What constitutes sexual immorality?

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timlamb

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It makes sense to me that any sexual relationship that's based on love and doesn't result in anyone's harm isn't immoral.
Just two problems, love is an arbitrary word. How many girls did I "Love" in high school!
And the second problem is sin hurts everyone. If you are in an immoral relationship, be it adulturous, or kids experimenting, the end result is not mutually rewarding by any spiritual sense anyway.
 
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*Starlight*

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Just two problems, love is an arbitrary word. How many girls did I "Love" in high school!
And the second problem is sin hurts everyone. If you are in an immoral relationship, be it adulturous, or kids experimenting, the end result is not mutually rewarding by any spiritual sense anyway.

But if someone commits adultery, they are hurting their partner in their marriage. In any situation, it's possible to analyze everything to find out how some action may affect other people. When an action only brings happiness, and no one is harmed, then I don't see any reasons why it would be immoral.
 
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BjorkIsCool

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It makes sense to me that any sexual relationship that's based on love and doesn't result in anyone's harm isn't immoral.
If a man and a women have a sexual relationship and then one day stop, I can't see how either them won't be harmed in some way. The only way to avoid harm would be for them to stay together the rest of their lives.

1 Corinthians 6:13-20
13 You say, “Food was made for the stomach, and the stomach for food.” (This is true, though someday God will do away with both of them.) But you can’t say that our bodies were made for sexual immorality. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies. 14 And God will raise us from the dead by his power, just as he raised our Lord from the dead. 15 Don’t you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ? Should a man take his body, which is part of Christ, and join it to a prostitute? Never! 16 And don’t you realize that if a man joins himself to a prostitute, he becomes one body with her? For the Scriptures say, “The two are united into one.” 17 But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. 18 Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. 19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.

Proverbs 5:15-21
15 Drink water from your own well—
share your love only with your wife.
16 Why spill the water of your springs in the streets,
having sex with just anyone?
17 You should reserve it for yourselves.
Never share it with strangers.

18 Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you.
Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19 She is a loving deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts satisfy you always.
May you always be captivated by her love.
20 Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman,
or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?

21 For the Lord sees clearly what a man does,
examining every path he takes.

 
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mnphysicist

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Sexual immorality to a Christian should be scriptural, not cultural!:doh:

In many ways I'd like to agree... but then we would find many of todays "immoral practices" no longer immoral. I think thats too much for the contemporary church to deal with.
 
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rahmiyn

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If a man and a women have a sexual relationship and then one day stop, I can't see how either them won't be harmed in some way. The only way to avoid harm would be for them to stay together the rest of their lives.

I think for the Christian, it's not so much about how our sexuality might affect a partner, it's how our actions might appear to God. We are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and whatever we do--not just sexual immorailty--we automatically link to the Holy Spirit. So, even if we lie, we lie as the Temple of the Holy Spirit. If we gossip, we gossip as the Temple of the Holy Spirit. For the Christian, I would think this is the defining point, not another person that might be involved (or drawn in by association.)
 
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timlamb

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But if someone commits adultery, they are hurting their partner in their marriage. In any situation, it's possible to analyze everything to find out how some action may affect other people. When an action only brings happiness, and no one is harmed, then I don't see any reasons why it would be immoral.
I believe that God tells us through scripture that only in the covenant of marriage is sexual relations ok, and then it is great. But outside that commitment is a sinful relationship, and that is harmful to body and spirit. so things that may not seem harmful really can do a great deal of harm.
 
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timlamb

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In many ways I'd like to agree... but then we would find many of todays "immoral practices" no longer immoral. I think thats too much for the contemporary church to deal with.
I don't understand. I think scripture is far more restrictive than todays socioty.
 
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BjorkIsCool

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I think for the Christian, it's not so much about how our sexuality might affect a partner, it's how our actions might appear to God. We are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and whatever we do--not just sexual immorailty--we automatically link to the Holy Spirit. So, even if we lie, we lie as the Temple of the Holy Spirit. If we gossip, we gossip as the Temple of the Holy Spirit. For the Christian, I would think this is the defining point, not another person that might be involved (or drawn in by association.)
Our life is judged on how our heart is.

If you hurt another then this act isn't going to be good to God. God instructed us to love our neighbour as ourself and do onto others what you have them do to you.

I was trying to say in reply to 'any sexual relationship that's based on love and doesn't result in anyone's harm isn't immoral', that there will always be a negative affect to a broken sexual relationship (even if it's not immediate). Will add that love isn't some magical thing - it's a verb - so really if a relationship is based on love it can't be broken.

Nearly everyone consiously has in their minds that they want to have sex and have a sexual relationship with someone, i believe this has to be controlled and so wait until you find that one person and hence it will be in accordance with God and will benefit everyone (which is why God has instructed us this way).

But yes we are the temple of Christ.
 
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If a man and a women have a sexual relationship and then one day stop, I can't see how either them won't be harmed in some way. The only way to avoid harm would be for them to stay together the rest of their lives.

Breaking up is harmful, but sometimes it's better than staying together, if both people realize that they aren't the right people for each other.
 
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daydreamergurl15

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Matthew 19:1-12
1 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2 And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.
3 The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?”
4 And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made[a]them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?[c] 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
7 They said to Him, “Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?”
8 He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality,[d] and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery.”
10 His disciples said to Him, “If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” 11 But He said to them, “All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given: 12 For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it.”


Because Christ is speaking to the Jews about sexual immorality and eunuchs, and it is not written to us that He explained the meaning of sexual immorality to them. One can only guess that sexual immorality has been written down before and understood by the Jews. I believe that in order to know what sexual immorality is, you have to go back to the Old law and see what it says.
Leviticus 18
Deuteronomy 22
Apart from the punishments that goes on, the Jews would have understood sexual immorality in this light. Plus, the book of Judges is also a good study.
 
