Wives and Husbands

Today I read 1 Corinthians 7, which probably has confused the Christian world more than any other chapter Paul wrote. And I'll be honest, I don't really understand what Paul is trying to say either. Paul certainly understands the doctrine of the church and he almost undoubtedly understands that in order to become like God is, we have to be married for time and eternity. And yet Paul's language in this chapter leads most people, including me, to think that what he is saying is that the best thing to do is to remain single. This is what has led to the Catholic order of nuns, monks and priesthood all being single and celibate. Now, I commend those who, while unmarried remain celibate, it is a hard thing to do, especially in this day and age.

And yet, like I said before, Paul must have understood the doctrine of Christ and that we have to be married in the temple for time and eternity to inherit all that God has. Now, some of what Paul says here in this chapter I do agree with. For example Paul states that the husband, or wife, should not put away the wife, or husband. I agree with this statement. Now, the Church of Latter-day Saints allows people to be divorced in certain situations, it is not forbidden. However, in order for someone who has been married in the temple to have that sealing annulled, it has to be approved by a member of the First Presidency. It's sad that spouses can't be more faithful to one another. When my wife and I were married, we made a promise to one another that no matter how bad things got, we would not even consider divorce. It was not even an option to us and it has made a huge difference in our marriage. I think if more people went into their marriage with that intention, then there would be a lot less divorce in this world and people would take their marriage vows more seriously.

Sadly, there are those that I am sure have taken Paul's words and twisted them to their own desires. For example, Paul says that the wife's body is not her own but her husband's. And likewise the husband's body is not his own, but his wife's. Now, I believe that Paul is trying to let us know that as a husband or a wife, our main desire should be to please our spouse. However, I could easily see how because of this verse, a wife or a husband would try and dominate their spouse in very inappropriate ways. However, we know that husbands and wives are partners and one is not ahead of the other but should walk, hand in hand, side by side. As we partner with the Lord and become one flesh with our spouse, we will gradually become better people and be able to help each other become like God is.

It is a wonderful thing to be married and it saddens me that more marriages are not happy and that too many people are not putting the happiness of their spouse ahead of their own. Of course, if we all did that with everyone we met, there would be no crime and no one would purposefully hurt one another. What a world that would be? We will find out when the Millennium arrives. Then we will not have to worry about sin and about other people doing the things that are wrong. It will be a time of piece and happiness and we will be able to spend our time doing the work of the Lord. I look forward to those days. Hopefully I will live to see those days. Time will tell. Until tomorrow.