7: 1 CORINTHIANS SEX (1 Cor 6:12-7:9) & Communion

VIDEO - Corinthian Sex [2:21]

SEX. That’s a word that attracts attention; a word that’s threaded throughout our culture; a topic that people are quick to turn their ears to, while the church is slow to speak about.

When I was a student pastor I heard Doug Fields - the student pastor of Saddleback Church says that students #1 and 2 questions is, “What’s the Bible say about SEX?” Second, “What’s the Bible say about the END TIMES?” And third, he supposes might be, “What does the Bible say about SEX during the END TIMES?”

If Jesus has it right, if the Scriptures are trustworthy…then

SEX is God’s INVENTION & MARRIAGE is God’s INTENTION. And we NEED to hear what God says on the subject. So did the Christians in Corinth. Corinth was overrun with sexual temptations.

The temple of Aphrodite (Latin - Venus) on the mountain. She was the Greek goddess of sexual love and her temple housed hundreds of prostitutes.

As noted in the video the Corinthian phrase “to Corinthianize” or to “act like a Corinthian” meant to practice sexual activity outside of marriage. “Corinthian girls” was a phrase used throughout Greece for prostitutes.

Those traveling through likely hoped that “What happens in Corinth, STAYS in Corinth” while those who lived in Corinth had to deal with the constant commercialism of sex.

So, Paul must now confront this mess that is impacting this church.

Paul seems to quote well known Corinthian slogans and then clarifies what they should and SHOULDN’T mean for the Christian.

1 Corinthians 6:12 (CSB)

“Everything is permissible for me,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me,” but I will not be mastered by anything.

We might have the freedom to do whatever we want to do, but that doesn’t mean everything we choose will be beneficial for us. In fact, living in this sort of ‘freedom’ can actually lead to slavery - slavery to sin. The follower of Jesus should not be mastered by anything except Jesus Christ.

For Christians, freedom does not mean anarchy, but responsibility.

Then comes another slogan...

1 Corinthians 6:13 (CSB)

“Food is for the stomach and the stomach for food,” and God will do away with both of them. However, the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.

Of course, food is a necessity for the stomach, and the stomach is a necessity for food - they are created for each other. And although God will do away with both of them in the death of our bodies, they are necessary on this side of eternity. But until death, people have the freedom to eat & enjoy what we want.

Some of the Corinthians likely stretched this slogan to its breaking point by implying that SEX - like food - is a necessity for the body. In other words, as the stomach craves food and must be satisfied, so the body craves sex and must be satisfied. The Corinthians lived in a culture that would allow and even encourage sexual immorality because “It’s natural”.

Consequently, there were people in their day, like people in OUR day…who act like sex is a necessity to life, even if you’re not married.

But sexual relationships outside of the marriage relationship between man and woman is sexual immorality and it is forbidden for the follower of Jesus.

Paul clarifies that the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord. He created our bodies to honor Him! Further, the Lord is for the body - our bodies are to house the presence of the Lord. We’ll talk more about this incredible truth in a moment.

1 Corinthians 6:14–15a (CSB)

God raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. Don’t you know that your bodies are a part of Christ’s body?

Unless Jesus returns in our lifetime, then these bodies will die. BUT…just as Father God raised up the Lord Jesus, He will also raise us up by his power! And while we’re alive, our bodies are a part of Christ’s body.

Where we go, what we say, how we act and react, should demonstrate that we are a family of followers living in the purity and passion of Jesus - like a symphony working together to play in beautiful harmony.

And then Paul uses unimaginable imagery that should make our stomach churn.

1 Corinthians 6:15b–17 (CSB)

So should I take a part of Christ’s body and make it part of a prostitute? Absolutely not! Don’t you know that anyone joined to a prostitute is one body with her? For Scripture says, The two will become one flesh. But anyone joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.

This is gross! Jesus sleeping with a prostitute? Absolutely not! Yet, if we belong to Jesus and our bodies are an extension of His body…and we use it for sexual sin…then part of His body is involved.

Followers of Jesus should never be joined sexually to anyone except our marriage partner. Why? Because we are joined to the Lord and we are one of spirit with Him!

So, what are we to do when tempted by sexual sin? Stand up and fight? Remind ourselves how strong we are? NOPE!

1 Corinthians 6:18 (CSB)

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

We aren’t to see how close we can get to the edge without falling off.

Teenagers often ask, “How far can I get and not sin?” Here’s my response. You go just as far with your girl/boyfriend as you want your future mate to go with his/her boy/girlfriend this weekend.

We are to flee from sexual immorality. What’s the mean? It’s a very deep concept that only Greek scholars can understand…so let me see if I can explain it to you...

Flee! Run! [start running out of front] Get your tail out of there! We should run so far away that it we aren’t even in the presence of the temptation any more!

