Concerning the Marriage of Priests – part 17
Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
Scripture Text: 1 Corinthians 10:12–13
Series: Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
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From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession
If self-discipline were possible for everyone, it would not require a peculiar gift. Christ shows that is does require a peculiar gift; therefore continence is not possible for everyone. God wants the rest to use the common law of nature which he has instituted, for God does not want us to despise his ordinances, his creation. He wants people to be chaste by using the remedy he has provided, just as he wishes to nourish our life by the use of food and drink.
Pulling It Together
Do you imagine that you are able to be virtuous in your own strength? Of course, we must rely on God’s strength, not our own. Yet we are not to rely upon his strength alone. We must also depend upon his plan. So one must consider, should a program of celibacy be undertaken when it ignores God’s plan? The Apostle Paul wished everyone could be as disciplined as himself (1 Corinthians 7:7); but we are not. To impose a program of celibacy upon people ignores God’s “way of escape” from a temptation that is all too “common to man.” Fasting, prayer, and other methods for overcoming this temptation will fail unless a person is particularly gifted by God. Those who think they are able to stand against this temptation of the flesh will very likely fall unless they avail themselves of God’s remedy.
Prayer: Help me, Lord, in all things to rely upon you. Amen
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Author
Rev. Dr. Mark E. Ryman has served as Pastor for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Salisbury, NC, since 2021. Previously, Pastor Ryman served congregations in North Carolina and Ohio, as well as a call to specialized ministry with Sola Publishing.
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