Put Sex in its Place!

1 Corinthians 7:1-16

"But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband." 1 Corinthians 7:2

Paul is addressing one of the most sexually driven societies of history. The Greek and Roman legacy of uninhibited sexual conquest is well known. Sex was a way to make money for those that were slaves. Sex was a form of worship that was expressed through temple prostitutes as a sacrifice to the idols of fertility. 

In short, sex was a money making enterprise. Sex was big business, and business was good.

The natural response to becoming Christian for these Corinthians was to refrain from sex. If sex was the problem then the problem could be eliminated. Some of them decided to simply stop having sex. Yet, Paul does not approve of this response. Sex is a problem. More pointedly, the desire for sex, unabated, is a problem. To remove sex from the marriage was not a way to solve the problem. In fact, it made the problem worse. If the man and wife were to withhold sex from the other it could increase the temptation to fall back into previous ways of obtaining sexual satisfaction. Paul says, keep sex in marriage. But he means, keep having sex in marriage.

We face a society that sells sex. Here, sex is big business and business is good. Our kids are taught to relent to their desires for whatever they want. We are sold a lie. So that we will buy the result of that lie. This is not enlightenment. It is indulgence. Indulgence leads to becoming inconsequential. As a person. As a nation. As a culture.

Sex belongs.

But it does not belong in public.

It does not belong outside of marriage.

It does not make me a better person to have control over my sexual desires.

But those that have control over their sexual desires (including the ones that share them with their spouse) are more consequential people.

Is Christianity Intolerant?

Lately I have heard many accusations of intolerance used toward Christianity, mainly by the media or pseudo-media types. The stand of Christians against certain social issues like gay marriage and abortion have brought many charges of intolerance against them. This seems rather odd considering the roots of Christianity.

Early on the church was the picture of social acceptance and tolerance. In a letter form a Roman governor, Pliny, to the Roman Emperor, Trajan, Pliny accused the Christians of being accepting of "many of every age, of every social class, and of both sexes". It is the work of Christ on the cross that formed one new people from among the many different people groups. One that knew not "Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female." (Galatians 3:28) How is it that a people created with tolerance at their core have come so far that we are accused of being the very thing that we were set apart from.

One contribution to these accusations certainly are the media and its outlets choice of issues to proclaim as right or wrong. The fact is that the media abuses people into thinking they are getting information that is well investigated and presented with journalistic integrity. Yet, more and more, the media becomes a money making entertainment outlet trying to keep up with its cable competitors and all the while pushing a poorly thought out product on the unthinking public. It doesn't help that the vast majority of us are content with this shoddy method and getting our fill of information by way of internet cookies out of sheer laziness. The media and entertainment outlets find a story that sells and they will ride it as long as they can. Aggressively presenting Christianity in poor light is nothing new but the recent years are proving that these outlets are themselves barely tolerant of anything that looks like Christianity.

A second reason must fall squarely on the shoulders of Christian leaders themselves. For some reason, every time I turn on television (which isn't often) there is someone claiming to speak for Christians and pressing their own agenda. Somehow, this all accepting faith became a right wing republican, white anglo-saxon, bad hair, and even worse people skills only club. I watch programs like the 700 club and TBN and I can not help but wonder how I got mixed up with the like of these people. They have found like 2 issues that people will send them money if they talk about religiously (no pun intended, well sort of intended) and they ride it to the bank. Sound familiar.

Christians, Atheists, and whomever else find ourselves in the same boat strangely. We are all at the mercy of these information outlets that seem less concerned with real information than they are being a host to commercial parasites coming up in another minute and a half. I get that commercials pay for the programs but when the so-called news is swayed by its advertisers then why do we still watch it. It is simply not good information (sort of like the History Channel is not real history). We can not be this foolish.

The truth is that I don't know very many intolerant people. Christian or non-Christian. I don't think that someone who stands up and says they do not believe that it is moral to be led by your sexual desires is intolerant anymore than it is to say that it is wrong to allow greed to govern your life is.

As a whole, I do not think Christianity can be seen as intolerant. Especially in view of the teachings it presents as foundational to the faith. But it is easy to see why the actions of the few have led to this now common opinion (because it is the one given by the media) and have caused incredible intolerance to Christianity in turn.