Grace, Freedom, and Slavery. 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Introduction

Good morning church. Join me in turning in your bibles this morning to 1 Corinthians 6. We will be starting in verse 12 this morning in our time in the word, and as you are turning there I want to tell you a story about my first year as an Resident Assistant at Southwest Baptist University. One week we had a particularly interesting speaker come to chapel whose name was Nate Larkin. Nate had written a book discussing his descent into sexual sin and how he was able to find recovery and freedom. The book is called “Samson and the pirate monks”, a catchy title to be sure, but what happened after that chapel address was interesting. Nate came in, shared his story of addiction and struggle, and the system he developed that helped men find freedom. He ended by explaining that he’d been invited to stay with us for the next couple days and tonight, in the chapel at 7pm he would be having his first meeting for anyone who wanted to see how these groups worked and what it would look like to get them going at our school.

As you can imagine, it made alot of people ask questions quietly and privately to themselves. My RD Nate and I had talked and basically decided that we would let all the guys know that we would be going if they wanted a friendly face to go with. I mean, none of them ever wanted to talk about their struggles with pornography rather than the occasional offhanded joke so we weren’t sure if we’d have any takers.

7pm rolls around and there is no room on the stage of the chapel. at least 150 guys show up and we created 3 circles that felt alot like AA meets church. We’d toss out a subject at the begging of the group, that night’s was truth, and then you’d introduce yourself, “Hi, my name is Juston, Hi Juston, I think my interactions with truth have been...”

Then Nate told us that the meeting is good and alot of people enjoy the structure but God tends to work in the meetings after the meeting. When people meet you in the hall and talk to you about what’s really going on.

Seeing the influx of guys who dared to show up, we decided to start our own group that would meet in our dorm, not knowing if any guys would come. Our dorm was only about 43 guys so we had no idea what to expect. Our first night we had 28 guys show up and many weren’t even from our dorm.

Young men were tired of the relationship they had been struggling against and loosing the war with pornography. They were fed up and wanted solutions.

Tension

That semester taught me a couple things.

1. The struggle is real and present and taking down young men who look to have it all together from the outside. I had straight A scholars and athletes all the way to guys pulling 3 jobs just to pay for classes.

2. Honesty can heal if we will embrace it. Guys were confessing things to each other and to me all the time because they just wanted to be rid of it once and for all.

3. Lies sell well but they can’t produce lasting satisfaction.

Today we are going to talk about sexual immorality as Paul calls it out in the church in Corinth. Our hope this morning is that we would gain, not just a perspective on what God’s problem with sexual immorality is but also why it is. Next week we will talk about his answer for it, but today Paul rips the duck tape off quick and fast. So, let’s get into it.

Truth

1 Corinthians 6:12–20 (ESV)

12 “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything.

13 “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”—and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.

14 And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.

15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never!

16 Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.”

17 But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.

18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.

19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,

20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Pray

Exposition

The passage breaks neatly into 3 parts so lets deal with the first.

1 Corinthians 6:12–14 (ESV)

12 “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything.

13 “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”—and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.

14 And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.

Paul hands out some momly advice here that we’ve probably all gotten from a grandmother or teacher along the way. “Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should.” Perhaps you’ve heard its cousin, “if you’re friends jumped off a bridge would you?”

but it goes deeper than that. Paul is dealing with a particular teaching and practice that was widely taught in the pagan world, had creep-ed into the church, and oddly enough, has been given some light in our world today.

The argument went like this: Food is both pleasurable and necessary. My stomach signals my body with a hunger response to let me know that my body needs food to satisfy it. So, in that same way, sex is pleasurable and necessary. When my body signals sexual desires, they need to be satisfied. Its just physical hungers of my body that God put there and me acting out of them so what could be wrong with that?

Our world would take that sentiment and say, “Sex is just a physical act between consenting adults and nobodies business outside of that. Don’t listen to anyone who tells you otherwise, act out on whatever desires you feel like you want to pursue.”

That is where Paul’s verse 12 argument mixes with his justification in verse 13.

Just because you are free to make a choice, doesn’t mean that you should make that choice, or that the consequences of those choices will be good for you. Just because there isn’t a law against such actions doesn’t mean they won’t destroy you or make you lives miserable. And just because you “can” do something with your body doesn’t mean that it was meant for that thing.

Paul brings it loudly clear, “Your body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord.” It’s helpful for us to remember again that Paul is talking to those who have accepted Christ and are members of the church. They are proclaiming, as a form of Christian liberty, being freed from the law of the OT, that they have the right to fulfill whatever physical desires they want with their body because they are free in Christ. Some went as far as to say that the spirit and the body were two different things entire. That God really cared only about your spiritual life because the flesh was just corrupt and bent towards sin anyway. Therefore, they reasoned, whatever I do with my body doesn’t matter.

