Camp Talk 4
Colin Tamplin. You know the drill.
It appears there are no rules in society concerning sex and relationships. But there are. For example: no family, always consensual, and always safe.
Outside of that, pretty much anything goes. One night stands, homosexual sex, any number of partners...
There's an increasing 'normalising' of these things in society. So there's an enormous gap between that and what the Bible says. it agrees with the fundamentals of society's rules, but it goes further - only in marriage, and only between men and women. That sounds more than strange in today's society.
The Bible says a lot of good things about sex in marriage, but sets marriage as the boundary.
Sex is fun! There wouldn't be a big deal about it if it wasn't. There's a lot of pressure. But not even this is something worth compromising our faith over. And it is possible to live in our society whilst following Biblical sexual principles.
Genesis 39 - a very similar/familiar/contemporary story
1. Our situation isn't any different
Joseph was literally a stranger and alien in Egyptian society. The temptation he faced was as strong as anything we could ever face. And yet he remained pure.
2. Our God has not changed.
How have previous Christians faced these tempations and resisted?
"The Lord was with Joseph". " The Lord...." etc etc. Get the point?!
It isn't superhero Joseph, God was with him. Do you dare to say "God was with Joseph but not with me"? That's as close to blasphemy as you'll get.
God has promised to be with every believer. If you're saying you can't do it, either you're saying it all depends on you or you're saying God isn't the same support to you as to others.
However, there were also things Joseph had to do. And while God is always the hero, there are heroic things we need to do.
a. Practical - be on your guard and be sensible!
b. Relational
c. Spiritual
3. The rewards for faithfulness are the same
In the short term, Joseph was in the pit. But we're not in the business of short terms.
"I can't live up to what the Bible says about sex and relationships".
Genesis 39.
Genesis 39.
It appears there are no rules in society concerning sex and relationships. But there are. For example: no family, always consensual, and always safe.
Outside of that, pretty much anything goes. One night stands, homosexual sex, any number of partners...
There's an increasing 'normalising' of these things in society. So there's an enormous gap between that and what the Bible says. it agrees with the fundamentals of society's rules, but it goes further - only in marriage, and only between men and women. That sounds more than strange in today's society.
The Bible says a lot of good things about sex in marriage, but sets marriage as the boundary.
Sex is fun! There wouldn't be a big deal about it if it wasn't. There's a lot of pressure. But not even this is something worth compromising our faith over. And it is possible to live in our society whilst following Biblical sexual principles.
Genesis 39 - a very similar/familiar/contemporary story
1. Our situation isn't any different
Joseph was literally a stranger and alien in Egyptian society. The temptation he faced was as strong as anything we could ever face. And yet he remained pure.
2. Our God has not changed.
How have previous Christians faced these tempations and resisted?
"The Lord was with Joseph". " The Lord...." etc etc. Get the point?!
It isn't superhero Joseph, God was with him. Do you dare to say "God was with Joseph but not with me"? That's as close to blasphemy as you'll get.
God has promised to be with every believer. If you're saying you can't do it, either you're saying it all depends on you or you're saying God isn't the same support to you as to others.
However, there were also things Joseph had to do. And while God is always the hero, there are heroic things we need to do.
a. Practical - be on your guard and be sensible!
b. Relational
c. Spiritual
3. The rewards for faithfulness are the same
In the short term, Joseph was in the pit. But we're not in the business of short terms.
posted by Welshie at 12:31 PM
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