After a failed marriage, Basia came to know God and wants to marry again. Jacek has discovered his wife’s unfaithfulness yet another time. For seven years Ania has lived with a husband who drinks and beats her. Does God’s word have anything to say in such tangled stories? In the second part of the series ‘It’s Complicated’, two pastors sit down together over chapter 7 of the First Letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 7), where the apostle Paul answers questions about divorce, remarriage, marriages with unbelievers and the value of single life. Listen to a conversation that offers no ready-made recipes, but teaches how to navigate real, messy situations from the perspective of God’s word.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- In 1 Corinthians 7:1 Paul quotes a belief from the Corinthians' letter: "It is good for a man not to touch a woman." How do the atmosphere of Corinth and the ascetic group in the church help explain why this question came up at all?
- In verses 2-5 Paul speaks to both husband and wife, saying each one's body belongs to the other. What did this mutuality say to people in that culture, and what does it say to us today?
- Paul encourages the believer to stay with an unbelieving spouse, because the believer sanctifies the unbeliever and the children. How do you understand this sanctifying influence, and where do you see the limits of our influence on another person?
- The speakers say Scripture does not give a recipe for every situation, but it does give a signpost for navigating all of them. How does this shape the way you approach hard questions about marriage, divorce and remarriage?
- Paul calls singleness a gift of grace that makes it possible to serve God in ways often not possible for married couples. How can our church show respect to single people instead of treating their situation as something lesser?
- The sermon ends by urging us not to rely only on our own understanding in a difficult situation, but to look into God's word and talk with someone who can help us see it from that perspective. Who can you talk honestly with this week about your situation, or how can you support someone going through a crisis?
