Clarity In The Age Of Sexual Confusion

There is so much confusion in our culture about sex.  Adultery, premarital sex, pornography, cohabitation, homosexuality, and STDs are rampant.  If there is any area where our culture needs clarity, it is sex. 

The Bible tells us very clearly God's Plan For Sex:

1) God made sex, so it is good.  Sex is not dirty, or evil, or only permissible for procreation.  It is a good thing because it is a God-thing.  "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good (Gen 1:31)." 

2) God made sex only for marriage.  Unfortunately, in this age I have to define what I mean by marriage.  The Bible's definition is clear.  Marriage is the union of one man and one woman for a lifetime.  Sex is only for married couples.  "Marriage is to be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, because God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers (Heb 13:4)."  Within marriage sex has three purposes:  Procreation (Gen 1:28), intimacy (Gen 1:25), and enjoyment (Pr 5:18-19). 

3) All sexual activity outside of marriage is against God's will.  God's standard for sex is simple to understand:  Never before marriage, never outside of marriage, and never with the same sex.  The apostle Paul divided all sexual sin into four categories in Colossians 3:5, "Therefore, put to death what belongs to your earthly nature:  sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desire."  These categories may be defined like this:  Sexual immorality (Gk. porneia) is illicit sexual intercourse.  Impurity (Gk. akatharsia) is illicit sexual contact other than intercourse, such as masturbation, petting, oral sex, etc.  Lust (Gk. pathos) is unnatural sexual activity, such as homosexuality, bestiality, pedophilia, and incest.  Evil desire (Gk. epithumia) is illicit non-physical sexual activity, such as porn, strip clubs, sexual fantasies, girl-watching, etc.  To put it briefly, the Bible makes it clear that all sexual activity outside of marriage is against God's will. 

God's plan for sex may seem restrictive, but that's only because our culture has drifted so far away from His plan.  God loves you and knows what is best for you.  His plan for your sexuality is not to ruin your life or make you miserable, it is to help you enjoy the gift of sex to the fullest.