created for purity - part 3

**if you are under 18, please ask you parents if you can read this post about sexual purity. some of the content your parents may want to discuss with you before you read it. thanks!**

this study was put together by Josh Bullard. you can find/order the workbook or a video dvd series on his website created for purity.

God's View of Sexual Purity

we need to teach our children about sexual purity. we need to teach them the standards, guidelines, and rules. teaching them it is for their good, benefit and blessing and for God's glory.

dannah gresh was quoted in light magazine as saying, "and parents need to pull themselves out of the culture. parents talk about pulling their kids out of the culture, forbidding them to go to this movie or watch this tv show. yet many times parents don't have a problem seeing the same movie or watching that tv show or chucking along with the laugh track on any of the television's sex-laced situation comedies. we have to extract ourselves form the culture just like we expect our children to do.

I Peter 1:15,16
But as He who called you is holy, you also must be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy."

there are 4 things the Bible talks about regarding God's view of sexual purity.


1. God forbids adultery - sex with anyone other than your mate or sex outside of marriage.

Exodus 20:14
"Thou shalt not commit adultery."

Proverbs 6:32
"But a man who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself."

many christians believe, or at least act like they believe, that God's standard for sexual purity stops here. and many parents stop their teaching here. "just don't get pregnant." "don't get her pregnant."

God's standard for sexual purity is really much higher than just "no adultery" or "stay a virgin until you are married."


2. God forbids fornication - any illicit sexual activity or any sexual activity outside of God's boundaries. i.e. pornography, watching sexual scenes in a movie.
the greek word for fornication is porneia.

I Corinthians 6:18
"Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body."

I Corinthians 10:12-14
"So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry."

I Timothy 6:10, 11
"and is well known for her good deeds, such as bringing up children, showing hospitality, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in trouble and devoting herself to all kinds of good deeds. As for younger widows, do not put them on such a
list. for when their sensual desires overcome their dedication to Christ, they want to marry."

II Timothy 2:22
"Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart."

Proverbs 4:23
"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life."

Jesus was primarily concerned about the heart because our actions flow out of the heart. the internal thoughts dictate the external behavior.

Matthew 15:18,19
"But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man "unclean." For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander."


3. God forbids lusting - the desire or craving for anything that is forbidden. fantasizing and thinking about how good something would feel.

Matthew 5:27,28
"You have heard that it was said, "Do not commit adultery." But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart."


4. God forbids defrauding - to arouse sexually outside the bounds of God's limit. the limit for sexual arousal is different for everyone. if someone comes from a very touchy, feely family, their sexual arousal limit may be higher than a person who comes from a non-affectionate family.

God's standard for sex is purity - not virginity.

Why?

Because God is pure. All his standards flow out of his character.

I John 3:2,3
"Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure."

Habakkuk 1:13
"Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?"

Ephesians 5:3
"But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people.

I Thessalonians 4:3-7
"It is God's will that you should be sanctified; that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you. For God did call us to be impure, but to live a holy life."

here are some questions the workbook asks me.

when you were raised, the view of sexual purity that you were taught included which of the following?

no adultery no sexual activity no lusting no defrauding

reflect for a few minutes on how you were trained and then write down the things that come to your mind regarding sexual purity that you were taught by an authority figure in your life; parents, grandparents, pastor, youth pastor, teacher, coach, etc.

do you want your children to have the same view of sexual purity that you had?

if you answered "yes," then write down in what ways your children are being trained as you were trained.

if you answered "no," then write down how your children are going to be trained differently than you were trained.

at what age do you believe that it is appropriate and advantageous to share with your child the biological details of sex?

do you believe that it is necessary to talk with your children about sex at a younger age today than it was necessary fifteen or twenty years ago? if so, why?

what "everyday" situations or experiences would provide opportunities for you to very naturally share with your child some aspect of sex or the sanctity of sex?

richard ross, one of the founders of the true love waits campaign, says that "sex must be made a natural part of the flow of life." how can you or your spouse made this a reality in your home?