Sex and Immorality
“naaph” and “esheth ish” – are the Hebrew words for adultery or adulteress.
Prov. 5:3-11, 20, 21 How is the adulteress described in verses 3-5?
What
is Solomon’s advice to his son in verse 8?
Why
(vss. 9-11)?
Who
is watching our every move (vs. 21)?
How
does this entire passage affect you, and why?
Prov. 6:23-29, 32-35 What are commands, teaching, and reproofs for (vss. 23, 24)?
What
shouldn’t men desire (vs. 25)?
What
is the result of involvement with an adulteress (vss. 26-29)?
Will
knowing these things help to keep you from desiring or being around adulteresses
or loose women, and why?
What
is the man who commits adultery like (vs.
32)?
Prov. 7:1-27 Why
does Solomon want his son to obey his commands and make wisdom and understanding
an integral/essential part of his life (vs.
5)?
How
is the young man described in verses 7, 8, 22, 23?
How
is the adulteress described (vss. 10-21)?
What
advice does Solomon give his son in verse 25?
What
advice do the Psalmist and Paul give in Psalm 119:9,
11; 2 Tim. 2:22; and 1 Cor. 15:33?
Will
you men heed this advice? Why,
and how?
“Porneia” – is the Greek word for fornication
or illicit sexual intercourse in general, including both pre-marital and
extra-marital sex. When fornication (“porneia”) and
adultery (“moichos”) are used together in the same
verse, fornication means the illicit sexual relations by an unmarried person
while adultery means the illicit sexual intercourse by a married person – Unger’s
Bible Dictionary, p. 374.
Mk.
7:20-23; Matt. 15:18-20 From where do the following sins
come from or have their source: evil thoughts, fornications/sexual immorality (illicit sexual activities of various kinds
by unmarried people), thefts, murder, adultery (sexual intercourse by a married person with a third person), etc.?
If you have ever
been guilty of any of these sexual sins either mentally or physically, did you
realize that you (stemming from your
heart/sin nature) were to blame rather than your environment or the other
person?
Gal.
Do
you also regard these sins as the deeds/acts of the flesh/sinful nature, and why?
Acts
15:19, 20, 29; 21:25 Besides abstaining from:
eating foods that had been sacrificed to pagan idols (which was offensive to some Christians because it appeared to be
supporting idolatry); things strangled (meats
from which the blood had not been properly removed and so offended Hebrew
believers); and blood (the pagan
custom of using blood as food, which was offensive to Hebrew Christians, who
considered the life in the blood and was thereby prohibited by God in Lev.
17:10-14), what else were these Gentile Christians to abstain from?
Are
you abstaining from fornication (sexual
immorality in general), and why?
1 Cor.
6:9-11 What won’t fornicators (all forms of sexual sin by unmarried
people), idolaters, adulterers, effeminate (a man acting like or trying to be a woman), homosexuals, etc.
inherit?
How did/could people
who were/are into any of the above sins inherit the
Will you inherit the
1 Cor. 6:13-20 What isn’t and what is the body for – vs. 13?
[One reason why immorality is wrong for the
Christian is because it robs the Lord of that which is His – vss. 15, 19.].
What
should we do, and why – vss. 18-20?
[“outside the body” –
hyperbole, for nearly every other sin, like: stealing, murder, idolatry,
cheating, and lying].
[“sins against” – ellipsis, the God-ordained purpose and use of the
Christian’s body].
Are you fleeing
immorality (all forms/types of illicit
sexual relations), or are you toying/playing around with immorality by
being in environments/places/situations where you cave in to sexual sin or by
being with certain people you give in to? Why,
and how?
1 Cor.
7:2 Because
Should a Christian get
married, based on 1 Cor. 7:9, because he has a problem with sexual lust?
First of all, most guys have a problem with sexual lust from their
teens on. However, if it’s totally out of control (an obsession, probably due to prior involvement with pornography or
sexual experiences), then it would be better to get married (so as to have a legitimate means of
fulfilling those sexual desires) than to be in the continuous sin of
burning lust.
The word “burn” in 1 Cor. 7:9 is the Greek word “purousthai” (which is
in the present, middle, infinitive form) meaning: “sexual passion” since it’s used as a metaphor (Dr. A. T.
Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, vol. 4, p. 126); “continuance
in unsatisfied desire” (Dr. M. Vincent, Word Studies in the New
Testament, vol. 2, p. 772); “glowing
with heat emotionally” since it’s used as a metaphor (Drs. Vine, Unger, and
White, An Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, NT, p. 151); “inflamed with lust” (Dr. W.
Perschbacher, The New Analytical Greek Lexicon, p. 360, #4448). Being in
the continuous present tense, it means “continuous,
unsatisfied sexual desire” rather than merely an occasional problem of
impure thinking. So, if you merely have a problem with occasional lustful
thoughts, don’t feel like this verse is telling you that you have to get
married. Why? Because occasional lustful thoughts are far different than what
this passage is dealing with (which is a continuous burning with lust all the time).
Second, Christians should be able to control their passions
since God gave us that ability through the Holy Spirit’s fruit of self-control
or discipline (Gal.
Third, since God has told us to be holy (1 Pet. 1:14, 15), to set our minds on
things above (Col. 3:2), to dwell on
pure things (Phil. 4:8), and to renew
our minds (Rom. 12:2), then we should
be capable of doing this because God is at work in us both to will and to do of
His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13; 4:13).
Fourth, even if a Christian doesn’t have the gift of
singleness (that is, not having the
desire to get married), he can still choose to remain single for the sake
of the kingdom of God, as it states in Matt. 19:12 (to more devotedly serve God with less distractions, as marital
responsibilities are many and distracting, 1 Cor. 7:32-35).
Fifth, it would be selfish (which is not loving, 1 Cor. 13:5) to get married for the primary
reason of simply fulfilling your sexual desires. The woman/wife would merely be
being used as a sex object rather than for the biblical reason of being a helper
to her husband (Gen. 2:18, 20) in his
God-given responsibilities (which is
where God intended her to find her fulfillment).
Sixth, nearly all men who are married find that being
married has not helped them to refrain any less from
lusting, and for some, has even increased it. So, getting married is not the
solution for dealing with lustful thoughts. Instead, being filled with (controlled by) the Holy Spirit (Eph.
1 Cor. 10:8 Why had the Lord killed
23,000 Jews in one day (Num. 25:1)?
Does
this passage convey to you how serious a sin immorality is?
How seriously do you take it, and why?
1 Cor.
5:9-11 How were these Christians to relate to anyone who claimed to
be a Christian (brother), yet was
unrepentantly (choosing not to
permanently stop being) immoral?
Do
you associate with unrepentant, immoral/sexually-illicit people who claim to be
Christians, and why?
What
should you do before disassociating from an unrepentant, immoral Christian –
Gal. 6:1; Matt. 18:15-17, and why?
2 Cor.
Have you ever been
humiliated and grieved over the continued (unrepentant)
immoral conduct of church friends/acquaintances of yours?
Or, have Christian
friends ever grieved because of your continued/unrepentant immorality?
What four things
should Christians who commit sexual immorality do – 1 Jn. 1:9; 2 Tim. 2:22?
Eph.
5:3 What sins should not only not
be committed but shouldn’t even be hinted of in the life of a Christian (saint/believer)?
Are you so far removed from the sins of sexual immorality (illicit sexual intercourse in general),
any impurity (moral uncleanness in
thought, word, or deed), and greed, that the very suspicion of its
existence in your life would be banished?
What do you do to
make sure that no one would even think that you might be involved in
pre-marital or extra-marital sex or any sexual perversion, and why?
According to 2 Cor.
6:3, what is another good reason not to even have a hint of immorality be true of you?
Rom. 13:14 Are you making provision
for (i.e., feeding) your flesh/sin
nature in regard to its lusts by looking at pornographic magazines, movies, or
websites, reading sexually-explicit material, or getting physically involved (e.g., kissing, petting, etc.) with
someone you’re not married to?
What should you do instead, and will you?
Col. 3:5 What things/sins
that belong to our earthly nature/body are we Christians to put to death?
Are you putting to death (i.e., considering
dead, and, therefore, not living from) your sin/earthly nature, so that you
are no longer committing sexual immorality (“porneia” – premarital or extramarital sex), impurity (“akatharsia” –
moral uncleanness in thought, word, or deed), passion/lust (“pathos” – uncontrolled, depraved lust),
evil desire (illicit craving), and
greed?
