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There is nothing in the Bible that would indicate that a man could not or should not join the church without his wife. Obviously, it is great if both spouses are believers, and both want to join the church together and serve in it together. However, a saved man should not allow his unsaved wife to dictate his relationship to the local church (or vice versa). We know from Acts that when people got saved, they got baptized and joined the church (Acts 2:41). In fact, folks were being saved and added to the church daily (Acts 2:47). I find it hard to believe that in each of those situations both the husband and wife got saved the same day. In addition, Paul writes to the Corinthian church giving instructions concerning what to do with an unbelieving spouse (I Cor. 7:10-16). This would have been unnecessary if there had not been church members there who had unsaved spouses, some of whom actually wanted to leave their husbands or wives over the issue of Christianity.
By the way, lest there be any question, an unbeliever can not be a member of a New Testament church. As referenced above, church membership was limited to baptized believers. When Paul wrote to the local churches at Rome, Corinth, Ephesus, Philippi, and Colosse, he specifically wrote to the "saints", which would mean that they were saved people.
Being a part of a local church is God's plan for believers, and the local church is His program for this age. Thus, I would encourage any believer to become part of the assembly, whether his or her spouse desired to join or not.
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By Pastor Dr. Mark Montgomery
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Ambassador Baptist Church
1926 Babcock Blvd
Pittsburgh, PA 15209
(412)477-3210
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