Can a Christian marry a non-Christian?

With this writing we would like to answer the above question. This is a question that is asked frequently and we would like to find an answer from God's holy book.

God has provided us all things that pertain to live and godliness. He has made this promise, so we can find an answer to this question.

2Pe 1:3  According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

All things that pertain to life and godliness are given to us. That is what God has provided for His people, His own peculiar people.

When we think of our question it is of utmost importance that we find an answer from the word of God. Where else can we turn then to Him, who is our life and wisdom.

Wisdom, heavenly wisdom that is, can only be found with and in God, God has given us a word that is completely pure and holy.

God has called us to glory and to virtue.
These words have the meaning that we are to live lives to the glory of God, that is we are to magnify Him in all that we do. By what we do we are to show Him to those around us.
The word “virtue” has in it that we are to strive for these things that are excellent, excellent in the eyes of God and in line with seeking His glory. We are to seek Him in all that we are.

God wants us to be holy, that means we are “set apart”, set apart for service unto Him.

1Co 6:20  For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

From this verse we understand that we are to glorify Him who is our life. We are to glorify Him in body and in spirit. We belong to Him, we do not belong to ourselves, we have been bought and paid for. We are to be different. We are to be like Christ. We are to grow into His likeness. (Rom. 8: 29)

1. 2 Kor. 6: 14- 18

2 Co 6:14  Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

2 Co 6:15  And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

2 Co 6:16  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

2 Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

2 Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

From this scripture we would like to make some observations.

A. We are not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers.

God helps us to understand that we are not to be in an unequally yoked relationship with unbelievers. He further labours his argument by asking 5 questions namely:
        
-For what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness.
-What communion has light with darkness.
-What concord has Christ with Belial.
-What part is there between an believer and an infidel.
-What part has the temple of God with idols.

So, Christians are not to be yoked together with unbelievers. The reason is that there is no fellowship between one another.

What does this word mean? 

This word fellowship has the meaning of a joint-participation. So we are talking about an intimate relationship.
This word is used in the Bible to describe our relationship with God when we have been washed and cleansed from sin. It also describes our relationship to one another as brothers and sisters as we are in the faith. (1 John 1: 6- 7)

When we look at this from the standpoint of the meaning of this word fellowshipm then we understand that the Bible tells us that Christians can only share fellowship on two levels, with God and with a man or woman who is also in “the faith”.
This should mean enough to us to know that Christians can never marry non-Christians.
However, there is much more.

We are encouraged to come out “from among them”, that is,  we need to come out of unrighteousness, we need to come out of darkness, we need to come away from Belial, we need to come away from idols. Because there is no part between a believer and an infidel.

So this passage goes much deeper then just relationships between believers and non-believers. We are to seek out who we are close with, we need to come out from all things that are against God.

The word infidel that is used here in this passage is a word that comes from the Greek word “apistos” and means the disbeliever, the one who has not embraced the Christian faith.

The word yoked:

So, we cannot be unequally yoked, which means we cannot be involved in evil, we cannot be involved with evil.

B. We are Gods temple.

In the verses from 2 Cor. 6 we understand that Christians are the temple of God.
And the writes helps us to understand that there cannot be an agreement between the temple and idols.

From the book of Ephesians we understand that we are God's building, Christians are His temple and God wants this temple to be His habitation.

Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

Eph 2:22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

We see these thoughts being used in the first place in relation to the church, the redeemed.
And these redeemed cannot have fellowship with idols.

When we consider the non-Christian, his or her life is full of unbelief, unrighteousness, full of darkness and Belial.
And Christians cannot be a part of that. We are Gods house and the Spirit dwells in us.
Gods temple is a place where holiness should dwell. The most intimate relationship on earth are our marriages. Can we let unholiness dwell in this place?? I let you answer this.

C. A christians marriage.

The most intimate relationship that we can have on earth is in our marriage.
In marriage we find that God wants a man and a woman to cleave and to become one.
For Christians this has more meaning then for non-Christians.

Gen 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

When a Christian is getting married to a non-believer can they really become one??
That is the question we need to ask.

Can a Christian become one with his non-Christian partner in the spiritual sense? The answer is, no. For the one is focused on self, the other one is focused on God.

D. Widows and marriage.

In our Bibles we find some words in relation to widows and a second marriage after the death of her first husband.

1Co 7:39  The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord.

1Co 7:40  But she is happier if she so abide, after my judgment: and I think also that I have the Spirit of God.

So we find that those whose husband has passed away are at liberty to marry, but she has to marry in the Lord.

E. The old Testament.

Deut 7:1  When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;

Deut 7:2  And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:

Deut 7:3  Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.

Deut 7:4  For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.

In the Old Testament we also find that the children of God could not marry them that were from other nations. 

The reason is that they would turn away from following the Lord.

And these things happened so many times.
We look at Solomon who had so many wives from other nations. (1 Kings 11: 3, 4, 9) and they turned his heart away from the Lord.

When they would marry the daughters of other nations the anger of God would be kindled against them and they would be destroyed.

In the book of Ezra we even find that God wanted them to put away their foreign wives.
         -Ezra 10: 1- 3

When we look at the New Testament' teaching we find that all the things that happened in the Old Testament they happened for our example. (Rom. 15: 4; 1 Cor. 10: 1- 12)

What do these examples teach us. I let you be the judge!!

2. 1 Kor. 15: 33

This is an interesting passage in the book of 1 Cor. 15.

1Co 15:33  Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.

1Co 15:34  Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.

We find here that Christians are to be careful who their close friends are. Now, let there be no mistake, your marriage partner is the closest friend you will ever have. What are we to do.

The writer of this article has sat around the table with them that had married non-believers, this writer has seen how the believer was influenced by the non-believer.

What are we doing when we marry non-Christians? We shake hands with the devil in our most intimate relationship. Is this right? I let you be the judge!!

1Co 2:14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

See, a natural man, an infidel, an unbeliever, has no understanding of spiritual matters for he is a natural man. Again, we are shaking hands with darkness when we are married to a non-believer.

We have to let go of those that want to follow Satan's way.

Some words of Jesus.

In Matthew we find that we are the salt of the earth, we are the lampstand.
How can a lampstand produce light when he walks hand in hand with darkness?
Does this make sense?? I ask you this question reader!!!

In the Bible we read that Christians are to love God above “everything else”. Do we?
When we are hand in hand with evil, do we love God above everything else?

I let you be the judge!!

Let us not be deceived, we will reap what we sow. (Gal. 6: 6-7)