"Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?"
II Corinthians 6:14-15
"He or she seems nice."
"He treats me nice even though he isn’t saved."
It’s been forever since someone was interested in me...so what he doesn’t go to church?"
He said he believed there is a God....I guess that’s good enough!"
Do any of these statements sound familiar??
I understand that there are times when we grow weary waiting on God's match for us. But I encourage you to hold on because your wait is for a reason. The last thing you should do is settle for someone just because they show some level of interest in you. An equal yoke refers to plowing fields during Bible times.
Equal yokes were the use of two of the same animals and a plow, which would make straight lines in a field. For example using an oxen and a mule would create uneven lines because of their size difference. In II Corinthians 6:14, Paul is explaining to the Corinthians church that they should only enter a covenant with believers. When you are unequally yoked in a relationship you open the door for sin to penetrate your heart. When you surround yourself with sin it is only a matter of time before you grow weak to it and it enters your heart. Proverb 4:23 encourages us to guard our heart because from it flows issues of life. I speak more about guarding your heart in A Detox: from the World. It becomes impossible to guard your heart from sin if you enter into a relationship were the person is pushing you further away from God.
Equal yokes were the use of two of the same animals and a plow, which would make straight lines in a field. For example using an oxen and a mule would create uneven lines because of their size difference. In II Corinthians 6:14, Paul is explaining to the Corinthians church that they should only enter a covenant with believers. When you are unequally yoked in a relationship you open the door for sin to penetrate your heart. When you surround yourself with sin it is only a matter of time before you grow weak to it and it enters your heart. Proverb 4:23 encourages us to guard our heart because from it flows issues of life. I speak more about guarding your heart in A Detox: from the World. It becomes impossible to guard your heart from sin if you enter into a relationship were the person is pushing you further away from God.
A relationship ordained by God has two believers who push each other closer to Christ, pray for each other, encourage each other despite life’s circumstance, and hold each other accountable for God Word. If you have a relationship with God, but your mate doesn’t you are without that other half to push and hold you accountable, or someone to be understanding of your relationship with God. Soon your church participation becomes a problem, they don’t agree with you giving 10%, they make you feel "it's not that serious," and ultimately push you outside of the will of God. This is not all the time a malicious act it’s just that they do not carry the same beliefs as you so they don’t understand the God we serve and how good he is or how much he is worth the lifestyle we live. I mean lets be honest you stepped outside of God's will when you took it upon yourself to rush God, or let your actions reflect a "He's taking to long!" stance. You’re off track and moving further off track by pursuing a relationship unequal, and contrary to God's plan for you. We have to be very careful that we are in right relationship and that we are vigilant in pushing our mates toward God.
Let’s look at Adam and Eve as an example:
Genesis 3:4-7 says "“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves." The serpent was able to convince Eve to eat the fruit from the tree in the midst of the garden that God had specifically told Adam they should not eat from. Eve was deceived by the serpent and convinced Adam to do something outside of God's will. Again Eve CONVINCED Adam. Adam had a relationship with God and knew what God had told him. But he allowed Eve to push him away from God when she was supposed to be pushing him closer to God. The same thing hold true in our lives if we are unequally yoked we are not strengthening our relationship with God, and we allow the enemy to permeate our hearts which results in sin. The devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy. He knows the areas we are vulnerable and will use people near us to get us off of our walk. The devil can prey on loneliness and bring people in our lives that push us away from our relationship with God. This can happen a number of ways. They can make us feel like our walk is in vain, introduce ungodly activities in our lives, or occupy our time so that we are not spending time in the Word or spending time with God. God's best for us will respect our relationship with God because they have one too. God’s best for us will not question our actions because they will know they are actions outlined in Gods Word (i.e. paying tithe, church activities, prayer time, etc.). God's best for us will be chasing after new heights in God, which means they wont be participating in ungodly activities because they will also be guarding their hearts (i.e. drinking, clubbing, smoking, gossiping, etc.). This doesn’t mean Gods best will be perfect or without sin because lets face it....neither are we. But it does mean the two of you can encourage each other, pray for each other, push each other closer to God, and hold each other accountable for your actions. Then you will find deliverance from those dark areas.
It’s important to not settle for anyone. God values each of us and wants to give us the desires of our heart. Not a piece of it. Settling gives you only a piece of our desire....a warm body. God has a husband/ wife who will usher us into new heights in God. We are not able to fulfill God's purpose for us if we are outside his will. Purposely placing yourself outside of Gods will have consequences. The consequences of Eve’s decision are seen in Genesis 3:16 and Adams in Genesis 3:17-19. One thing very interesting about Adams consequences is toil. Adam was cursed with hard work and toil all of the days of his life. When we fall outside of God's will we have to work hard to get back where God purposed for us to be.
I have been outside of the God's will before and it was hard work to get back to where God wanted me to be. So I would much rather wait on God then attempt to overstep his guide. God has made clear his love and purpose for our lives. I can’t see everything as he can. I will take my chances and wait on God's best for me. An equal yoke makes your walk straight just as the lines in a field are. Walking straight and upright with God opens the door for blessing and favor.
Will you wait on your equal yoke??
God bless you!
Kiva Thompkins
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