[back in the room] What’s that look like, to flee sexual immorality?

Joey Jumped Out The Boat!

Years ago a friend of mine named Joey, who had been involved in lots of sex before marriage, genuinely surrendered to Jesus. He knew that he had to walk in sexual purity. He didn’t date for a while and when he did, he was careful. One time he took a new girlfriend out on his boat. He asked her, “If you knew that I loved you, would you have sex with me before we got married?” She responded positively. He immediately jumped out of the boat and went swimming…away from her. When he got back in the boat he let her know they couldn’t date any more, cause he couldn’t date her knowing that she would be willing to mess around sexually before marriage.

If you’re serious about obeying Jesus,

ask for His help,

ask for the help of other brothers/sisters.

Get honest!

STOP going to that website!

Stop going to that place!

Stop hanging out with that person!

It would be foolish for an alcoholic who wants to quit to continue to keep alcohol in his home or continue going to bars, all while pretending he doesn’t have a problem.

Stop making excuses and blaming everything but yourself!

Tempted By Cookies

One three-year-old explained why she was in kitchen standing on a chair, eating cookies: “I just climbed up to smell them, and my tooth got caught.”

So many act like sexual sin is not that big of a deal. I often hear, “Sin is sin. It’s all the same.” Not really. Paul says sexual sin is different from other sin, its sin against your own body. Sexual memories, shame, damaged relationships, pregnancy, and even disease.

But there’s another HUGE reason why we should run away from sexual immorality!

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 (CSB)

Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body.

If you belong to Jesus, then the Holy Spirit is IN you! Think about that for a moment. While God’s Presence used to reside the temple in Jerusalem, not the place where the Holy Spirit lives in in Christians! The most holy place on the planet is NOT in a building…it’s inside of us!

And because you belong to Jesus, you are not your own anymore. The Christian who claims, “It’s my body and I’ll do what I want to” is WRONG! It’s NOT your body anymore. You were bought at a price - the death of the Lord Jesus! Jesus DIED for our sin, and like we said a week ago...

[BIG TRUTH] We can’t live in sin, if we belong to Him.

You are commanded by the King who owns you, to glorify God with your body. You don’t have an option, unless you choose to disobey your Lord.

Side Note: If we aren’t taking care of the body the Lord has given us, if we are doing something to harm it…that needs to STOP today, too. Glorify God with your body and treat it well while you can!

SEX is God’s INVENTION & MARRIAGE is God’s INTENTION.

While we can misuse this gift that God has given, we are also given instructions on how to appreciate and participate this gift mean for marriage.

1 Corinthians 7:1–2 (CSB)

Now in response to the matters you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” But because sexual immorality is so common, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman should have sexual relations with her own husband.

Evidently, while some of the Corinthians were participating in sexual immorality outside of marriage, some married couples had stopped making time for sexual relations at all. Maybe they came to the false conclusion that others have come to, that

SEX is for PROCREATION…only. Sex IS for making babies and that was God’s invention and intention. God told Adam and Eve to “be fruitful and multiply” (Gen 1:28). And NO - he wasn’t talking about math. Sex IS for PROCREATION, but God intended it to be much more than that.

SEX is for PARTNERSHIP.

Gen 2:24 says “This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh.” - They live together. They work together. They stick together for the rest of lives, as Jesus said, “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” (Mk 10:8b-9)

But wait, there’s more!

1 Corinthians 7:3–4 (CSB)

A husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise a wife to her husband. A wife does not have the right over her own body, but her husband does. In the same way, a husband does not have the right over his own body, but his wife does.

SEX is for PLEASURE. Notice that there is NO TALK from Paul here about making babies. This is about fulfilling sexual desires TOGETHER. I won’t read all of Prov 5:18-19 because it might embarrass our ladies, but part of it says this, “Let your fountain be blessed, and take pleasure in the wife of your youth…be lost in her love forever.” It is obvious that SEX is a good gift from God, intended for pleasure in the marriage relationship.

Now I bet some of you men who haven’t cracked a Bible in years can’t wait to dive in and see what it says! [with hick accent] “Now honey, I know I hadn’t read the Bible with you in years, but let’s read that verse that Jackie told us about…cause I just feel God’s calling to get in the Scriptures.”

Truth be told, I always wished I would have started out my honeymoon reading Scriptures like this one from 1 Cor - “A husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife...” and then stood up, saluted, and said, “Reporting for duty, ma'am!”

Husbands and wives belong to one another and try to out-serve one another from the kitchen to the bedroom. A husband should treat his wife with love, gentleness, and care. A wife should treat her husband the same way.

BUT…hear me...We should NEVER do anything to harm or embarrass one another.

Never incorporate images, words, or actions that would dishonor one another OR dishonor the Lord because, believe it or not...

