Understanding the Biblical Definition of Sex

The Bible presents sex as an integral aspect of God’s creation, designed for the reproduction of life among earthly creatures. It delineates the characteristics that distinguish male and female, enabling reproduction through the interaction of two parents. These distinctions extend beyond mere biology, influencing various facets of human existence, from family structures to societal roles. Since God is the ultimate Source of life, and humans are created to reflect His qualities, the capacity to transmit life through sexual relations demands profound respect. This respect aligns with the divine intention for humanity, emphasizing that sex is not an arbitrary function but a purposeful gift from the Creator.

In examining the scriptural foundation, Genesis provides the initial framework. God created humans male and female, endowing them with the ability to procreate. This design underscores the complementary nature of the sexes, where the union of man and woman facilitates the continuation of life. The Bible does not portray sex as inherently negative or base; rather, it elevates it as a mechanism for fulfilling divine mandates. Humans, being made in God’s image, are to exercise this ability in a manner that honors the Creator, avoiding misuse that could degrade this sacred function.

Examining Whether the Bible Teaches That Sexual Relations Are Sinful

The Bible clearly indicates that sexual relations, when conducted within the parameters set by God, are not sinful. In fact, they are commanded as part of the divine plan for humanity. Consider the account in Genesis where God addresses the first human pair: “God blessed them and God said to them: ‘Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth.'” This directive, given to Adam and Eve, explicitly requires sexual relations to accomplish the populating of the earth. Fulfilling this command harmonizes with God’s purpose, demonstrating that such relations are blessed rather than prohibited.

Some have speculated that the forbidden fruit in Eden symbolized a restriction on sexual activity, but this interpretation contradicts the scriptural evidence. God issued the command to be fruitful prior to the incident with the fruit, and the first record of Adam and Eve engaging in sexual intercourse occurs after their expulsion from the garden: “Now Adam had intercourse with Eve his wife and she became pregnant. In time she gave birth to Cain and said: ‘I have produced a man with the aid of Jehovah.'” Furthermore, “To Adam he said: ‘Because you listened to your wife’s voice and took to eating from the tree concerning which I gave you this command, “You must not eat from it,” cursed is the ground on your account. In pain you will eat its produce all the days of your life.'” And “With that he drove the man out and posted at the east of the garden of Eden the cherubs and the flaming blade of a sword that was turning itself continually to guard the way to the tree of life.” These passages confirm that the prohibition centered on the fruit, not on sexual relations.

This perspective persists beyond the initial creation. After the global Flood, God reiterates the command to Noah and his family: “God went on to bless Noah and his sons and to say to them: ‘Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth.'” The consistency of this blessing affirms that lawful sexual relations remain in alignment with God’s unchanging viewpoint.

In the New Testament, the apostle Paul addresses married couples in Corinth, emphasizing the propriety of sexual relations within marriage: “Because of the prevalence of immorality, let each man have his own wife and each woman have her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her due, and the wife also should do likewise to her husband. The wife does not exercise authority over her own body, but her husband does; likewise, also, the husband does not exercise authority over his own body, but his wife does. Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent for a time, that you may devote time to prayer and may come together again, so that Satan may not continue to tempt you for your lack of self-control.” Here, the emphasis is on avoiding immorality, or fornication, while affirming that marital sexual relations are honorable and necessary.

The Bible’s Stance on Sexual Relations Before Marriage

Scripture unequivocally condemns sexual relations outside of marriage, categorizing them as fornication, which is incompatible with God’s standards. The apostle Paul writes to the Thessalonians: “For this is the will of God, that you should be holy and abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you should know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not with greedy, uncontrollable sexual passion like the nations that do not know God; that no one should go beyond proper limits and take advantage of his brother in this matter, because the Lord is one who exacts punishment for all these things, just as we told you before and also solemnly bore witness. For God has not called us to allow for uncleanness but to pursue holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this is disregarding, not man, but God, who gives you his holy spirit.”

