Hello. I’m not quite sure if I’m posting in the correct area because I’m new to the site and forums in general, but here we go. I’m a 17 year old boy and lately I have been curious about this issue in the church. I would tend to lean more towards it NOT being sinful. However, I’m open to having my mind changed. I’ve researched this quite a bit and gathered various answers from both sides of the debate. Most answers I’ve gathered against masturbation involve scripture twisting or just aren’t logically sound (at least that is how I see them). I’ve asked my parents and pastors with no real answer. Obviously living in the United States, I cannot get married legally unless I have parental consent (I do not). So Paul’s advice in 1 Corinthians 7:9 doesn’t help since our cultures are different. So, that said, what are your thoughts?
As you've said; you've done some Bible study on this already. (Which is good.) And I'm sure you've noticed, if you've dug into the issue of sexuality with any depth; the Bible does not speak at all about masturbation.
Now as for the issue of sexual expression; reason would have it that if two married people can engage in sexual behavior in a God glorifying way, why not a single person? As single or married people; the question becomes - how aught we to do so?
It is somewhat of a misnomer for people to believe that "getting married" "cures" sexual sin. That is not the case at all. Married couples can still suffer from lust if they are not looking to glorify God with their behavior.
"In all that you do, do it to the glory of God". 1 Corinthians 10:31 We aught to be grateful to God for all that He's given us; (including our sexuality). Whether we are single or not.
"There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." 1 Corinthians 10:13
Now I'm going to run through some verses here that are more than likely to "freak some people out". But here we go.
Matthew 19:12
In this verse Jesus is talking about eunuchs. He says some are made eunuchs by nature, some by men and ".... and there be eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it; let him receive it."
Now this looks pretty benign in the English translation; but if we look at the Greek, we get a very different picture. In this passage, Jesus is actually taking about Himself.
So here's the Greek translation - if you look it up in an interlinear Bible, you will see this:
"..... and there be one who has made himself a eunuch for the sake of reigning in the kingdom of heaven. But by the power of God that restrains him, let him continue in the command."
Looks pretty weird huh? What the heck does that mean?
Well, first off we know there's only one who reigns in the kingdom. So obviously Jesus has to be talking about Himself. He made a choice to be a eunuch (meaning He never got married and had kids). That was for the sake of the redemption plan. If Jesus had produced children, there would be multiple generations of sinless Divine progeny on this earth and this would have excluded the rest of us from redemption. Jesus would not reign over His own descendants because they'd be just like Him. Now if He'd decided to do that; most likely scenario is that He'd undergo the same process as Adam did to obtain a wife, seeing how any female descendent of the first Adam, would not have been an appropriate helper, and also would have been eternally lost like the rest of humanity on account of the atonement would have never occurred.
Obviously though, Jesus opted out of that (although it would have been far easier than being crucified) for the sake of accomplishing what the Father wanted Him (and He too desired) to accomplish.
So that being the background to this passage, what does the rest of this verse mean?
"By the power of God who restrains him...." Ya mean Jesus needed restraining? Yeah, apparently He did. I'll explain why in a minute.
"....let him continue in the command." Now what command is that? Jesus was not commanded to be a eunuch; that was a choice He made. To find the answer to that question; we have to go back to Genesis. What was the first command given to creation (note too this was after Eve was created) "Be fruitful and multiply."
So Jesus needed to be restrained from obeying the command to be fruitful and multiply in the flesh. Why is that? Because God as the Creator - just as humanity created in His image; would want to create life. That is a natural inclination; one everyone bears an interest in, of one way or another.
The pleasure derived from the act is a reflection of God's goodness and also the joy He felt in His creation. This is why after He'd created this universe; He said "is is good". "Good" here means "pleasant" and is used to describe attractive things; be they humans, majestic animals, pretty flowers etc. By extension, what ever gives us joy, which of course extends far beyond sexual behavior.
So that is the glory we are to be grateful to God for.
Now the next passage - Psalm 139
This is a Messianic psalm and it's quite interesting in what we learn about Jesus's experience and perceptions of Himself and His interactions with the Father and Spirit in His life. This psalm depicts someone who is amazed, overwhelmed, awe struck and lost in joy and glory of the care that has been showered upon Him. Jesus was cared for and loved and He knew and felt that.
So now we get to verse 15:
15. Never was anything hidden of (denied) of (the way my) physical body (was made) than (coming from) You, by which I was made in secret, perfectly woven in the lowest lands of the earth.
The things Jesus needed to know and learn about life; He was given the space by the Father to discover. Now how exactly Jesus did that; we are never told specifically. Yet we know based on the wisdom He exhibited, He understood an awful lot. And He knew that by spending an awful lot of time with the Father in His own space.
So, thus is not something you need to be afraid of bringing to God for assistance and wisdom as to how to deal with your own sexuality.
