The Supremacy of Christ in Sexual Purity

Note: My writing is rough. I'm starting to get back into writing, so, im sorry for the horrible writing.

One of the hardest and most difficult sins for me to fight would be sexual immorality. Not only do I want to fight it, I need to fight it. Sexual immorality is at the front of the Christian battle for me, and I hate every piece of it. There are so many times when I want to give up in the middle of this hard battle, but i must keep pressing on.

Paul was clear about the will of God for my life:

1Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more.
2For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.

3For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality;

4that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,

5not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God;

6and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you.

7For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.

8So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.


When Paul wrote this, he was showing them that Sexual Purity and Brotherly Love were tied into one another.

Pauls first exhortation is this: "that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more."

Now, the first thing that he says to them is that they have recieved instructions on how to "walk and please God". Paul HAD to give them instructions on how to be Sexually pure. Couldn't they just learn on their own without the instruction from God? Absolutely not. Paul wrote in Romans 1 "24Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity,". Man's heart is by it's very nature imprure; lusting after the world. In Romans 1, Paul details how these people that were supressing the truth, became worse. They indulged themselves in sexual immorality. So far as that men with men and women with women. Christ spoke on this very issue of the heart AND fornication:
15Peter said to Him, "Explain the parable to us."
16Jesus said, "Are you still lacking in understanding also?

17"Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated?

18"But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.

19"For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.

20"These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man." (Matt 15)

Out of the heart comes Sexual immorality. The heart is evil, giving into sexual immorality, rebelling against God. By our very nature we HATE God. God made man and women for marriage; NOT for sexual immorality. In Gensis 2 we see this:

22The LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.

23The man said,
"This is now bone of my bones,
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man."

24For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

The man shall be joined to HIS WIFE! Not some other woman, but HIS WIFE.

As we go further in 1 Thess 4, Paul states something that MUST be OBEYED.

"4that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,"

Paul uses the word POSSESS. The EVS translates it this way:
"that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor,"

In other words, it gives the implication of keeping yourself HOLY; Keeping yourself away from sexual immorality.

Paul writes to timothy in the same manner, but commands him to FLEE:22Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

Paul says "Pursue righteousness." Run from sexual immorality, and run to Christ who is our righteousness. John Piper puts it in a different way. After listening to a sermon of his(which i highly recommend) titled "This Is The Will of God For You That You Abstain From Sexual Immorality" he talks about internet pornography. I dont have the exact quote (wish i did) but he talks about being on the computer, having your hand on the mouse, praying to God that He will give you the strength to lift your hand up from that mouse. He then says "Once that hand is lifted up, say 'PRAISE GOD'." He also says that you should pray because "you can't masterbate and pray to God at the same time."

Lastly, for today, we see the next and most important line of the text:
"5not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God;"

This piece of text struct me the most. "Like the gentiles who do not know God." Paul is clearly telling these people that being in a sexually immoral act is acting like you DO NOT KNOW GOD. How sad that made me feel. The emptiness of life. The joy of being in the presence of my savior taken away. Please, I beg you, RUN FROM SEXUAL IMMORALITY. Oh the sadness of those who have no relationship with the one TRUE LOVE, GOD.

Back...

I am going to return to blogging once again. I've been extremely busy with college and work. I will be moving down to Arizona. So, if any of you live there... let me know.