What Does the Bible Say About Sex?
Jim Burns

Recently, a teenage couple sat in my office. They had already been sexually active. She wanted to stop their physical relationship but not break up, and he didn’t want to stop anything. At the end of our time together, he looked up at me with a real sense of frustration and said, “Is God the great killjoy when it comes to sex?”

I’m afraid too many people believe that statement to be true when, in fact, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Don’t forget, sex was God’s idea. In Genesis we read that, after God created man and woman-and their sexuality. He looked at what He had made and said that it was “very good.” God is no killjoy when it comes to sex. He created sex and sees it as very good.

Some people don’t think the Bible has much to say about how we should live out our sexuality. These people haven’t done their homework. The Bible is not a sex manual, but it contains several extremely important pieces of wisdom for those who truly desire to be all God wants them to be. Let’s take a quick look at a few of the key verses.

The Bible on Adultery

You are probably familiar with the commandment, “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14). Adultery occurs when two people have sexual intercourse and at least one of them is married to someone else. You don’t need to be an A student to realize God knew what He was doing when He included this commandment in His “Big Ten.” Most people today have seen lives ruined because of an adulterous affair. I can think of whole families whose lives have been radically changed and deeply hurt because of adultery. God wants the best for you. He wants to protect you from the pain of a broken relationship. He has established this rule for a good reason.

The Bible on Fornication

Paul wrote, “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality” (Thessalonians 4:3). Here’s a quick Greek lesson! The word translated “immorality” in this verse is pornea. It’s where we get the root word for pornography or fornication. Some Bible translations even use the word “fornication” instead of “immorality.” Fornication occurs when two people who are not married have sexual intercourse.

Again, is God trying to mess up our fun? No way. He knows what’s best for us. He loves us. He deeply understands the confusion and heartache caused by those who choose to go against His will. If only you could sit in my office and hear from teenagers their stories of broken relationships. There is guilt, pain, confusion and, for some, a feeling of hopelessness. Again, God surely knew what He was doing when He came up with the command to refrain from sex until marriage.

The Bible on the Union between Husband and Wife

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So, they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate” (Matthew 19:4-6).

God sees a physical, sexual relationship as very sacred and special. The words “casual sex” are not in His vocabulary. There is no more graphic illustration of being united as one flesh than when a man and woman have sexual intercourse. Sexual intercourse is as intimate as you can get. Are you prepared to become one flesh with another person? It’s a very serious consideration to make before you find yourself in a compromising situation.

The Bible on the Human Body

As a Christian, there is absolutely no doubt that your very own body is a temple of God.
Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body (Corinthians 6:18-20).

I’m not a theologian, but I do know that in a mysterious way God’s Holy Spirit lives within each Christian believer. Our bodies should glorify and honor God; after all He lives inside us.
Many verses in Scripture focus on the subject of sex and sexuality other than the ones I’ve mentioned. It is clear from these, though, that God views our sexuality as very good, very special and even sacred. He’s not a killjoy! He wants the best for us.

This article “What Does the Bible Say About Sex” by Jim Burns was excerpted from Good Advice for Parents newsletter. June 2008. It may be used for study & research purposes only.

This article may not be written by an Apostolic author, but it contains many excellent principles and concepts that can be adapted to most churches. As the old saying goes “Eat the meat. Throw away the bones.”