God wants man to always choose what is good, abide by His teachings, and observe the dos and don’ts that He had outlined so that man may live a peaceful, safe, and blissful life. However, He is neither coercing man to do what He wants nor is He curtailing man’s freedom of choice. And yet, God reveals the advantages and benefits that man will gain if he chooses to follow His will. 

And like a father who wants nothing but the best for his children, God never fails to give man His prescriptions and recommendations which he could use as a guide in making choices and decisions in life, especially when it comes to serious matters such as finding a spouse and getting married, for instance. 

Marriage is an option given to every man and woman. Those who want to build a family of their own can always choose to get married — but those who want to pursue a tranquil, unperturbed, and godly life can always opt to stay unmarried. But if they choose to get married, it is important that they first consult the prescriptions of God written in the Bible concerning this matter so that they wouldn’t commit a mistake that they will regret later on. 

As far as the woman is concerned, the Bible says that if she wants a life with lesser worries and responsibilities, and if she wants a kind of life that is without distraction in her service to God, it is better for her not to marry. Why? Because being married is a 24/7 career; it will require so much of her time. And once she is married, she can no longer devote as much time as she wants to serving God. She will be torn between her duties to God and her duties to her husband and children.

Unlike an unmarried woman who thinks mostly of things concerning godliness and holiness, a married woman is beleaguered by the cares of this world. So, for her not to be distracted by such things, the Bible recommends that she remains a maiden.

1 CORINTHIANS 7:32-35 (KJV) says,


In a typical household, the husband assumes the role of a breadwinner, but it is the wife who gets the heavier share of the burden. She is the one who conceives and carries the baby in her tummy for nine months; after nine months, she gives birth; and in giving birth, her life is put in great danger. And after giving birth, she breastfeeds and watches over her child throughout the day, et cetera, et cetera. Practically, the tasks that a mother has to fulfill never ends. This is yet without mentioning her duties as a wife to her husband and as a keeper of their house.

With her heavy workload every day, she’ll definitely find difficulty in allotting time to spend in serving God. But if she will choose to abide by God’s prescription — if she will choose to remain a maiden — she will be spared from a very taxing life and she will be able to serve God freely.

This particular prescription of God is also recommended to the man. If he also wants to spare himself from the troubles of being the head of the family — such as earning money to pay for his children’s tuition fees, buying milk and diapers for the baby, and paying rent, loans, and other household bills. And if he wants to serve the Lord wholeheartedly, it is best that he remains a bachelor, like the Apostle Paul.

Sometimes, there are special people like the Apostle Paul, who have been appointed by God to perform a special function. In the case of Paul, he allowed the will of God and not his personal choice to prevail in his life. Although apostles were not prohibited from getting married, the Apostle Paul chose to remain unmarried because he wanted to fulfill his function and responsibilities more faithfully and without hindrance. He also wanted to devote his whole life in serving the Lord — which he wouldn’t have been able to do if he had a wife and children to attend to.

GALATIANS 1:13-15 (KJV)


Actually, even while Paul was still in the womb of his mother, God had already preordained him to be an apostle. And when the appointed time for his apostleship came, he gladly submitted himself to the will of God.

Like the Apostle Paul, God had also intended Jeremiah for another special function as early as the time when he was still in the womb of his mother. God had preordained Jeremiah to be a prophet unto the nations.

But other than these few exceptional cases, people are free to choose the kind of life that they want. They are free to get married, if they want; they are also free to remain unmarried if that is their choice. And should they decide to get married, it is best that they consider God’s prescriptions and recommendations first.

First of all, it is important that the man, or the woman, is able to choose the right person who would become his or her lifetime partner. They have to make sure that they fall in love with the right person. Why? Because the devil is also urging people to fall in love, but he is urging them to love the wrong person — even someone who is already married. Do not believe what others say that once Cupid hits you with his arrow that goes straight to your heart, you become blinded by love and that you’ll fall in love even with a married man or woman. That is nonsense. In the first place, Cupid is not real; he only exists in mythology. Making a person fall in love with somebody who is already married is not Cupid’s work but the devil’s. And if you yield to the devil’s provocation, you’ll end up becoming a homewrecker and an immoral.

God also does not want you to marry an ill-tempered person; in fact, God does not even want you to associate with or to befriend somebody who has a bad temper or someone who is always angry or furious. He wants you to stay away from those kinds of people because they could influence you badly. 

PROVERBS 22:24-25 (KJV) says,


Actually, this quality is not only seen among men as there are also women who are hot-tempered and are always contending and arguing with others. 

PROVERBS 21:19 (KJV)


So, if you see that your girlfriend is quarrelsome and is always disputing with you, better back off. Otherwise, you’ll find no peace in life if she becomes your wife. And you cannot just abandon her or drive her away when she becomes very annoying and hard to deal with.

It is against the will of God that husband and wife separate. Marriage should be lasting — it should withstand the test of time and it should endure all difficulties. For these to happen, the husband-wife relationship should be founded on genuine love and on God’s teachings. And the contracting parties in marriage should be made aware that their relationship is lifetime and only death can draw them apart.

If in other churches a marriage can be annulled or can be declared null and void, in the true Church of God, marriage is a lifelong commitment and a marriage contract never loses its efficacy. It only expires when one of them dies.

And since we in the Church of God international do not permit couples to separate, we see to it first that the man and the woman who want to get married truly love each other — that they are ready to adjust to one another considering the fact that they have different family backgrounds and they were brought up differently; that they are ready to face challenges and problems that may come their way; and that they will stand by each other at all times and will remain faithful to one another all the days of their lives. And if ever problems and conflicts arise in the course of their married life, we also help them in preserving their marriage. We help them patch things up and resolve their issues using the word of God because it is God’s will that husbands and wives stay together until the end. 

We can say that in everything that we do and in every choice and decision that we make, it is always to our advantage if we will be guided and if we will follow the will of God. We can also say that the wiser way of using our free will or our freedom of choice is by choosing to follow God’s prescription, be it in marriage or in other aspects of life. Always remember, God knows what is best for us — and He wants no less than the best for us.

To God be the glory!