will. (Ephesians 1:5). All believers in Jesus Christ are beneficiaries or recipients of this new covenant; they have all been born again by the Spirit of God and have the law written in their hearts. Those who break covenant and turn away from God completely are apostates, who by this action demonstrate that they were never truly the people of the LORD God at all (1 John 2:18-19). We are made known by teaching to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. And such trust we have through Christ to God-ward: Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God. (2Corinthians 3:3-5). This in deed makes us holy unto the LORD our God.
Paul warns against marriage between believers and nonbelievers. There is a decided difference between the Christian and the non-Christian. There is a basic incompatibility which must be recognized and which has implications for life in an environment of unbelief. One person has to give up their basic belief and accept the belief of the other. This is an impossible feat for anyone either believer or the non-believer.
We already know we are a Holy people. We did not choose Jesus, but Jesus chose us, and ordained us that we should go and bring forth fruit, and that our fruits should remain. The benefit of this is that whatsoever we shall ask of the Father in the name of Jesus, He may give it to us. (John 15:16). When a Christian married and is “yoked” with a mate they should be of same kind. Those that are joined unto the Lord are one spirit. They are to flee fornication that is illicit sexual intercourse. Every sin that a man does is without the body, but he that commits fornication sins against his own body. (1 Corinthians 17-18).
It makes it very difficult to be joined to anyone in any aspect of life who is not “liked kind.” There are far too many people to believe that love can conquer all. Still others think that if a nonbeliever just experiences the joy of following the Lord they will convert and all will be well in their world.
Relationship between a Christian and a non-Christian will be equally injurious because they are so fundamentally different. Many Christian’s quote 1 Corinthians 7:14 that says “For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.” Sanctify your spouse does not mean that you will automatically bring salvation to your spouse or your children because you stay in the marriage. You were sanctified before you came to Christ. God set you apart and sanctified you by the Spirit of God as He draws you to Jesus Christ. John 6:44 Jesus said, ” No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” You are sanctified as you walk with Christ and grow in personal holiness. Walking hand in hand with Jesus and growing in your trust and obedience in your personal life.
This does not say it will be easy to create a strong marriage. If the unbelieving person departs, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases; but God has called us to peace. Who knows if a wife shall save her husband or who knows whether a man shall save his wife? (1 Corinthians 7:15-16).
The reality is you may be willing to accept the responsibility to nurture your unbelieving spouse but remember that you cannot make someone believe like you do. You will experience the pain of having to give up your belief to accommodate the unbelievers’ life style. There will have to be a compromise made in the commitment you have made with Christ in order to keep peace in the home. Not only will the Christian suffer but any children also will suffer in a marriage between Christians and non-Christians.
When yoking two different animals together there is distension and fighting. There is little or no work that can get accomplished because they will fight with one another and go in different direction. That is what happens when believers and nonbelievers get thrown together. There is no works that can be accomplished because of the different direction they go in and the fighting that occurs. Exhaustion sets in and then neither on tries to find the right direction that is best to go in.
It is important to choose a mate who shares your faith and beliefs and who will support you in your spiritual journey through life. There needs to be a sharing of a common faith. There needs to be a sharing of the basic foundation of the LORD.
When a Christian considers marrying a non-Christian, they should determine who will come first in their life. Christ or the spouse? If this is not acceptable then you should question the rightness of the relationship. Ask yourself how the indifference or lack of understanding of the unbeliever affect your own spiritual journey or relationship you have with Christ? Who will be at the helm of your relationship and possible marriage? Will children be baptized in the faith or will church functions be allowed to participate in church? Just because the spouse claims to be a Christian is not enough they need to have a relationship with the LORD. All these questions should be considered before you go to the altar.
Remember it is not realistic to expect a nonbelieving person will have the same goals in life as a believer. Do not be afraid to ask questions about their belief. Make a list of the non-negotiable aspect of your belief you will not compromise. If a Christian will consider anyone, they date could be a perspective mate they might choose more wisely. Once a non-Christian has been identified they should be out of the running as a mate. Always seeking and praying for the Will of the LORD God.
“Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God. (1 Peter 4:1-2).
Reference:
Strong, Jame (2001).The New Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.
Other Articles of Interests:
Problems facing the Colossian Church We face Today: https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=1433
Apphia Wife of Philemon: https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?
Cite Article Source
MLA Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne “Marrying Out of Your Faith and the Consequences:.” Becker Bible Studies Library Oct 2014.< https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=1640,>.
APA Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne (2014, October) “Marrying Out of Your Faith and the Consequences:.” Becker Bible Studies Library. Retrieved from https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=1640,.
Chicago Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne (2014) “Marrying Out of Your Faith and the Consequences:.” Becker Bible Studies Library (October), https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=1640, (accessed).
