Good Hope, Alabama is a small town with small town values. In Cullman County you can’t legally buy beer. Daystar Church, which had grown dramatically under pastor Jerry Lawson, ran up against the sensibilities of a this conservative north Alabama community by focusing a month-long series on sex. To advertise this series, the church put on a blue billboard along highway 69 a drawing of a bride and groom with the web address “GreatSexGodsWay.com.” Let me repeat that slowly!
City Hall had a few complaints about the church’s sexy signs from a handful of people. Pastor Lawson said that people were missing the point. He wanted parents to talk to their children about sex before they learned too much immorality from TV or playground buddies. He said the sermons were more than a marketing technique for the church. The church needed to be out front on the topic of sex because even kids’ TV shows depict illicit relationships and homosexuality.
One of the ironies of the controversial series, which coincided with Valentine’s Day, was that the sermons were as straight-laced as they get. The series taught that God intends sex to be enjoyed solely within a heterosexual marriage, and that anything else—adultery, pornography, homosexuality, even ‘sexual arousal’ outside of marriage—is sin.
The church at Corinth could have benefited from a series of messages on God’s teaching about Christian sexual behavior. Earlier Paul addressed the church’s toleration of a man sleeping with his father’s wife. In this passage Paul deals with men in the church who justify visiting prostitutes. In chapter seven he deals with the proper sexual behavior of marital partners and singles.
Personally, Pastor Lawson’s approach is too bold for me, but I am in agreement with his opinion about the need for this subject to be taught to the church. Ted Roberts of Pure Desire Ministries says when he preaches in churches and conferences on the subject of sexual addiction, it is a given that 60-90% of the men will acknowledge they are losing the battle. Citing a Psychology Today study, Roberts said that two out of three men between the ages of 18 and 34 look at pornography at least once a month. What concerns Roberts the most is that 12- to 17-year-olds are the biggest consumers of pornography in the U.S. According to Roberts, 40% of women on the Internet are involved in cyber sex behavior. He said, “The church is behind the times in thinking this is a guy’s problem. It’s destroying our children. It’s eating women alive now. And men are barely breathing.” All of that is to say this is a core issue that the enemy is using to attack our Christian churches. Our churches will not experience revival when sexual addicts lead them. We must have solid, biblical teaching on this subject. Christians are not to be sexually immoral.
What are the reasons given for not being sexually immoral?
I. WRONG BELIEFS (1 COR. 6:12-17)
Paul quotes their excuse for bad behavior. First, the Corinthian Christian men say, “Everything is permissible for me.” Paul confronts their theology, what they believe, instead of attacking their immoral behavior. Their wrong sexual behavior was a reflection of their wrong doctrinal beliefs.
Paul is known as the apostle of Christian liberty. He saw early and clearly in his Christian life that we don’t have to obey the Mosaic Law in order to be saved. This is the theme of his epistle to the Galatians. He preached this freedom everywhere he went. Unfortunately, he was often misinterpreted. Some understood him to mean there were no restraints in Christian living. Here Paul gives them guidelines in the exercise of their freedom.
Christian freedom is limited by those things that are beneficial, helpful, or good for others or us. Christian conduct is not based on whether we have the right to do something, but whether our conduct is helpful to others or to ourselves.
What would it be like in this nation if there were no sex before marriage and no sex outside of marriage? The abortion industry would be reduced by a minimum of 75%. We’d go from one million abortions to a quarter of a million. That’s still too many but it would dramatically impact society. The AIDS disease would eventually fade away. No more illegitimate children. Last year, more babies were born out of wedlock than to married couples. These children and their mothers are almost certain to live in poverty. Divorce would drop because there would be no adulterous affairs. Crime would plummet. We’d be healthier emotionally and psychologically. If there were no sex before marriage our nation would be almost unrecognizably better than it is today. Christian conduct is not based on whether we have the right to do something, but whether our conduct is helpful to others or to ourselves.
A second answer Paul gives to their misunderstanding of Christian freedom is that the Lord and nothing else is to be in control of their bodies. A Christian is to have only one master, the Lord Jesus Christ.
As Carol and I traveled the past two weeks we listened to a novel on CD. One of the characters was an alcoholic named Baxter Tate. His family sent him to a clinic to dry out. This was his second effort. After several weeks he was released to a halfway house run by a Hispanic minister. In the past this minister had been a drug user and dealer. He went to prison twice. He beat his wife and left a terrible scar on her face. Christ broke his addiction and he came under the rule of Christ.
