SHOULD CHRISTIANS MARRY NON-CHRISTIANS?

Many of the former Worldwide Church of God ministers, that have started their own church, are now teaching that their members can marry unbelievers or non-members. When I was briefly associated with Global, I refused to attend church services because the then local elder allowed a member who married an unbeliever to attend services, song lead and give opening and closing prayers. The local elder told me that Global Council of Elders had produced a paper showing that it was doctrinally sound for believers to marry unbelievers. I requested a copy of the paper, and to this date I still have not received it.

Yet the inspired passage in 2 Cor.6 clearly shows the incompatibility of an unequally yoked relationship. I need not quote the whole passage, but notice particularly one of five emphatic questions: “what communion hath light with darkness?” When we compare this passage with the inspired words of John, the incompatibility of the relationship becomes abundantly clear. For the passage in John’s epistle states: “God is light and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.” From these two passages we learned that a relationship between light and darkness is not only incompatible, but impossible, and a denial of our relationship with God.

Notice that “God is light.” Therefore those that are in darkness can neither have communion nor fellowship with God, unless they are brought into the light by the grace of God. And the light of God is only brought to us by those who have been chosen to preach the gospel. Therefore note Jesus’ announcement to the Apostle Paul, on the road to Damascus, when appointing him a preacher of the gospel. The narrative is as follows: “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God” (Acts 26:18). Note the phrase, “to turn them from darkness,” that is, from communion and fellowship with Satan, “to light,” that is, to communion and fellowship with God. For God is light, so those that desire communion and fellowship with him must walk in the light.

Therefore, if a believer, who is in the light, unequally yokes himself in marriage to an unbeliever who is in darkness, the believer naturally becomes darkness, because light can only have communion and fellowship with light, and darkness can only have communion and fellowship with darkness. For both parties must be in the same condition of light or darkness, in order to have communion and fellowship with each other. For the emphatic question is: “What communion hath light with darkness?” And the answer, if we need one, is none.

Now this situation raises the question: what should our relationship be with a believer who yokes himself in marriage with an unbeliever? The inspired words of the Chosen Vessel are these: “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause division and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned: and avoid them” (Roms.16:17). One of the doctrines we have leaned is not to be unequally together with unbelievers. So a believer who marries an unbeliever causes offence by disobeying Christ’s command not to be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.

Again, in 2 Thess.3:6, Paul writes: “Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw yourselves from every brother that walks disorderly, and not after the tradition which he receives of us.” Once again, the same principle applies, the believer walks disorderly by not obeying and conforming to the doctrines and traditions of the church, which teaches that its members should not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. Christians should therefore obey Christ’s command and withdraw themselves from such people and the ministers who teach this heresy.

In this brief article, I have explained what the true church teaches to her children about relationships with unbelievers. This principle applies to business partnerships, membership of certain types of organisations and above all to the most intimate of relationship, marriage.

The Chosen Vessel posed five emphatic questions to demonstrate both the incompatibility and the impossibility of unequally yoked relationships. To absolutely prove the case, I could have written at length on all five questions, but the answer to the one question is sufficient to convince anyone who is willing to accept and live by the word of God, that light and darkness cannot co-exist together.

However, some of you might want to find the answers to the remaining four questions, which are:

1. For what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness?
2. What concord has Christ with Belial?
3. What part has he that believes with an infidel?
4. What agreement has the temple of God with idols?

When you find the answers, you no doubt will agree and obey the command Christ delivered through his Chosen Vessel, when he says, “wherefore come out from among them, and be you separate, says the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you”(11 Cor.6:17).

Tom Mahon