Navigating Sexual Desire: God's Design for Celibacy and Marriage

when sexual desire Rises Satan shifts his missile carriers into high gear the rise of sexual desire does not mean victory for Satan it means vulnerability to Satan there's a very simple truth that work here you've all experienced it whether in the area of sexuality or in the area of some other desire and the truth is simply this the stronger and bigger the desire we have for something the more vulnerable we are to deceptive rationalizations to justify satisfying it in a sinful way. [00:00:06]

celibacy is a gift to be celebrated you could call 1 Corinthians 7 Paul's Manifesto for the single life or for the unmarried life when he says in verse one it is well for a man not to touch a woman he means the same thing that he does in verse 8 where he says to the unmarried and the Widow I say that it is well for them to remain single as I do in other words it is good not to touch a woman means it is good to be single. [00:01:53]

Paul was so completely committed to the life of celibacy that he wanted everybody to have it but the reason he was committed to celibacy is very different from the reason many people today opt for celibacy even breaking marriages to have celibacy Paul wanted celibacy because he would be freed to be the slave of Jesus more than if he were married today people want celibacy often because they simply want to be free for self-realization not to be anybody's slave. [00:02:31]

God has called many of you to celibacy and the lesson of this text this morning is that you should be dreaming dreams about how under God to maximize the unique Freedom that you have for his purposes no wife or children did Paul have to take into account when he had a Dangerous Mission no money had to be spent on clothing or education for little Paul Jr no time had to be taken preserving and cultivating his relationship with his wife. [00:03:19]

marriage is a dam against the flood of fornication and adultery in the world it's a damn against fornication that is premarital sexual relations in verse one he says that it's good not to touch a woman that is it's good to be single and not to be sexually active at all period that's good he says and then he adds in verse two but because of the temptation to immorality each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. [00:05:19]

the husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights or marital rights and likewise the wife to her husband for the wife does not rule over her own body but the husband does likewise the husband does not rule over his own body but the wife does do not refuse one another except perhaps by agreement for a season that you may devote yourselves to prayer but then come together again lest Satan tempt you through lack of self-control. [00:09:42]

frequency is one element in the whole sphere of what makes sexual relations satisfying here's another one I think that being physically attractive to each other is part of what makes sexual relations satisfied now this is an extraordinarily sensitive and complex issue it's it's sensitive because there are things about ourselves we can't change and there are other things we'd like to change and it is really hard so it's a sensitive thing. [00:11:27]

surely there is a Biblical balance surely there's a way between two extremes one extreme would be a kind of nervous self-consciousness that Frets about every appearing wrinkle and every added pound and every gray hair and on the other end the extreme of a kind of thoughtless negligence that doesn't give a rip about what the spouse would like us to wear or eat or how to bathe or act in public just doesn't care my home is the place to be me even if it makes the spouse upset. [00:13:51]

Satan uses sexual desire I do not say Satan creates sexual desire God created sexual desire and it's good Satan does not create it he uses it he abuses it verse five do not refuse one another except perhaps by agreement for a season that you may devote yourselves to prayer but then come together again lest Satan tempt you through lack of self-control when sexual desire Rises Satan shifts his missile carriers into high gear. [00:16:18]

Satan devotes his energy to cutting the pearl of sexual desire free from the oyster of its divine origin truth and Grace and if Satan can get sex in an area by itself God way over here sex way over here he's killed it he has distorted it he has ruined it no matter what it feels like or if he can't pull that off he'll try and often they go together to take the Pearl and throw it before the swine of fornication adultery pornography incest child abuse homosexuality masturbation. [00:19:18]

the antidote the liberating force from the bondage of Satan in the area of sexual desire is to know God or as Peter puts it in his second letter chapter 1:3 Christ's divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us to his glory and Excellency if you were to ask Paul what can I do to get any victory over this powerful urge in my life that Satan uses to drag me down Paul would answer devote your energy devote your time devote your creativity to knowing the glory and the Excellency of God. [00:25:38]

the only way to combat sinful pleasure is righteous pleasure you can't cast one devil out and leave the Cravings of your heart Empty Seven will return you must fill your life with God the glory and Excellency of God the person who is persuaded and feels the truth of Psalm 16 in thy right hand are PL Pleasures forever more and at thy side are Joys uh unending full complete that person is going to be powerful in his opposition against the evil one because the only way Satan can get you is by convincing you that his way of satisfaction is preferable to God's way of satisfaction and if you know God you'll know it's not true. [00:26:22]