On July 20, 1969, as commander of the Apollo 11 Lunar Module, Neil Armstrong was the first person to set foot on the moon. His first words after stepping on the moon, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind,” were televised to Earth and heard by millions. Urban legend has it that just before he re-entered the lander, he made the enigmatic remark: “Good luck, Mr. Gorsky.” Many people at NASA thought it was a casual remark concerning some rival Soviet Cosmonaut. However, upon checking, there was no Gorsky in either the Russian or American space programs. Over the years many people questioned Armstrong as to what the “Good luck Mr. Gorsky” statement meant, but Armstrong always just smiled. On 5 July, 1995, in Tampa Bay, Florida, while answering questions following a speech, a reporter brought up the 26-year-old question to Armstrong. This time he finally responded. Mr. Gorsky had died and so Neil Armstrong felt he could answer the question. In 1938 when he was a kid in a small Midwest town, he was playing baseball with a friend in the backyard. His friend hit a fly ball, which landed in his neighbor's yard by the bedroom windows. His neighbors were Mr. and Mrs. Gorsky. As he leaned down to pick up the ball, young Armstrong heard Mrs.Gorsky shouting at Mr. Gorsky. “Sex! You want sex?! You’ll get sex when the kid next door walks on the moon!”
Why does the idea of sex get so much of our attention? Some want to say it’s because as a culture we have repressed our feelings and have made it more interesting than it should be. Doug Whitmore wrote in the Think Big blog recently, “Sex is only controversial because it is intellectually ignored as a basic human instinct, during a human early development….early humans did not avoid the subject, as there is no sound "reason" for doing so. Yet somewhere in social evolution, concepts and groups made decisions about what was acceptable to be spoken about, taught and reflected upon. Only things that are not equally and/or properly understood are controversial. For lacking equal and proper understanding.”
So let’s review some facts about sex in America as relayed back in 2009:
“Did you know, for example, that in 1960 there were about 439,000 unmarried couples living together in the United States, but by 1998 the number had risen to 4,200,000 couples? Couples who cohabit prior to marriage have a 46-50% higher divorce rate than the rest of the married population (whose divorce rate is 40-50% anyway). And yet the ministers I talk to acknowledge that most of the couples they marry are already living together; that’s just the way things are today. We Christians seem to have forgotten Hebrews 13:4, where it says “let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled; for God will judge the immoral and adulterous.” Did you realize that the divorce rate among Christians is as high or higher than the general population? The church should do more than offer a safe place for those who are divorced, though that’s important; it should also be ministering to strengthen and save marriages.
Are you aware that in 1960 single women accounted for just over 5% of the babies born in the United States, but by 1985 the rate had grown to 36.8%, and by 2005, 70% of African-American, 46% of Asian-American, and 25% of white infants were born to single women? All the studies agree that single mothers are likely to have a lifetime of lower incomes and less education; that their children are more apt to live in poverty, have less education, become sexually active at a younger age, and are at risk for delinquency and gang involvement.
According to Planned Parenthood and the Guttmacher Institute, there are over 800,000 abortions in the United States every year. At 2014 abortion rates, about one in four (24%) women will have an abortion by age 45.4
*More than half of all U.S. abortion patients in 2014 were in their 20s: Patients aged 20–24 obtained 34% of all abortions, and patients aged 25–29 obtained 27%.5
*Adolescents made up 12% of abortion patients in 2014: Those aged 18–19 accounted for 8% of all abortions, 15–17-year-old for 3% and those younger than 15 for 0.2%.5
*White patients accounted for 39% of abortion procedures in 2014, black patients for 28%, Hispanic patients for 25%, and patients of other races and ethnicity for 9%.5
*17%of abortion patients in 2014 identified themselves as mainline Protestant, 13% as evangelical Protestant and 24% as Catholic, while 38% reported no religious affiliation and the remaining 8% reported some other affiliation.5
*The vast majority (94%) of abortion patients in 2014 identified as heterosexual or straight. Four percent of patients said they were bisexual; 0.3% identified as homosexual, gay or lesbian; and 1% identified as “something else.”5
*Fifty-nine percent of abortions in 2014 were obtained by patients who had had at least one birth.5
*Some 75% of abortion patients in 2014 were poor (having an income below the federal poverty level of $15,730 for a family of two in 2014) or low-income (having an income of 100–199% of the federal poverty level). https://www.guttmacher.org/fact-sheet/induced-abortion-united-states
Still another sign of sexual brokenness is our culture’s addiction to pornography, especially on the internet. Between 1998 and 2005 the number of porn web sites grew 3000% to 420 million. And of course, those statistics are 11 years old; who knows how many million more sites there are by now. This easily accessible pornography promotes sexual exploitation of and violence toward children, among other evils, and internet porn has enslaved the minds of people both inside and outside the church, clergy and laity alike.