Six hours after being at the halfway house, Baxter Tate found himself in a bar. A cold beer with the sweat running down the sides was in front of him. You should have heard the debate going on in his head. Manny, the Hispanic pastor, finds him. Baxter begins to cry at his lack of control. The pastor puts his arm around him and leads him back to the halfway house. He shares the gospel and Baxter Tate is saved. Only then does he have the power to break his addiction to alcohol.
There is one hope for those with sexual addictions or any other addiction. Christ must become master. The way that is decided is in the details: what you look at, who you flirt with, the positive or negative messages you feed your mind. It is there that we decide who is in control: Christ or sin.
Another wrong belief the Corinthians had is found in v. 13. Read 13a.
Jesus made it clear in Mark 7:19 that we may eat anything and still be pleasing to God. Of course, gluttony is a sin. There may be some health reasons to not eat a lot of certain foods but there are no spiritual reasons.
The logic of this statement goes something like this: The body has an appetite for food and food was made to satisfy the body’s desire. In the same way, the body has a desire for sex and sex was made to satisfy the body’s desire. Eventually God’s going to destroy the body in the end so it’s not very important what we do in our body.
Paul says there are two reasons why the Corinthian’s are wrong. First, our body is important to the Lord. Jesus had a body. His body was essential for our salvation. God raised Jesus bodily from the grave. Just like Jesus, God has a use for your body. Our body is a part of who we are. We don’t recognize one another simply by our personality or interests. Our body is a part of our identification. This morning we have used our bodies to worship God with our voices, minds, and emotions. One day God is going to outfit you with a glorified body that is perfectly adjusted to eternity just like this body is fitted for time. All of that supports the idea that our body is important to God.
The best way we know that we have experienced new life in Jesus Christ is through the actions of our bodies. Our speech, habits, and the behavior of our bodies tell us that we have met the Lord. In Romans 12:1 Paul says the way we express our deep appreciation for the mercy of God’s salvation is to present our bodies as a sacrifice of holiness. This body is important to God.
Second, our body is united with Christ. He uses the image of a temple to describe the indwelling of the Lord Jesus, v. 15-17. There are two words for temple. One word describes the temple grounds like we refer to the church property. The other word describes the holy of holies, the place where the presence of God dwelt. That’s the word Paul uses to describe every Christian. We are united to Christ.
It is unbelievably offensive; it makes my skin crawl to think of taking Jesus and forcing Him to have sex with some filthy, vulgar streetwalker. Then Paul quotes Genesis 2:24 that describes what takes place when a husband and wife are intimate. The two become one. One physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
Did you hear of the father in Britain that was arrested because he bought a prostitute for his son’s fourteenth birthday? Even a society as permissive as Britain found that to be reprehensible. These Christians were buying prostitutes for Christ!
Maybe someone is thinking that this doesn’t apply to him because you don’t buy prostitutes. Prostitution is the exchange of sex for some other compensation. Some women are lonely or need to feel accepted. They give their bodies so a man will give them companionship or approval. That’s prostitution. Some women want to have security for themselves and their children. They will move in with a man and share his bed for security. That’s prostitution. Whether its money on the dresser or simply wanting to be loved by someone, sexual favors given for some form of compensation means this passage applies.
By the way, ladies, if a man buys you a movie ticket, a box of popcorn, and a coke, that does not mean you owe him anything. He doesn’t even deserve a kiss at the end of the date. Don’t be cheap. That’s peanuts compared to the privilege of your company for a few hours.
Here are some of the excuses used in our day. They are just variations of the Corinthians’ excuses.
What’s wrong with an adult man and woman consenting to have sex before marriage? No one’s going to arrest us. My family and friends do not have a problem with it. I know many others who have consensual sex.
Just because that is society’s standards does not make it God’s standard. You are a Christian and you are to live by God’s standards.
This is just a natural biological function. If I’m hungry, I eat. If I’m thirsty, I drink. We’re just highly evolved animals.
We are not animals. We are the image bearers of God. We have eternal souls, and sex connects us not only bodily but with our souls too. That’s a sacred part of our humanity. It is to be protected and not harmed.
It’s my body!
Who told you that? Who made your body? Who took a body to die for your sins? Who is going to judge you for the things you did in your body? This is not your body. He made it and gave it to you for His purposes. We are to be good stewards of our body. Our body is a gift from God.
