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Published On: Apr 03, 2007 11:56 PM
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Published On: Apr 03, 2007 11:56 PM
speaking of sex...
I spent all last week thinking about
sex...
Now, some of you are thinking: So? Is that unusual?
Others are thinking: How dare you! You're a pastor!
But I had to! My sermon was about sex.
In many of the New Testament epistles, the first half emphasizes doctrine: what God has done for us, and the second half emphasizes practice: how we should respond to what God has done. In 1Thessalonians the transition comes at 4:1. So what's the first thing Paul emphasizes when he gets to practical ethical issues? Sex! Abstain from sexual immorality. Again, some of you will respond, "Sheesh, isn't that just like a Christian. Of all the important issues of justice and ethics in the world, why do you people obsess so much over a trivial issue like sexual immorality?"
Paul's point however is that it isn't trivial.
In fact it is central to all issues of justice, compassion, community, reconciliation and godliness.
HIs teaching on sex (4:1-8) is bracketed by 3:11-13 and 4:9-10 which both emphasize the importance of abounding more and more in love for one another and for all people. In 4:1 he says that to do this we must abound equally in pleasing God and doing His will, which includes abstinence from sexual immorality. Sexual immorality interferes with love, trust, community and everyone's well-being (shalom). Verse 7 is intriguing: "God did not call you to sexual immorality." Well, duh! But this obvious statement brings the main issue right to the fore. No one pursues immorality because they believe that this is what God called or created them for. They just don't think about life in a theological way. If we believe that God made us and redeemed us and calls us to His service, we ask ourselves, "How should this play out in real life? What is my calling? What is God's will for me?" And no one ever answers: "He wants me to pursue hedonism and self-gratification!" Instead, self-gratification and pleasure become viewed as secondary to pleasing God.
God's will is reconciliation. Sexual immorality is described in verse 6 as trespassing and defrauding/exploiting. Self-gratification is selfish. God wants us to be loving and that requires self-control so that we can live in an atmosphere of mutual trust. Without trust, humans cannot have the kinds of intimate warm relationships God wants us to have. In God's view there is no such thing as "casual" sex. Sex is powerful and good, but just as fire must be kept in the fireplace or it will do lots of damage, so sex is like dynamite that can blow up relationships if not properly channelled and yes, controlled. Verse 4 says that you have to be able to control your own body ("vessel" here is often used to refer to genitals) as a precondition for being a truly loving, giving person.
The divine context for sex is a permanent monogamous relationship (even modern secular studies show that church-going married people report the highest degree of sexual satisfaction of any demographic group!). The divinely-sanctioned "style" or attitude for sex is to be "honor" (v4), not exploitation (self-gratification- v6). Sexual purity is not an end to itself, but a means to an end- that end is pleasing God and doing His will by fulfilling his call to be a person who brings reconciliation, peace and love to all people he interacts with. Those who do otherwise will face God's vengeance (v6).
This was as hard then as it is now. Thessalonika was a place where sexual immorality (for men at least) was considered normal, not an ethical issue at all (just like today!). Prostitution was common, ritual sex was part of religious observance, slaves were expected to provide sexual favors on demand. God and Paul called the young Thessalonian believers to build a community of love and trust and compassion that spoke of a different way of living, a way that would characterize the new age to come, rather than reflect the old ways that are passing away.
Self-gratification or self-control? Erotic lust or agape' love? Exploit or honor? Well, duh!
Now, some of you are thinking: So? Is that unusual?
Others are thinking: How dare you! You're a pastor!
But I had to! My sermon was about sex.
In many of the New Testament epistles, the first half emphasizes doctrine: what God has done for us, and the second half emphasizes practice: how we should respond to what God has done. In 1Thessalonians the transition comes at 4:1. So what's the first thing Paul emphasizes when he gets to practical ethical issues? Sex! Abstain from sexual immorality. Again, some of you will respond, "Sheesh, isn't that just like a Christian. Of all the important issues of justice and ethics in the world, why do you people obsess so much over a trivial issue like sexual immorality?"
Paul's point however is that it isn't trivial.
In fact it is central to all issues of justice, compassion, community, reconciliation and godliness.
HIs teaching on sex (4:1-8) is bracketed by 3:11-13 and 4:9-10 which both emphasize the importance of abounding more and more in love for one another and for all people. In 4:1 he says that to do this we must abound equally in pleasing God and doing His will, which includes abstinence from sexual immorality. Sexual immorality interferes with love, trust, community and everyone's well-being (shalom). Verse 7 is intriguing: "God did not call you to sexual immorality." Well, duh! But this obvious statement brings the main issue right to the fore. No one pursues immorality because they believe that this is what God called or created them for. They just don't think about life in a theological way. If we believe that God made us and redeemed us and calls us to His service, we ask ourselves, "How should this play out in real life? What is my calling? What is God's will for me?" And no one ever answers: "He wants me to pursue hedonism and self-gratification!" Instead, self-gratification and pleasure become viewed as secondary to pleasing God.
God's will is reconciliation. Sexual immorality is described in verse 6 as trespassing and defrauding/exploiting. Self-gratification is selfish. God wants us to be loving and that requires self-control so that we can live in an atmosphere of mutual trust. Without trust, humans cannot have the kinds of intimate warm relationships God wants us to have. In God's view there is no such thing as "casual" sex. Sex is powerful and good, but just as fire must be kept in the fireplace or it will do lots of damage, so sex is like dynamite that can blow up relationships if not properly channelled and yes, controlled. Verse 4 says that you have to be able to control your own body ("vessel" here is often used to refer to genitals) as a precondition for being a truly loving, giving person.
The divine context for sex is a permanent monogamous relationship (even modern secular studies show that church-going married people report the highest degree of sexual satisfaction of any demographic group!). The divinely-sanctioned "style" or attitude for sex is to be "honor" (v4), not exploitation (self-gratification- v6). Sexual purity is not an end to itself, but a means to an end- that end is pleasing God and doing His will by fulfilling his call to be a person who brings reconciliation, peace and love to all people he interacts with. Those who do otherwise will face God's vengeance (v6).
This was as hard then as it is now. Thessalonika was a place where sexual immorality (for men at least) was considered normal, not an ethical issue at all (just like today!). Prostitution was common, ritual sex was part of religious observance, slaves were expected to provide sexual favors on demand. God and Paul called the young Thessalonian believers to build a community of love and trust and compassion that spoke of a different way of living, a way that would characterize the new age to come, rather than reflect the old ways that are passing away.
Self-gratification or self-control? Erotic lust or agape' love? Exploit or honor? Well, duh!
Posted: Tue - October 4, 2005 at 10:46 AM