In a word: hogwash.

And in order to fully explain this we need to actually look at this word we translate as “sexual immorality.”

“Porn-neia” is the Greek word that can be translated, “sexual immorality, fornication, harlotry, adultery, incest, idolatry, or immorality.” It’s Hebrew counterpart describes prostitution, unfaithfulness, obscene practices, and in some places a “lack of knowledge, ability, understanding, or discernment.” But the root of the word is “porn-e” which comes to mean simply, prostitute.

We can do some math here and get a more whole picture too. If sexual immorality exists, then so does sexual morality. God is the head of moral law and sets it, while simultaneously being the author and creator of all sex, sexuality, sexual expression, and the physical, emotional, and spiritual ligaments that connect all sexual practices. He has clearly outlined his parameters for sex to be experienced and enjoyed. The area inside of those guardrails would be, then, sexual morality. Practicing a moral sexual ethic. Therefore, anything outside of those healthy and holy boundaries is sexually immoral, porn-neia, fornication. It is settling for less than God’s standard, missing the mark, and upholding sinfulness. No matter what justification you choose use to endorse your behavior, you are still missing the mark.

Daniel Heimbach, professor of Christian Ethics at Southeaster Baptist Theological Seminary categorizes sexual ethics nicely into two categories.

First. 7 principles of the Essential Value of Sex. He says:

“Sex must always be:

Personal (in that its meant to be relational)

Exclusive (uniquely given and expressed only between a man and his wife)

Intimate (profoundly connecting each other)

Fruitful (productive, not just in terms of rearing children but also in producing lasting good in ones marriage and community.)

Selfless (sacrificial in nature, considering the needs of your spouse above your own)

Complex (multidimensional. We are not merely a body, or a mind, or a soul and sex unites all of the parts of who we are in a physical, emotional, and spiritual way.)

Complementary (Unite corresponding differences, not only physically but in far more ways. These differences are on purpose and good from God.)

So, if these are the systematic goals of sex as practiced and taught in the Bible, then anything that diminishes, or changes, or cheapens one or more of these undermines the entire building’s foundation and the house of cards will crumble down, often, right upon our heads.

Likewise, we can find within the scriptures at least, as Dr. Heimbach points out, 16 prohibitions for sexual purity.

No sex outside of marriage.

No sexual worship (spiritualized prostitution)

No sexual commerce (economic prostitution)

No homosexual sex

No sex with animals (bestiality)

No sex or marriage with close relatives (incest)

No pedophilia

No sexual violence

No lustful desires (inner adultery)

No intentional gender confusion

No sex during a woman’s period

Strong opposition to divorce

Strong opposition to spiritually mixed marriages

Strong opposition to indecent exposure (immodesty)

Opposition to polygamy

Opposition to fellowship with sexually immoral Christians.

(True Sexual Morality: Recovering Biblical Standards for a Culture in Crisis. Daniel R. Heimbach. p153-223.)

“Wow Juston, thats a big list, why did you go through it like that?”

Great question, glad you asked. Many in our world suggest that God needs to keep out of their bedroom or that Christians are trying to stunt sexual expression because they want to control people. Can I tell you why that’s just not true?

Notice how each of these prohibitions against a sexually immoral behavior undermines one of God’s goals and intentions for a Holy Sex life.

If one of God’s goals is that sexually holy behaivior is personal, bringing a husband and wife together relationally, how can things like pornography, prostitution, or divorce help do that? If God desires our sexuality to be expressed in Complementary ways how can bestiality, homosexuality, or pedophilic behaviors ever glorify God? If sexual expression is to be selfless and sacrificial what place does violence or polygamy have in our bedrooms.

You see, God isn’t down on sexual expression, he invented it! He literally wrote the book on it. He made it for our good and betterment and as a way to make us better than we are. God saw Adam, doing his thing, but alone and struggling. He made a helper suitable for him and Adam was pleased in this relationship. But, just as all good things can be distorted and twisted, we have grown as people to put sexual expression upon a pedestal to be honored as an idol. Some in our day have declared it to be one of, if not the most important thing about themselves. Sexuality is not a God to be worshiped or a behavior that we engage in in whatever flavor we feel in the moment. It, like all other parts of our lives are able to be found, identified, expressed, and lived out as a means of worship to the God who designed them. We are no slaves to our desires, feeding every thought or urge that pops into our minds. No we, like Paul would encourage us in 1 Corinthians 9:26-27

1 Corinthians 9:26–27 (ESV)

26 So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.

27 But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

He continues in this spirit, calling out the problems specifically occuring in this church.

1 Corinthians 6:15–17 (ESV)

15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never!

16 Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.”

17 But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.

Paul explains the problem with their thinking. Some of the members have engaged in pagan acts of sexual worship with temple prostitutes, justifying in their minds that they were simply worshiping Christ with their bodies. Paul’s response: Never!