I’m an individual and what I do just affects me.
Honestly, this one is so stupid I almost didn’t include it. But then I remembered the abortionist argument. There is probably someone here who had a parent that committed adultery. Did that affect you? It set off a nuclear bomb that blew your family apart.
If you are an adult child living separate from your parents, it will have the same disruptive impact. Sex apart from marriage is a betrayal of your family, friends, church, future mate, and the Lord who died for your sin.
I told a friend who committed adultery that I felt like he violated my trust just like he broke trust with his wife. I saw a sadness come over his face. It matched my heart.
Well, there are more excuses that people give for sexual immorality. Paul’s response is to expose the wrong beliefs. These Corinthians had obviously not applied the Lordship of Christ, the power of the resurrection, the value of the indwelling presence of Christ, and an understanding of Christian marriage.
What are the reasons given for not being sexually immoral?
II. RIGHT RESPONSES (1 COR. 6:18-20)
The first response to sexual immorality is to flee. It is our word fugitive. Yesterday, I saw a part of an old movie where Kirk Douglass was running from Walter Mattheau, the Sheriff. He ran to the point of exhaustion. He hurdled dangers to get away from the law. He was a fugitive.
The best method to dealing with sexual temptation is two strong legs, the king’s highway, and run as hard as you can! Get away from it. For example, an alcoholic has to pour out all the liquor in his house to stay sober and a sex addict has to get rid of his computer. The alcoholic has to decide that a fifth of Jim Beam is not as valuable as his wife, kids, and health.
A pastor friend came to me privately and confessed he was struggling with sexual matters. I asked him some pointed questions and he was honest. He had not violated his marriage vows. He and I have an agreement, when I see him I have the freedom to discreetly ask him if he is remaining pure. Maybe you need that kind of accountability.
This is one sin the world tells us not to resist. We do not have the strength to resist. We are to be first-class cowards when it comes to sexual temptation.
Why take this sin so seriously? The consequences are great. That’s my understanding of the statement that this is a different kind of sin. Honestly, I’m still trying to understand this passage but I do understand the consequences.
If you know a Christian who is sleeping with their boyfriend or girlfriend, ask them how their prayer life is going? Ask them if God is speaking to them from the Bible when and if they read it? How about church attendance? Do they have a greater longing to worship God? Don’t forget to ask them about their verbal witness for Jesus Christ. This sin strikes at the heart of your walk with God.
Not all sin has the same consequences. Over the years of my ministry Carol and I have talked with couples where there has been adultery. The destruction to the relationship is like a suicide bomber exploding in that marriage. But not one single time have I ever had a tearful wife or a gutted husband sit across from me and say, “I just can’t live with them anymore because they are a flagrant jaywalker.” Jaywalking is breaking the law. That makes it a sin.
You say that is silly. Ok, I’ll admit that. Will you admit that the consequences of sexual sin are more damaging than almost any other sin?
The second response to sexual immorality is to live to please God. Honor God with your body. Since the body is the dwelling place of the Spirit of God and the blood of Jesus Christ bought it, we are to exalt and reveal God in our bodies. We represent Him.
They meet every year—a group of ordinary and unassuming veterans who have one thing in common—their nation’s highest military award for bravery.
Almost all of them agree that the Congressional Medal of Honor has transformed and redefined their lives. For many, it has thrust them into the public eye. One recipient, assessing its effect on his thought and behavior, said, "You're representing everybody and everything the medal represents."
As Christians we bear the name of Jesus. That transforms and redefines our life. Like a temple, we are thrust before the public eye. The Bible says the heavens declare the glory of God. The Bible paints a magnificent picture of the glory of God. In it we see the saving action of Jesus Christ. But the one thing most responsible for the daily display of the wonder of God is His people. He sacrificed for us to bear that name. Our response is to honor Him.
CONCLUSION
I read about a study done on medical doctors and their scrubbing before surgery or a procedure. Their poor procedures had resulted in a troubling increase in infections in hospitals. As you can imagine it prompted a change in behavior to be cleansed of germs.
We live in an overly sexualized culture. The church is filled with the infection and unhealthiness of sexual sin. What is needed is a good scrubbing. That starts with the details. Some need to change computer habits. Others need to seek out an accountability partner. You probably know where you need to start scrubbing. Take this as serious as you would want your doctor to take purity before he operated on you. Christians are not to be sexually immoral.
