Yahoo story of a woman finding her mate

[timewerx]

I guess our experiences are different and how we are selective in which scriptures we choose to focus on when it comes to being single or married. I would never wish to override anyone's faith for being single or being married. The discussion was good to bring out the points for each. Thanks too for caring about my personal situation. I'm just waiting on a visa at the moment. For me it never was about if I would be married, but rather who I would marry. I suppose it worried me some that it happened so late, but that was my fault, not God's. I wish you well in whatever your future holds.

I'm just trying to be in context. Not perfect but trying.

What I do know is some teachings had their time. If you give a new Christian convert ONLY the Book of Leviticus, they are likely to believe we should observe Jewish feasts or be exiling or stoning people who have committed certain acts of sin.

There was a time ALL the teachings of Leviticus are GOOD. And they were good instructions indeed for a certain period. But if you know the whole Bible, you will realize we can no longer do everything that is written in Leviticus.

That's context.

Selective study of scriptures is like my previous example. You only give someone certain topics to study and never the rest.

The context of marriage in the Bible is they were good back in the Old Testament - to populate the sparsely populated Earth, to establish the bloodline of Jesus Christ, and sometimes to save the nation of Israel.

Those times have passed. The New Testament no longer treats marriage as something to look forward to nor something to be regarded as favor from the Lord but simply as an arrangement that needs to be kept pure/undefiled, intact, and respected. Something not to be chased if single.

The "wisdom" of Solomon in Proverbs again needs to be understood in its proper context. The false "prosperity gospel" got so popular because they seem to have their false teachings backed up by Proverbs. Yet, they were all taken in the wrong context. They ignore Ecclesiastes which is when Solomon learned the painful lesson of not placing our trust on worldly things. They also ignore the teachings of Jesus that is at odds with many of the teachings of Solomon in Proverbs despite the knowledge that Jesus is wiser than Solomon.

Don't get me wrong that I've given up completely on marriage. I still get out a lot meeting new people on fun (but cost-free) activities outdoors. I still make an effort to make myself look attractive but they are primarily for health reasons. Although I do these activities mostly for fun and I'm not really making deliberate attempts to talk to the single women in there nor making making any attempt to ask anyone out for a date. But if I'm avoiding marriage, I would have avoided these group activities as well and just done things solo. Nothing wrong wanting to get married and actually doing it. Just don't elevate it to a level of importance beyond what is actually being taught in the Bible.

If marriage is what you really desire then may God be with you in choosing and giving you the discernment to find the best partner for you where you will grow together in character and faith.