Why It Is Never OK For A Christ Follower To Date An Unbeliever!

Missionary Dating” is risky business!  The person you are dating may become emotionally involved with you, only to find out that you will only “get serious” with Christians. What a heartless, un-Christian thing to do!  Here they have fallen for you only to find there are “strings” attached.  In addition, it is possible you may see the one you care for “come to Christ” only to realize later that they are quite happy being a mediocre believer.  What do you do then?  Breaking up is hard to do!

You could make your life miserable!  Your pursuit of a serious relationship with God may be compromised if your partner does not end up pursuing God as passionately as you do.  Because romance is a powerful emotion, you will struggle greatly if your partner is resistant to the life you feel called to lead.  If you fall in love with someone who ends up frustrated with the way you express and live your faith, you will not be a happy person!

You could make their life miserable! If this dating led to marriage, your partner would experience a certain degree of tension throughout his or her life by those who deeply desire their conversion to Christ. I have known a number of heavy-hearted Christian spouses (mostly wives by the way) whose partners resist the Gospel for decades and beyond! The result is two people who are not all that fulfilled—not to mention the children of that unequal relationship.

Have a good idea how serious you want to be with God before you start dating. Your relationship with Christ is the most important thing about you.  Do not get serious with opposite sex relationships until you have seriously developed your core values and spiritual convictions.  Romance sometimes sneaks in the back door of your heart and, before you know it, what isn’t nailed down can blow away!

Ask yourself:  “Would it please the Lord if I developed a “more than friend” relationship with this person?” and “Is this a person who can inspire me to a deeper walk with Christ?” Finally, we should ask: “Am I in a place in my life to be a positive impact upon this person’s spiritual life?”

“Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flows the springs of life.”  Proverbs 4:23

“Do not be bound together with unbelievers…”  II Corinthians 6:14

Pastor John Wallace Miller