“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do…

“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?” (2 Cor. 6:14-15).

First of all let’s fine out what a ‘yoke’ is. In the literal sense, a ‘yoke’ is a bar or frame of wood by which two oxen are joined at the neck for working together. Farmers usually fix it on the necks of animals for ploughing and for other form works. So, when two animals are yoked together, it means a bar (yoke) is placed at their necks so as to pull a load to plough a land or achieve the intended purpose.

Now, when a Christian is yoked together with a non-Christian in marriage, the imagery is like a donkey sharing a yoke with cattle. That is an error because a donkey and cattle are two different animals with different interests. As a result they will be working against each other instead of pulling the load together to achieve the intended purpose.

It is incompatible for a Christian to yoke himself with a non-Christian in marriage. That is unconcord because they are two different people with different interests. As a result they will be working against each other, arguing and fighting here and there instead of working together to glorify God. A Christian can marry from his Church or other Christian Churches with common faith, but for a Christian to move from his Church, the whole of Christianity and marry a non-Christian is a deadly choice.

Dear brethren, marriage can make or un-make you. If you are a Christian and want a happy marriage that won’t hinder your Christian life, then marrying a non-Christian is not an option. Christians are called to evangelize the non-Christians and not to be intimate with them in marriage. Who you marry is as important as who you want to become. Follow God’s word and prayer to make the right choice. God bless you!

– Francis Botwe