"God's Plan for Sexual Intimacy"

Pastor Laura Guy

September 16, 2007

Here's an instant replay of what happened in worship:

We recognized that the Bible is very clear that God created sexual intimacy for marriage relationships. We read 1 Thess. 4:3-8 as one example. But we also recognized that our culture gives us a completely different message.
We remembered that God is the one who invented sex. It is a gift that God gave us so that we might procreate - have babies - and also to express love to our mate, to bond us to that person.
We looked at the reasons God asks us to wait until marriage. It is not to be mean and take away our fun, but it is to protect us - physically, emotionally and spiritually - until we have made a vow to love another person "as long as we both shall live." If we truly lived that way, there would be no more sexually transmitted diseases or teenage pregnancies.
We considered whether single people who are divorced or otherwise no longer virgins should try to remain celibate until marriage. Although the culture tells us that it is an impossible thing to do, God still wants to protect us from the physical and emotional damage that can happen to us if we have a sexual relationship outside of marriage. God can give us the strength to live that way.
We also looked at how sexual intimacy often causes arguments in marriages. By understanding and talking about how God wants to bless us with the gift, not create problems, we might begin to view it differently and experience it differently.
We prayed that God would help all of us to appreciate and celebrate the gift of sexual intimacy in appropriate ways. We confessed that it is a difficult area of life for many of us, and we need God's strength to live holy lives.
We welcomed all broken people to the table of love and forgiveness.