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Following in the footsteps of the Acts of the
Apostles, written by St. Luke, Shepherd's Cross Christian Helps Ministry
exists by the grace of God to further the first century Apostolic tradition
serving in the Great Commission. |
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An open letter to my Brothers and Sisters in the Christian faith
PARENTAL GUIDANCE REQUIRED: MATURE SUBJECT MATTER
I would like to write about a subject that has troubled the Body of Christ from its inception, beginning in the first century, to this present time. I am speaking about fornication – (sexual union between two unmarried people). I pray that this short exhortation will encourage you, my Christian brothers and sisters. I pray it will strengthen your attitude to press towards the mark of faithfulness. Fornication is a very serious sin. St. Paul, the apostle bewailed over those who would not repent … “I am afraid that when I come again, my God may humiliate me before you, and I will grieve for many of those who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and licentiousness that they have practiced.” 2Corinthians 12:21 The following are two examples that God takes displeasure of fornication. The first example is found in the Epistle of Jude 1:7, … “So also Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns, since they indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire in a way similar to these angels, are now displayed as an example by suffering the punishment of eternal fire. The second example is found in 1Corinthians 10:8, and describes an event that occurred in the wilderness, during the time of Moses crossing the desert to the Promised Land, “And let us not be immoral, as some of them were, and twenty-three thousand died in a single day.” “Fornication, being a work of the human nature, comes from within a person’s heart causing the person to become defiled.” St. Mark 7:20-21 “Let us not commit fornication my beloved, for it is the will of God for Christian believers to abstain from it.” 1Thesalonians 4:3 “No trial has overtaken you that is not faced by others. And God is faithful: He will not let you be tried beyond what you are able to bear, but with the trial will also provide a way out so that you may be able to endure it.” 1Corinthians 10:13 “For though we live as human beings, we do not wage war according to human standards, for the weapons of our warfare are not human weapons, but are made powerful by God for tearing down strongholds. We tear down arguments and every arrogant obstacle that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to make it obey Christ.” 2Corinthians 10:3-5 “Our body is not for fornication” and “fornication is a sin against our body, which is the temple of God, the Holy Spirit,” therefore “we should then abstain from all appearance of evil. 1Corinthians 6:13, 18-19; 1 Thessalonians 5:22 To prevent oneself from falling into sin is very simple. As long as one cooperates with God, the Holy Spirit, by walking in the Spirit, fleeing youthful lusts and by abstaining from all appearances of evil, sin may be avoided in one’s life. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Think of him who endured such opposition against himself by sinners, so that you may not grow weary in your souls and give up. You have not yet resisted to the point of bloodshed in your struggle against sin. And have you forgotten the exhortation addressed to you as sons? “My son, do not scorn the Lord’s discipline or give up when he corrects you.” Hebrews 12:1-5 The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews also gives some exhortation and support to believers that through the love of Jesus we, “therefore, strengthen your listless hands and your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but be healed.” Hebrews 12:12-13 “So put to death whatever in your nature belongs to the earth: sexual immorality, impurity, shameful passion, evil desire, greed that is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.” Colossians 3:5-6 “Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord. Hebrews 12:14 Perhaps you see yourself as a faithful Christian believer, in reading of Scripture and in church attendance. You visit the once a week weeknight Bible study group. You think to yourself kindly, that you are not like those other sinful people. You have control over your sexual desires. You may go on dates and you find yourself in a compromising situation with your date. While you are in this compromising situation you suddenly find that time and space seems to be outside yourself. You may have an experience of what may appear as slow motion and that your senses allow you to experience a sensation that appears that you’re outside yourself watching these events unfold. You may find yourself thinking to yourself, “What am I doing here?” “I know that the Lord Jesus does not want me to do this.” Scriptures begin to emerge within your imagination speaking to you about what you’re doing. Before you know it, circumstances take their natural course and you and your date have sinned. You know what I am writing about. You go home and wake up the next day. Making love or having sex the night before seems like it was so long ago. It may be that easy for you. On the other hand, you may have to try to put out you’re guilt and thoughts like a firefighter wrestling a structure fire. Everyone is different. Perhaps since fornication happens intermittently in your life you don’t see yourself as one that may benefit from, or may be in need of, support, in the form of direction, guidance and prayer. Fornication only sneaks up on you from time to time. Denial is not a river in Egypt. Again, Fornication is a serious sin. If you can relate to what you are reading here and you seem to be unable to resist the temptation to have sex, fear not for, “No trial has overtaken you that is not faced by others. And God is faithful: He will not let you be tried beyond what you are able to bear, but with the trial will also provide a way out so that you may be able to endure it.” 1Corinthians 10:13 Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.” St. John 10:10 Do not allow yourself to believe sex is okay outside of marriage. It is not! It is sin! Speak with your pastor and get counseling if needed. Sex is not worth being out of peace with God. Sex is just a lying substitute for the abundant life Jesus came, died, and rose from the dead to give you. Remember, “No trial has overtaken you that is not faced by others. And God is faithful: He will not let you be tried beyond what you are able to bear, but with the trial will also provide a way out so that you may be able to endure it.” 1Corinthians 10:13 “The king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!” Psalm 21:1 |
