Study Desk

Someone else says, "Food is for the stomach, and the stomach for food." Yes, and God will destroy them both. But the body is not for sexual sin. The body is for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body.

But anyone who is joined with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

But sexual sin is a danger, so each man should enjoy his own wife, and each woman should enjoy her own husband.

Don't refuse to give your bodies to each other. But you might both agree to stay away from sex for a while so that you can give your time to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not be able to tempt you in your weakness.

I wish everyone could be like me. But God has given each person a different ability. He makes some able to live one way, others to live a different way.

But if you cannot control your body, then you should marry. It is better to marry than to burn with sexual desire.

But if a wife does leave, she should remain single or get back together with her husband. And a husband should not divorce his wife.

The husband who is not a believer is set apart for God through his believing wife. And the wife who is not a believer is set apart for God through her believing husband. If this were not true, your children would be unfit for God's use. But now they are set apart for him.

But if the husband or wife who is not a believer decides to leave, let them leave. When this happens, the brother or sister in Christ is free. God chose you to have a life of peace.

But each one of you should continue to live the way the Lord God has given you to live—the way you were when God chose you. I tell people in all the churches to follow this rule.

If you were a slave when God chose you, don't let that bother you. But if you can be free, then do it.

Now I write about people who are not married. I have no command from the Lord about this, but I give my opinion. And I can be trusted, because the Lord has given me mercy.

But if you decide to marry, that is not a sin. And it is not a sin for a girl who has never married to get married. But those who marry will have trouble in this life, and I want you to be free from this trouble.

But a man who is married is busy with things of the world. He is trying to please his wife.

He must think about two things—pleasing his wife and pleasing the Lord. A woman who is not married or a girl who has never married is busy with the Lord's work. She wants to give herself fully—body and spirit—to the Lord. But a married woman is busy with things of the world. She is trying to please her husband.

I am saying this to help you. I am not trying to limit you, but I want you to live in the right way. And I want you to give yourselves fully to the Lord without giving your time to other things.

But another man might be more sure in his mind. There may be no need for marriage, so he is free to do what he wants. If he has decided in his own heart not to marry his fiancée, he is doing the right thing.

A woman should stay with her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, the woman is free to marry any man she wants, but he should belong to the Lord.

Now I will write about meat that is sacrificed to idols. It is certainly true that "we all have knowledge," as you say. But this knowledge only fills people with pride. It is love that helps the church grow stronger.

But whoever loves God is known by God.