City On A Hill

Circumstantially Single

Recorded on: August 10, 2008 | Speaker: Dave Bruskas



Overview
There are different types of single people. Some are single by conviction, believing that God has called them to devote their full energy to loving Him and serving others without the demands of marriage. There are those who are single because of circumstances...

John 4.1-26

Some have yet to meet the person of their dreams while others have and are suffering because those dreams have been shattered by divorce. Jesus has much to promise those who are circumstantially single through divorce.

A Woman, Some Water and Worship
In John 4, Jesus encounters a woman who has had no less than 5 husbands and is presently sleeping with a man who isn’t her husband. The conversation begins with a terse tone full of sarcasm but quickly goes deep as the subject transitions from water to worship. Jesus confronts the woman’s idolatry. She is seeking soul satisfaction from men instead of the God-Man, Jesus. Jesus offers Himself as “the gift of God” (verse 10) and the One who can make her “never thirsty forever” (verse 13).

A Satisfied Customer
This woman not only placed her faith in the outrageous claims of Jesus, she led others to do the same (verse 39). She was transformed from a societal outcast to a leader among her people through her brief encounter with Jesus.

A Promise, Then a Principle
Jesus promises to quench the thirst of our souls. He grants us a relationship so satisfying, we are freed from seeking what only He can give from a husband or a wife who can’t provide us what we were created for: worship.

So what does the bible offer those who have been divorced as God’s best? The answer is found I Corinthians 7:32-35. The circumstantially single previously married person is to find God’s best in worshipping Him from an undivided heart and freed to serve others without restraint.

Application Questions
1) Are you seeking to quench the thirst of your soul outside of Jesus? If so, with what?

2) If you are single, have you believed the lie that you will only be complete if married?

3) If you are divorced and single, will you pursue God’s best by remaining single? How can the community of faith (the church) serve you as a single person?

4) Are you, like the Samaritan woman, inviting others to find satisfaction in Jesus? With whom has God called you to share?

Resources
“Divorce and Remarriage: A Position Paper” by John Piper

Divorce and Remarriage: Four Christian Views, by Laney, Heth, Edgar and Richards.

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