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LightHorseman

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Matthew 19:1-12
1 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. 2 And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.
3 The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?”
4 And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made[a]them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?[c] 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
7 They said to Him, “Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?”
8 He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality,[d] and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery.”
10 His disciples said to Him, “If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” 11 But He said to them, “All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given: 12 For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it.”
Because Christ is speaking to the Jews about sexual immorality and eunuchs, and it is not written to us that He explained the meaning of sexual immorality to them. One can only guess that sexual immorality has been written down before and understood by the Jews. I believe that in order to know what sexual immorality is, you have to go back to the Old law and see what it says.
Leviticus 18
Deuteronomy 22
Apart from the punishments that goes on, the Jews would have understood sexual immorality in this light. Plus, the book of Judges is also a good study.
Or could sexual immorality be any sexual act that breaches the "love thy neighbour as you would be loved" commandment... and anything that doesn't isn't?

Isn't that simpler, and far more situation specific?
 
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daydreamergurl15

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Or could sexual immorality be any sexual act that breaches the "love thy neighbour as you would be loved" commandment... and anything that doesn't isn't?

Isn't that simpler, and far more situation specific?

Why do you always start with "love thy neighbor"? Why don't you ever start with the greatest command, "Love God with all your heart, soul and mind"? If you truly love God with all your heart, soul and mind, then you can truly love your neighbor.

And I rather know what God's says then for me to come up with what is sexually immoral and be wrong. Because in the end, my definition is not what I will be judged by, it is God's.
 
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LightHorseman

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Why do you always start with "love thy neighbor"? Why don't you ever start with the greatest command, "Love God with all your heart, soul and mind"? If you truly love God with all your heart, soul and mind, then you can truly love your neighbor.A. Because loving God is between the worshipper and God.
B. I believe the way to fulfill the commandment is to fulfill the second.

And I rather know what God's says then for me to come up with what is sexually immoral and be wrong. Because in the end, my definition is not what I will be judged by, it is God's.
"love thy neighbour" means that God WANTS you to use your determination and decide for yourself. Because if you genuinely apply the love thy neighbour commandment, you will behave a bunch more morally than merely by slavish devotion to OT legalism (you know, like a pharisee)
 
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BjorkIsCool

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Breaking up is harmful, but sometimes it's better than staying together, if both people realize that they aren't the right people for each other.
People should get to know each other before they enter a sexual relationship. Once they enter a sexual relationship they then should stick with each other through thick and thin, through when that initial falling in love fades and all thats left is to-love. If one of the partners is mistreating the other or is unfaithful then you have grounds for separation.

Though your not a Christian; i wouldn't expect a non-Christian to wholly hold to Christian sexual morality.

Also i'm not perfect on this subject.
 
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RE: And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery. - - Because Christ is speaking to the Jews about sexual immorality and eunuchs, and it is not written to us that He explained the meaning of sexual immorality to them. One can only guess that sexual immorality has been written down before and understood by the Jews. I believe that in order to know what sexual immorality is, you have to go back to the Old law and see what it says.

I believe you have a valid point. Jesus' audiences were predominantly Jews who believed and practiced the very same religion that he believed and practiced, which was Old Testament Judaism.

It often comes as a surprise to modern Christians that the Sermon On The Mount is not Christianity; no, it's Judaism through and through. Jesus taught nothing new or revolutionary in the Sermon; no, he just taught the Old Testament from a different perspective than the standard rabbinical perspective of his day. In point of fact, Jesus taught the Old Testament from God's perspective, rather than his own.

†. John 3:34 . .For he is sent by God. He speaks God's words

†. John 8:26 . . He that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of Him.

†. John 12:49 . . For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, He gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

Common forms of immorality condemned in the Old Testament are promiscuity, incest, adultery, inappropriate behavior with animals, homosexuality, sacred prostitution, ritual orgies, and tainted virgins.

What's a tainted virgin? It's a girl who marries under the false pretense of being a virgin; when actually she fooled around with pre-marital sex without telling anybody (Deut 22:13-21).

C.L.I.F.F.
/
 
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daydreamergurl15

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A. Because loving God is between the worshipper and God.
B. I believe the way to fulfill the commandment is to fulfill the second.


"love thy neighbour" means that God WANTS you to use your determination and decide for yourself. Because if you genuinely apply the love thy neighbour commandment, you will behave a bunch more morally than merely by slavish devotion to OT legalism (you know, like a pharisee)

If something is a sin, we need to know what God determines as sin, not for us to "use our judgment" and determine that ourselves, because it is not necessarily the case that everyone will have the same exact judgment of what is sin or not. That is why, it is important to know what God determines as sin.

Oh, and by the way
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart..." Deuteronomy 6:5-6

"You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD."
Leviticus 19:18

When Christ told us those two commands, He was quoting from that old testament legalistic law...

Matthew 22:34-40
But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him. " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hand all the Law and the Prophets."
 
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BjorkIsCool

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You should look at the faith icon under my username :p
Sorry about that. I was a bit confused, i checked what that sign meant ages ago, saw the word seeker, and since then i've always thought it meant someone who was looking into christianity, but now i see its a faith. Sorry for any offence. :blush:
 
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Sorry about that. I was a bit confused, i checked what that sign meant ages ago, saw the word seeker, and since then i've always thought it meant someone who was looking into christianity, but now i see its a faith. Sorry for any offence. :blush:
It's ok :)
 
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