The most scientifically rigorous study on the sexual habits of Americans shows that the typical homosexual lifestyle, especially among males, differs dramatically from American averages, and these differences are all critical risk factors for multiple medical problems. This study revealed that 2.8% of males and 1.4% of females identify themselves as homosexual. Less than 2% of these are monogamous, and the average number of lifetime sexual partners is 50. 65% of the male homosexuals reported they had engaged in anal intercourse in the last 12 months. In clinical terms, they have a 25-30 year decrease in life expectancy, multiple bowel and other infectious diseases, a much higher incidence of suicide, and a tendency toward chronic, potentially fatal liver disease—infectious hepatitis, which increases the risk of liver cancer. And then there’s HIV-AIDS.”
With fact’s in hand, let’s take a look at what the Judeo-Christian view of sex as outlined in the Christian Scriptures gives a warning about because of its affect on our spirituality or connection to God.
The Old Testament explicitly prohibits the following sexual activities:
• Adultery (Exod. 20:14, Lev. 18:20, Deut. 5:18).
• Bestiality (Lev. 18:23, Deut. 27:21).
• Homosexual acts (Lev. 18:22).
• Incest (Lev. 18:6-18; Deut. 22:30; 27:20, 22-23).
• Prostitution (Heb. zanah; Lev. 19:29, Deut. 23:18).
• Rape (Deut. 22:25-29).
• Sex before marriage (Exod. 22:16-17).
• Shrine-prostitution (Heb. qadeš, qe dešah; Deut. 23:17).
• Transvestism (Deut. 22:5).
• Unclean acts (Lev. 18:19).
• Violation of betrothal (Deut. 22:23-27).
These restrictions have the effect of confining sexual activity to marriage and the protecting married life. Although they are negative, their purpose is positive. Moses told the people, ‘YHWH commanded us to observe all these statutes … for our good always’ (Deut. 6:24).
In addition to the explicit prohibitions listed above, the Law implicitly outlaws a number of other activities associated with sex.
• Abortion. The Law laid down that, if a pregnant woman is accidentally struck when men are fighting and ‘her children come out’, any fatality should be recompensed ‘life for life’ (Exod. 21:22-25). This almost certainly applied to the fetus as well as the mother, showing the value placed on this. A man seducing or raping a woman had to take responsibility for her, not leave her to contemplate abortion (Exod. 22:16-17, Deut. 22:28-29).
• Contraception. God’s disapproval of this is implied by his condemnation of Onan to death for regularly practicing coitus interruptus with his brother’s widow (Gen 38:8-10). While his crime was partly that he failed to fulfill his duty by his brother of producing offspring for him (Deut. 25:5-6), this was not his whole crime, for, under the Law, failure to fulfill this duty, while being regarded as a serious offence, did not carry the death penalty (Deut. 25:7-10).
• Nudity. Before the Fall, Adam and Eve were not ashamed of being naked (Gen. 2:25). After the Fall, they were, and used leaves to cover themselves (3:7). God subsequently provided them with garments of skin (3:21). From this point onwards, exposure of nakedness is regarded as shameful (9:20-27; Exod. 20:26, 28:42-43).
• Pedophilia. The Law refers to the innocence of infants (Deut. 1:39). There was no explicit law against sexual abuse of children, presumably because the wrongness of this could be taken for granted.
• Polygamy. Though practiced in the OT, this goes against the basis for marriage set out in Genesis 2:18-24. [While Solomon had many wives and concubines (1 Kings 11:1–3), in the Song of Songs, he discovers the joy of having one lover (Song 6:8-9).]
