He may have been widowed. Either way, the disciples left their former lives behind to spread the Gospel and a few already had itinerant jobs to begin with: as many were fishermen. Paul worked as a tentmaker, etc...
These were not your average “Leave it to Beaver” situations and neither were most marriages mentioned in the Bible. I would hope American Christians realize that our cultural concept of marriage may have more to do with the secular American Dream than with Scripture.
And therefore, it is more important that a Christian counselor (either married or single) of couples be deeply intimate with God and acquainted with Scripture / theology, moreso than with how to handle a 401K account or whatever materialistic demands that have little to do with timeless truths about the nature of covenant and the nature of God and His spiritual intentions for marriage.
Also: I do not understand why people find singleness so offensive. I ran into similar responses when discussing contraception. As if its anathema to suggest that being pro-Life means being fully free and OPEN to life as well. Why is there is so great a preoccupation with sex so that celibacy is viewed as almost a disease or illness?
Well, that excerpt from your post does explain why you are achieving zero converts to your way of thinking. Your innate assumption is that this is a one or the other proposition. The people across the table from you don't see it that way at all.
In the interests of a reasoned debate, why don't you explain how you arrived at that little premise, and subject that premise itself to reasoned debate? You are attempting to present a principle as a given which other people don't see as a given.
Wishful thinking doesn't prove anything.
Either way, the disciples left their former lives behind to spread the Gospel and a few already had itinerant jobs to begin with: as many were fishermen. Paul worked as a tentmaker, etc...
But they didn't leave their wives behind.
1 Corinthians 9:5 Do we not have the right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas?
Wives can and do work very successfully in partnership with their husbands in spreading the gospel and ministering to people.
There's no way a man of any integrity would leave a wife behind and abandon her to fend for herself.
Ever notice that the same people who see celibacy as a disease, see faithful monogamy and pregnancy that way as well?
Esteem for celibacy and marriage goes up or down in tandem. Those who highly esteem celibacy, highly esteem faithful, fruitful marriage as well.
Those who don't, don't.
Thanks for the insight.
But are you saying that regardless if a spouse dies and the surviving spouse is free to remarry, the original in-laws are still in-laws? Although I’d still regard former in-laws as part of the family, I’ll have to think about that one.
Regarding the subject of this thread, it remains that 1 Timothy 3:4-5 shows that Paul had pointed out that if a man cannot manage his own family, then how can he be expected to take care of God’s church?