The Greek term porneia, rendered as fornication or sexual immorality, encompasses sexual intercourse between unmarried individuals, as well as adulterous acts by married persons. This prohibition is not arbitrary but rooted in the sanctity of the human body as a vessel for honorable use.

Further reinforcement appears in Ephesians: “For you know this, recognizing it for yourselves, that no sexually immoral person or unclean person or greedy person, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the Kingdom of the Christ and of God.” While this does not eternally condemn those who have committed such acts in the past, it demands repentance and cessation of the behavior for one to receive God’s approval. Paul elaborates in Corinthians: “Or do you not know that unrighteous people will not inherit God’s Kingdom? Do not be misled. Those who are sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, men who submit to homosexual acts, men who practice homosexuality, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, revilers, and extortioners will not inherit God’s Kingdom. And yet that is what some of you were. But you have been washed clean; you have been sanctified; you have been declared righteous in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and with the spirit of our God.” This passage illustrates that transformation is possible through faith and adherence to biblical principles.

Biblical View on Living Together as Husband and Wife Without Legal Marriage

The Bible does not endorse cohabitation without the formal bond of marriage, viewing it as a form of fornication that disregards God’s ordained structure for human relationships. Marriage, as depicted in Scripture, is a covenantal commitment before God and witnesses, not merely a private arrangement. The absence of this commitment undermines the stability and sanctity intended for the union.

In addressing fornication, the Scriptures consistently link sexual relations to the marital bond. For instance, the command to abstain from porneia implies that sexual intimacy is reserved for those legally and covenantally bound as husband and wife. Living together without this formal union equates to engaging in relations outside of God’s approved framework, which invites divine disapproval.

Moreover, the Bible emphasizes the public and accountable nature of marriage. Jesus references the original design: “Have you not read that the one who created them from the beginning made them male and female and said: ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and his mother and will stick to his wife, and the two will be one flesh’? So that they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has yoked together, let no man put apart.” This yoking implies a deliberate, recognized union, not an informal living arrangement.

What the Bible Says About Homosexuality

The Bible addresses homosexuality directly, portraying it as contrary to God’s natural design for human sexuality. In Romans, Paul describes the consequences of rejecting God’s truth: “Therefore, God, in keeping with the desires of their hearts, gave them up to uncleanness, so that their bodies might be dishonored among themselves. They are the very ones who exchanged the truth of God for the lie and venerated and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. That is why God gave them over to disgraceful sexual passion, for their females changed the natural use of themselves into one contrary to nature; likewise also the males left the natural use of the female and became violently inflamed in their lust toward one another, males with males, working what is obscene and receiving in themselves the full penalty, which was due for their error.”

This passage highlights that homosexual acts deviate from the created order, where male and female complementarity is the norm. Similarly, in Timothy: “Realizing that law is made, not for a righteous man, but for persons lawless and rebellious, ungodly and sinners, lacking loving-kindness, and profane, murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, manslayers, sexually immoral people, men who practice homosexuality, kidnappers, liars, perjurers, and everything else that is in opposition to the wholesome teaching according to the glorious good news of the happy God, with which I was entrusted.”

The Old Testament echoes this in Leviticus: “You must not lie down with a male in the same way that you lie down with a woman. It is a detestable thing.” And in the account of Sodom and Gomorrah, Jude notes: “In the same manner, Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities about them, after they in the same manner as the foregoing ones had committed sexual immorality excessively and gone out after flesh for unnatural use, are placed before us as a warning example by undergoing the judicial punishment of everlasting fire.” The destruction of these cities serves as a stark example of God’s judgment on such practices, with the term sodomy deriving from this narrative.