SEX is for PURITY. Many people never think of SEX as PURE, but inside the marriage relationship, it is.

Note Gen 2:25 “Both the man and his wife were naked, yet felt no shame.”

Heb 13:4 says, “Marriage is to be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, because God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.” The marriage bed is imagery for the sexual relationship, which is to be “undefiled”.

SEX is for PROTECTION. (I am using a different translation for this verse, for more clarity.)

1 Corinthians 7:5 (NET 2nd ed.)

Do not deprive each other, except by mutual agreement for a specified time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then resume your relationship, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

With the exception of illness or physical limitation, spouses should not deprive each another of sexual fulfillment. Married couples must NEVER use sex as a tool to manipulate one another.

Instead, the couple might decide together to spend time in the intimacy of prayer rather than the intimacy of sex.

But this sexual ‘time out’ should not last long, and the couple should resume the sexual relationship. Otherwise, a spouse might be tempted by Satan to seek satisfaction outside the marriage relationship.

We conclude with the last remarks by Paul.

1 Corinthians 7:6–9 (CSB)

I say this as a concession, not as a command. I wish that all people were as I am. But each has his own gift from God, one person has this gift, another has that. I say to the unmarried and to widows: It is good for them if they remain as I am. But if they do not have self-control, they should marry, since it is better to marry than to burn with desire.

Paul does not command people to get married, only those who deeply desire to get married or those who can’t control their sexual desires. God gives some the gift of celibacy, with no desire for marriage. Paul later communicates how singleness has advantages too - like being able to leave to share the gospel without having to check in at home.

Finally, Paul says that if couples can’t control their sexual desires, they should marry, because...

SEX is God’s INVENTION & MARRIAGE is God’s INTENTION.

This is what I have encouraged countless couples to do. And some couples in Fellowship have recently obeyed the Lord in this! Instead of living in sin, they have chosen to obey the Lord in marriage. And they didn’t keep living in sin while waiting for a distant wedding date.

We can’t continue to live in sin and get married years later to tie a bow on it so now God will be pleased. God is pleased when we obey Him immediately.

What does God want you to do with what you heard today?

You might be living in sexual purity in your words, actions, and thoughts. Keep it up, but be on guard…cause we are all 1 step away from stupid.

Someone listening might need to make an appointment to talk with a pastor about getting married THIS WEEK. And until you get married, you need to seek the Lord’s forgiveness and walk in sexual purity.

You might not be married nor ready to be married, but you are convicted that the relationship you are in isn’t honoring the Lord. You either need to break off that relationship OR you must seek out a mature Christian brother/sister to pray for you, guide you, and hold you accountable to walk in purity.

OR maybe you are seeking out sexual fulfillment through pornography or lustful thoughts. You need a same sex brother/sister who will help you.

Here’s the truth: We weren’t meant to do life alone.

Turn to someone and say: “Sista and brotha, we need each other.”

Call our Staff.

Call our Deacons/Wives.

Let’s PRAY and then enter into our time of Communion together. [band & deacons come up]

COMMUNION

This is a time that we recognize that we HAVE been “bought at a PRICE” and that we ARE to glorify God with our bodies.

Let me briefly remind you who SHOULD participate and who SHOULD NOT.

Followers of Jesus.

Those claiming to follow Jesus, but not living in obedience.

Not yet followers.

Luke 22:14–18 (NIV)

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

Luke 22:19 (NIV)

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

Luke 22:20 (NIV)

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

1 Corinthians 11:26 (NIV)

For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.

Discussion Questions

What challenged or encouraged you most from today’s teaching? Explain your answer.

Why is it that churches often don’t spend time talking about what God says about sex, positively or negatively? Does it surprise you, concern you, or encourage you to know that the Bible has a lot of say about sex? Explain your answer.

Read 1 Cor 6:14-17. Have you ever thought of your body as being a part of Jesus? Why do you think that Paul uses this gross imagery of Jesus being sexually involved with a prostitute?

Read 1 Cor 6:18-20. What are some reasons why we should run from sexual sin? How is sexual sin different than other sins? How significant is it that Jesus bought you at a price and that the Holy Spirit lives in you? Why should those 2 facts challenge us to walk in spiritual purity?

Discuss the 5 reasons why God invented sex for marriage (procreation, partnership, pleasure, purity, protection) - you might want to go back and look at your notes. What most surprises or encourages you about God’s intention for sex.

What other questions has this teaching or discussion prompted for us to talk about?

Share prayer needs and pray for one another. Continue to pray for our Supreme Court decision on Roe v Wade. Pray for Christians in Ukraine and Russia to carry the message of Jesus with them wherever they go. Also, PRAY that God will greatly use to impact people who need to follow Jesus.