Why should and can
we do this – vs. 3?
Are you living in
the reality that the power/control of your sin nature over you has been broken (because the old, non-Christian you used to
be died and you’ve become a new creation, a child of God, a Christian)?
Why would avoiding
all forms/types of pornography help you to not think impurely or lustfully?
What else could a
Christian do to clean up his/her thought-life?
And why those things?
Would memorizing
scripture related to loving people, hating immoral thinking and actions, having
a pure mind and life, and then meditating often on these; watching and
listening to clean pictures and words; and being around people and places that
don’t encourage impurity, but purity help? If so, how?
Do you do things
just because everybody else or a lot of people are doing them?
How does the fact
that a lot of people are involved in premarital or extramarital sex affect your
view and activities in this area, and why?
What things/activities usually lead up to a
Christian’s committing sexual immorality, and why those?
Could the following things contribute to
a Christian’s committing sexual sins:
¨
constantly being alone with your date rather than being in a
group setting?
¨
not having wholesome planned activities for your date and
so out of boredom resort to physical touch?
¨
not having and/or discussing with your date Christian
views and limits on physical touch?
¨
making petting a part of your dating activities?
¨
staying out late at night when you’re tired and your defenses
are down?
¨
not making Christ, prayer, and the Bible an integral part
of your date together?
¨
not having biblical standards/convictions about your
physical involvement before marriage?
¨
feeding your mind with soap-operas, films, movies, etc. that
show sexual involvements?
¨
feeding your mind with romance novels that wrongly program
your mind/expectations about dating?
¨
not making spiritual conversation, communication, and
spiritual activities the main part of your time together?
1 Thes. 4:3-6 What three things are God’s will for us here?
Are you doing God’s will in being
holy/pure: by abstaining from sexual immorality (“porneia” – premarital and extramarital
intercourse, homosexuality, and all other sexual perversions); by learning
how to control your own body/sexual desires in a way that is holy and honorable
rather than in lustful passion; and by not sexually doing wrong to or taking
advantage of another person?
What can a Christian
do to control his sexual desires/drives (Rom.
12:2; Phil. 4:8; Col. 3:2; Psa. 119:9, 11)?
What is one reason
why a Christian shouldn’t take sexual advantage of another Christian (vs. 6; Heb. 13:4)?
Matt. 19:9;
How
does God’s view differ from our society’s or from yours, and why?
“moichos” – is the Greek word for adultery. It is the
willful violation of the marriage contract by either of the parties through
sexual intercourse with a third party – Unger’s Bible Dictionary, p. 24.
Why
will loving your spouse keep you from adultery – vs. 10?
Do
or will you love your wife/husband, so that you won’t commit adultery?
“epithumeo” – is the Greek word meaning “to lust” or
desire greatly.
Matt. 5:27, 28 What has the person who looks
lustfully at a woman already committed?
What
can you do to avoid committing adultery in your mind/thoughts?
Would
doing what Rom. 12:2; Phil. 4:8; Col. 3:2 say help? How?
“arsenokoites” – is the Greek word for homosexual; an
abuser of one’s self with mankind.
1 Tim. 1:8-11 What
was made for or because of homosexuals/perverts (Lev.
What
is homosexuality contrary to?
1 Cor. 6:9, 10 What won’t homosexuals inherit?
How did/could people
who were/are homosexuals inherit the
Rom.
Do
you view homosexuality as an all-right, alternative lifestyle or as a sin, and
why?
“Incest” is sexual intercourse
between people so closely related (blood relatives) that they are forbidden by
law to marry.
Lev. 18:6-18;
What
was the penalty for incest?
Do you
view incest as a sin, and why?
“Bestiality” is sexual intercourse between a person and an animal.
Lev.
Could
you forgive and accept a person converted from such a background?
Why (see 1 Cor. 6:9, 11; Eph.
In conclusion, the best
ways to keep from committing immorality as a Christian are to be
Spirit-filled/controlled (Eph. 5:18), think on wholesome things (Rom. 12:2;
Phil. 4:8), have/be around close, godly friends, and stay away from tempting
people and places (2 Tim. 2:22; 1 Cor. 15:33; Prov. 5:8).