In
the movie, Apollo 13, there is a famous line uttered by Tom Hanks playing the
character Jim Lovell. “Houston, we have a problem.” It was a bit of an understatement as
the spacecraft was in danger of not completing its mission and all the
astronauts being killed in the process.
That
line is appropriate for our day and age when it comes to having a Biblical view
of sexuality – “Houston, we have a problem!”
There
have been many different views in popular culture but by far the most prevalent
view today is sex is a personal way of self-expression. Timothy Keller states this view in his
book The Meaning of Marriage, “[Our culture sees] Sex is primarily
for an individual’s fulfillment and self-realization, however he or she wishes
to pursue it.”
One
of the Biblical expressions of being a follower of Jesus is that Jesus becomes
the Lord of your life. (See Romans
10:9) The idea of Jesus being Lord
means that Jesus is in charge. For
those who are followers of Jesus, this is the daily choice we face – who is
going to be in charge? Am I going
to be in charge or am I going to relinquish control to Jesus?
For
a person who is not a follower of Jesus, this idea that someone else would be
in charge of me is absolutely ludicrous.
If there is one thing that Americans value, it is their freedom. No one tells me what to do – I am the
captain of my own ship; I am a rock, an island; I make my own destiny. Of course, they are all lies, but that
doesn’t make them less popular.
This
popular view of sexuality is a reflection of our belief that we are in charge
and the goal of life is to figure out how I
can be most self-fulfilled. And it
is in direct opposition to a Biblical view of sexuality. The Apostle Paul sums up the Biblical
view of sex and life most succinctly in his first letter to the Corinthian
church (6:19-20): “You
are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” In other words, God is the one in
charge – you aren’t. It isn’t all
about you and your self fulfillment, it is all about God and his glory.
Lest
you begin to think I am a prude or a spoilsport (and even worse, that you would
view God that way), know that God designed and created our sexuality for
wonderful pleasure and joy. But we
only experience that when we live according to the owner’s manual. A fine wine will still make us drunk
and sick if we guzzle the whole bottle.
The finest sports car will still blow up when we red line the engine
constantly. It is not the wine’s
fault nor is it a defect with the car that ruins the experience, it is the
fault of the user.
God
is clear on what Holy Sex is all about.
When we become clear about it and live according to God’s design, there
is great blessing. We’ve got to
read, study and understand the owner’s manual though. And, if God talks about it, we should be talking about it
too.
Holy Sex. It isn’t a misprint or a contradiction. It is a blessing.
Peace and grace,
David