• Pornography. Pornographic plaques and figurines were a feature of pagan worship in the ancient Near East. The Law required the Israelite's to destroy these (Exod. 34:13 etc.).
• Promiscuity. This is effectively outlawed by other prohibitions.
• Self-gratification. God’s disapproval of this is implied by his condemnation of Onan (Gen. 38:8-10). He does not, however, condemn those who do this involuntarily (Lev. 15:16-18, Deut. 23:9-11).
Jesus’ affirmation of the Old Testament Law applies to them. He himself outlawed promiscuity (under Mark 7:22), affirmed the basis for marriage (Matt. 19:4-6), spoke against harming children (Luke 17:1-2), and referred to the shame of nakedness (Rev. 3:17-18). Early Christians took abortion to be wrong (Didache 2.2).
The Didache meaning “Teaching” is the short name of a Christian manual compiled before 300AD. The full title is The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles. Some Christians thought Didache was inspired, but the church rejected it when making the final decision which books to include in the New Testament. Didache contained instructions for Christian groups; and its statement of belief may be the first written catechism. It has four parts: the first is the “Two Ways, the Way of Life and the Way of Death;” the second explains how to perform rituals such as baptism, fasting, and Communion; the third covers ministry and how to deal with traveling teachers; the fourth part is a reminder that Jesus is coming again, with quotations from several New Testament passages which exhort Christians to live godly lives and prepare for “that day.” https://www.christianhistoryinstitute.org/study/module/didache/
Having affirmed the Law to his disciples, Jesus continues, ‘For I say to you that, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven’ (Matt. 5:20). What he means by ‘surpassing’ he explains further in verses 21-48. He does this by means of a series of examples. In these, he raises the standard set by the Law.
Jesus is not condemning a momentary temptation, but the fostering of desire. Over-friendly looks and gestures, he says, are to be completely resisted (29-30). Jesus does not state how other sexual prohibitions in the Law are to be taken further. He presumably left this to his hearers to work out, by following the pattern of verses 27-28, i.e. ‘You have heard that it was said, “Do not do X.” But I say to you that everyone who fosters a desire to do X has already done it in his heart.’ Gratefully, Jesus accompanied his call for high standards with the promise of help to keep them, in the person of the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-17, 15:1-8). As Paul testified to the Romans, the Spirit makes a critical difference in our fight against the flesh (Rom. 7:24-8:4). Love Jesus taught his disciples to ‘love’ others (Matt. 22:34-40, John 13:34-35). Does this mean that sexual activities prohibited in the Law are permissible if they are carried out in love? The answer is, no. Christian love thus involves seeking the good of another as specified by the Law.
The NT provides the following examples of how this balance should be struck and sexual sins dealt with.
• Paul instructs the Galatians, ‘Brothers, if someone is overtaken in some misdeed, you who are spiritual should restore such a one in a spirit of meekness, watching yourself, lest you also be tempted’ (Gal. 6:1). Jude writes, ‘…have mercy on those who doubt, save others by snatching out of the fire; and have mercy on others with fear, hating even the undergarment (chiton) stained by the flesh’ (Jude 22-23)
• Paul directs the Corinthians for tolerating a man who was committing incest with his father’s wife (1 Cor. 5). In the Law, this was a capital offence (Lev. 20:11). He tells them to excommunicate (2b, 13b). His aim is both to remove from the bad influence (6-8) and help the man to appreciate the seriousness of his misconduct, to repent of it, and be saved (5b). In a subsequent letter, Paul tells the Corinthians to ‘forgive and comfort’ a member of the church whom they had disciplined, and for whom the discipline had had the desired effect (2 Cor. 2:5-11).
Jesus taught that the sexual prohibitions in the Law still apply, but to an even higher standard. This casts us on him for forgiveness, and the help of the Holy Spirit. The good news of this teaching comes in the understanding:
God created the avenue for procreation. It was HE who made it instinctual and enjoyable. It was God who created the institution of marriage.
Jesus came to validate and fulfill the teachings as well as to offer forgiveness, mercy and grace when we fall short.
Finally, it was Jesus who provide His Holy Spirit to guide us in what is appropriate and to help us in our weakness.The beauty of which must not be overlooked.
http://renew-relationships.org/
