sex

On Wednesday, the recently announced Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics at The Gospel Coalition published a book excerpt authored by Pastor Josh Butler. The article described a sacred vision of the physical union of a husband and wife, arguing that not only marriage but that physical intimacy within marriage is a type (or picture) of Christ and the Church. In the process, he used terms and imagery that, without additional context, seemed shockingly graphic. The article set off a Twitter maelstrom.

There is a good reason the Church doesn’t talk about sex to singles very often. The Bible is clear that sex is an act exclusively meant for married people and talking about it too much to singles can cause unnecessary stumbling blocks or discontentment. But the Bible is also clear that sex is a beautiful, God-given gift.

For singles to not talk or think about sex for so long, then eventually get married and immediately be expected to welcome sex as a significant part of their lives, can be very damaging. The Church can easily do more to prepare singles for marriage and even use the topic of God-designed sex to encourage singles, regardless of if they ever marry.

Here are three consequences that I’ve seen from the Church seldom mentioning sex unless it’s in a negative light:

Human sexuality is not some arbitrary construct like a speed limit. It is as much a part of the fabric of life as gravity. We may deny that, but we will not avoid the pain of hitting the ground if we do.

Actress Candace Cameron Bure was recently on the Breakdown podcast with Celebrity Jeopardy host Mayim Bialik. While talking to Bialik, Bure shared that she and her husband still love each other "physically," "spiritually," and "mentally" after 26 years of marriage.

In His kindness, God has called us to the lifelong cultivation of being properly sexual. This is the virtue of chastity, something often mistaken by Christians and non-Christians alike for prudishness. Instead, the call to be properly sexual with one another is a calling for all of us, married and single, to pursue all our lives, before, during, and after marriage.

Christian author and podcast host Sadie Robertson is encouraging couples to wait until marriage before having sex, saying physical intimacy is a gift from God that should be "opened" only as He designed it.

It’s time to admit that the idea that consent could adequately govern human sexuality has failed. Consent may be the barest of moral necessities, but it cannot govern something as powerful as sex, especially when sex has been untethered from its purpose, design, and any other moral restraint.

Apologist and Christian singer Alisa Childers is encouraging believers to think biblically about sex scenes in movies, saying on her YouTube channel that she will not watch Redeeming Love because of the film's portrayal of the intimate relationship between the two lead characters.

According to the 2021 General Society Survey by NORC at the University of Chicago, more American young adults under 35 years of age are having less sex than in past generations, especially among those who are religiously devout.

My wife often reminds those she teaches that a strong marriage is the best example we have of the kind of relationship God wants us to have with him. His word likens the union of husband and wife to the union of “Christ and the church” (Ephesians 5:32).