1 Corinthians 7:24
So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God.
Tag: Stay Where You Are Called
In chapter seven of this letter to the church at Corinth, Paul is outlining how to behave in regard to marriage, servanthood and difficult circumstances - in light of your new salvation. The Corinthian believes had, apparently, sent communication to Paul about what to do if you come to Christ and you are married to an unsaved spouse. They also wanted to know what to do if you were a bondservant and came to Christ; were you obligated to stay a slave, now that you were “set free” in Christ. Notice what John MacArthur states in his commentary on this passage:
“However it is that we have been saved (called), and in whatever condition we now are in, we should be willing to remain. God allows us to be where we are and to stay where we are for a purpose. Conversion is not the signal for a person to leave his social condition, his marriage or his singleness, his human master, or his other circumstances. We are to leave sin and anything that encourages sin; but otherwise we are to stay where we are until God moves us.”
When God saves us, He sets us free from the penalty of sin and gives us power over the presence of sin. But, He does not set us free from sin in our lives, or those who might want to live in sin. We are to rejoice in the fact we are a new creation in Christ. But, that newness in Christ does not set us free from our “station” in life. Paul makes this point three times in this passage. In our living out life as a believer, we are to have Christ supreme in our lives. We are not to attempt to change our station to meet our Christian lives. We are to live out our Christian lives within our station.
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