Attitude of True Christians Toward Those With a History of Homosexuality

True Christians extend compassion and hope to individuals with a history of homosexuality, recognizing that Scripture offers a path to redemption. Paul assures: “Or do you not know that unrighteous people will not inherit God’s Kingdom? Do not be misled. Those who are sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, men who submit to homosexual acts, men who practice homosexuality, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, revilers, and extortioners will not inherit God’s Kingdom. And yet that is what some of you were. But you have been washed clean; you have been sanctified; you have been declared righteous in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and with the spirit of our God.”

This transformation underscores that past behaviors do not preclude a clean standing before God if one abandons them and embraces faith in Christ. Christians welcome such reformed individuals into the congregation, provided they demonstrate genuine repentance.

Even deeply ingrained desires, whether genetic, physical, or environmental, can be overcome through adherence to God’s Word and reliance on His spirit. For example, those prone to anger can cultivate self-control, as can alcoholics refrain from drinking. Similarly, individuals attracted to the same sex can choose to live in purity: “This is what some of you were. But you have been washed clean.” Paul urges: “Therefore, this is what I say and bear witness to in the Lord, that you should no longer go on walking just as the nations also walk, in the futility of their minds, while they are in darkness mentally and alienated from the life that belongs to God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the insensitivity of their hearts. Having gone past all moral sense, they gave themselves over to brazen conduct to practice every sort of uncleanness with greediness. But you did not learn the Christ to be so, provided, indeed, that you heard him and were taught by means of him, just as truth is in Jesus. You were taught to put away the old personality that conforms to your former course of conduct and that is being corrupted according to its deceptive desires, and to be made new in the force actuating your mind, and to put on the new personality that was created according to God’s will in true righteousness and loyalty.”

And in Colossians: “Strip off the old personality with its practices, and clothe yourselves with the new personality, which through accurate knowledge is being renewed according to the image of the One who created it.”

Assessing Whether the Bible’s View on Sex Is Old-Fashioned and Restrictive

The Bible’s guidelines on sexual relations originate from the Creator Himself, rendering them timeless and beneficial rather than outdated. Paul reiterates: “For this is the will of God, that you should be holy and abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you should know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not with greedy, uncontrollable sexual passion like the nations that do not know God; that no one should go beyond proper limits and take advantage of his brother in this matter, because the Lord is one who exacts punishment for all these things, just as we told you before and also solemnly bore witness. For God has not called us to allow for uncleanness but to pursue holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this is disregarding, not man, but God, who gives you his holy spirit.”

These principles foster stable families, protect against emotional harm, and prevent diseases associated with promiscuity. They promote a clean conscience and harmonious relationships, proving relevant in any era.

Responding to Inquiries About Homosexuality

When confronted with questions about homosexuality, a biblically grounded response directs attention to Scripture’s authority over human opinions. One might say: “It is the viewpoint that is expressed here in the Bible. I believe that what it says is more important than any human opinion, because this gives us the thoughts of mankind’s Creator.” Then reference: “Or do you not know that unrighteous people will not inherit God’s Kingdom? Do not be misled. Those who are sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, men who submit to homosexual acts, men who practice homosexuality, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, revilers, and extortioners will not inherit God’s Kingdom. And yet that is what some of you were. But you have been washed clean; you have been sanctified; you have been declared righteous in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and with the spirit of our God.” Notice that some who became Christians had previously practiced homosexuality, but through love for God and His spirit’s help, they changed.

Alternatively: “In answering that, I might say that I’ve noticed that many who feel that no stigma should be attached to a homosexual life-style do not believe that the Bible is God’s Word. May I ask how you view the Bible?” If they affirm faith in the Bible, add: “Homosexuality is not an issue that is new. The Bible sets out Jehovah God’s unchanging viewpoint in very clear language.” Use the material from Romans, Timothy, and Jude as discussed earlier. If doubts about God or the Bible arise: “If there were no God, we logically would not be accountable to him and so could live as we pleased. So the real question is, Is there a God and do I owe my existence to him? Is the Bible inspired by God?”

This approach maintains fidelity to Scripture while engaging thoughtfully.

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