Are you displaying the gospel through your singleness?

Marriage always gets the attention as the state in which people should be an example of the gospel. It's supposed to be a picture of Christ and the church. But we tend to forget that singles should also be an example of the gospel. They are to display the sufficiency of Christ alone for salvation.

Single woman, you are a picture of the gospel, too. You are to prove to the world that Christ is all we need. He alone is what is required for fulfillment, for joy, for peace, and most importantly, for salvation. As Pastor Sam Allberry says in his book "Seven Myths about Singleness:"

If marriage shows us the shape of the gospel, singleness shows us it's sufficiency. Jesus is enough."

We can add nothing to the finished work of Christ on the cross in order to atone for our sin. And we can add nothing to our lives on this earth... no person, job, trip or experience... that can atone for the aching emptiness in our souls. Only Jesus is enough.

Christ + nothing = enough.

Just as married couples have the responsibility to display Christ's love for the church to a lost world, I believe singles have the responsibility to display Christ's sufficiency for salvation. The way you live your life as a single woman should show the lost world how wonderfully satisfying the love of Jesus is.

Single woman, how well are you fulfilling your responsibility? If a lost world looked at you, would they see that Jesus is all-satisfying? Or would they see a woman who claims to have the Love of all Love's living inside of her, yet she looks for the love of a man to satisfy her?

The world will see whether or not you believe that this Jesus is enough for you. Your attitude about singleness, your looks, words, actions and spirit, will betray you. You are either preaching the truth of Christ's sufficiency, or you are preaching a lie; the lie that He is not enough.

It's not wrong to joke about being single. It's not wrong to express a desire to be married. It's not wrong to grieve what hasn't happened for you yet. And it's not wrong to struggle. But we have to be so careful that our words not paint Jesus as insufficient. What does your language about singleness look like?

Are you preaching the gospel with your single life? If you language around singleness sounds like complaining, sighs of discontent, twinges of bitterness, tones of anger and impatience and ingratitude... it may be time to evaluate how well you're displaying the gospel to those around you, and to ask the Lord to help you have a change of heart.