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Love Exclusively - Exodus 20:14; Matthew 19:4-6
“You shall not commit adultery.” Exodus 20:14


“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” Matthew 19:4-6


Sex is a privilege inseparable from the responsibilities of the sacred marriage covenant. Sex and marriage go together. Apart from marriage, the lasting commitment is absent. So the sex act becomes a lie. To claim the privilege apart from the responsibility perverts God’s intention.


MYTH #1: Sex is Merely a Physical Act

"There's more to sex than mere skin on skin. Sex is as much spiritual mystery as physical fact. As written in Scripture, 'The two become one.' Since we want to become spiritually one with the Master, we must not pursue the kind of sex that avoids commitment and intimacy, leaving us more lonely than ever—the kind of sex that can never 'become one'" (1 Cor. 6:15–17, The Message).

“Sex is not just something you do; sex is someone you are.” Randy Alcorn

MYTH #2: I Must Satisfy My Desires

It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God…The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 4: 3-8

MYTH #3: I Can Do What I Want With My Own Body

Question: So who does your body belong to?
“You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” 1 Corinthians 6: 19-20


PRACTICAL PURITY STRATEGIES:
1. Flee

Flee from sexual immorality.”1 Corinthians 6:18
“And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her…She caught him by his cloak and said, ‘Come to bed with me!’ But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.” Genesis 39:10, 12


2. Keep Your Distance

“Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.” Proverbs 4:14-15
Scripture says: “Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22).


3. Think Through the Consequences

Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another man’s wife? For a man’s ways are in full view of the LORD, and He examines all His paths. The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of his sin hold him fast. He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly. Proverbs 5: 20-23

Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched? So is he who sleeps with another man’s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished. Proverbs 6: 27-29


4. Anticipate and Prevent Temptations


5. Fill Your Mind With Pure Thoughts

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure…think about such things.” Philippians 4:8

6. Pray and Don’t Give Up
Jesus taught His disciples to “always pray and not give up” (Luke 18: 1)


If you have fallen, repent and seek forgiveness and reconciliation.