Civilisation has tended to look down on singleness but in this passage we see that the apostle Paul supports it as a good thing and also to the glory of God. He was single himself and presents it as a gift from God which is not given to everyone.

For singles it is important not to make the decision for singleness if you don’t have the gift to do so. Not everyone is able to resist the pressures that are involved. This letter was written at a time when there was a wave of persecution against the church. In this context being married would potentially create more problems. So the gift of singleness would actually be beneficial.

There are 2 more reasons why singleness is helpful. One is that the single person has more freedom in the use of their time and the other is that their devotion to God is less hindered. The really important thing to remember, however, both for the married as well as the single, is that in the gospel, Jesus, in a very important sense, is their spouse.