Although there are many dating methods and rules suggested in Christian circles, the Bible does not explicitly discuss how a Christian should approach dating. At Focus on the Family, we have offered a variety of resources and expert advice that apply biblical principles in this area. Not only is there nothing in the Bible specifically about dating, but the concept of dating didn't even exist in biblical times. That's a basic framework for biblical dating, the best I can discern it from the principles of God's Word.
In biblical times, the process of meeting a spouse had very little to do with compatibility and personality traits, and it all had to do with family lineage and economic status. Biblical dating assumes a context of spiritual responsibility, as is true in all other areas of Christian life. All quotes from the Scriptures, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, the standard version in English. Biblical quotes tend to be complementary (God has created men and women differently and has ordained that each of these spiritual equals play different and valuable roles in the church and in the family).
While the principles that support biblical quotations begin with the very structure of the family, modern dating has its origins with the sexual revolution of the 1960s. But cheer up, even if He doesn't always give us the direct plan, He always gives us everything we need to get where He wants us to go. Bible quotes tend to encourage time spent in group activities or with other people that the couple knows well. So how does the sufficiency of the Scriptures apply to our next discussions? Well, many evangelicals who otherwise believe in the infallibility of the Bible and who might generally agree with the sufficiency of the Scriptures, have embraced the world's ideas about dating.
Almost everyone who professes to be evangelical Christians knows and strongly defends the doctrine of the infallibility of the Scriptures (which affirms that the Bible is the authoritative Word of God, is true and contains no falsehood or error). Do not rebuke an older man, but encourage him as you would with a father, young people as brothers, old women as mothers, young women as sisters, with all purity.
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