Again, one of the functions of Biblical sexuality here undermines such practices because God meant sex to hold a man and woman together for their lifetimes and yet you use this grade 10 superglue to momentarily attach yourself to a prostitute? It doesn’t work that way guys. I can’t work that way, no matter who told you that they were wrong. More than just that, for us who have followed Christ and been regenerated by him; we’ve already been made one with Christ. His spirit, lives within us, moving us and shaping us into his image. You can’t give Christ control of your life then just keep living however you’d like as if you hand’t given him the keys. By engaging in pagan prostitution you are trying to tie Christ to your sinful desires, despising the spirit that is calling you to something higher. A man can’t serve two masters and their true colors are showing which master has the steering wheel.

Further, Science seems to be catching up to scripture here. There is a chemical in your body called Oxycontin and its found in both of us but affects males and females differently. For ladies It’s released 3 times in your life and it has one job. It releases during labor, when you breastfeed your babies, and when you have sex with a man. Its job: it’s called the pair-bonding hormone. Get this, studies now show that the amount of Oxycontin produced in a female’s body during sexual activity goes down for each subsequent partner she has, and if she continues to have repeated sexual encounters with multiple partners, she can neutralize this part of her brain.

Essentially, while our culture tells young women that they should explore all their desires and get as high a body count as possible through their 20’s like all the guys do, they can permanently change the way they can even approach sex in the future. What you do at 21 can leave lasting scars well into your 30’s and 40’s and our world is lying through its teeth. Sex in not just an act between two consenting adults that means nothing. Its a spiritual weld meant to tie your body, mind, and spirit to your husband or wife for eternity.

Paul then gives his discerning wisdom to the church.

1 Corinthians 6:18–20 (ESV)

18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.

19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,

20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Run. Turn tail and flee. Abscond away from this. Why? Because you are wired specifically to want these things. You can use this part of your body and your life to honor God and it will elevate your marriage and you home or you can take that good and holy gift and settle for something lesser. But once you start off down that lesser path all of your flesh, your desires, your appetites, and your mind will cry out for more, leading you down a path you didn’t ever plan on being in.

I couple years back a young pastor sat down with me, new to the ministry and fresh, raring to go. I took these guys out for lunch and within the hour he had confessed to me the lifelong struggle he’d been a slave to against pornography. At this point he’d taken steps to make sure he had no unsupervised access to internet and that all his searches where sent to his father, his wife, and his mentor. He had for the first time in his adult life been experiencing relative freedom from these behaviors that used to dominate so much of his mind. Yet, he also confessed “is it weird that I still want it though? Like daily, I can feel my mind wanting to go down familiar pathways. But, whatever it takes.”

I was proud of his resolve but he would be the first one to say to you that the scars on his marriage and him and his wife’s relationship were impossible to ignore. This pathway is one that you are biological ill equipped to fight against to don’t go into battle against it. Run. Put up guards and boundaries so that you don’t go where you don’t want too. To my young ladies, if he loves you, let him stand up here before his God, his family and yours, before you church and commit himself to you until he dies. Brothers, stop forcing the ladies you court into compromising situations. Uphold them and honor them. If they are not going to be your bride, then they will be someone else’s. Treat them with respect and honor this fact as you hope others will honor your future bride. The time to set boundaries isn’t when the forest is on fire or when your on a back road. For yourself, for your future marriage, and for the sake of Christ who bought you at such a high price, Glorify God with all parts of you, including your sexuality. Don’t settle for less and don’t let anyone tell you that you should.

Landing

God cares about what you do with your body. You can use it to glorify him or yourself. Is you current sex life or lack of one honoring God? What principles have you used/are you currently using to govern your physical discipline for the Lord? How are they working for you?

Are there any sexual practices, ethics, beliefs, or expressions that you have or are now engaging in that are keeping your from God’s best for you? Let’s talk through them.

How would you, based on what we’ve talked about today, explain where God’s rules regarding sex come from to a person who doesn’t know?

As we close today, I want to finish by talking about the part of this lesson that must be said and is often gleaned over or forgotten about.

If you were to say, “Juston I get it and I probably even agree with everything you’ve said today but it’s too late for me. I’ve gone too far, I’ve messed up. I’ve made a shamble out of my marriage, my relationships, I’ve done it all wrong and I’m too messed up.” Friend, brother, sister, you are wrong. You serve a God who is able to save us from all our missteps and brokenness, and that can restore and remake us into his image.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLgIecL1IdY (3:53)

Paul encouraged his church, sayingin ch 6, “9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous[b] will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,[c] 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Some of them used to be defined by these behaviors but they were santified (made holy) and justfied (rendered guiltless) in the name of Jesus and the Spirit of God. You too can be. No matter your story, no matter your sin, His mercy is more.