WHO'S YOUR PLUS-ONE?

He answered, "Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, 'Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate." But he said to them, "Not everyone can receive this saying, but only those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it."
Matthew 19:4‭-‬6‭, ‬11‭-‬12

¶The term "eunuch" is a combination of two Greek words that mean either "well-minded" or "well-contained". Eunuchs were entrusted with the most intimate aspects of the king's affairs. Castration could create a eunuch, but Jesus also references another group who were born and not made eunuchs. They are not sexually attracted to the opposite sex by nature. As such they were capable of making legitimate contributions to society, and they merited great trust from the king. There is a third class of those whose life choice is more challenging. For them, sexual desires are present, but they have made a deliberate choice to control the desires to more effectively do Kingdom work. Whatever the reason, Jesus recognizes and respects a calling to a celibate lifestyle. He desires those with such a gift to pursue it. He practices it himself. He also makes it clear that the physical union God blesses is between a man and a woman.