Is masturbation ok according to christianity?

[beastmaster]

Is it?

 

[Parth]

God recognizes sexual needs, which is why Paul says "To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is good for them to remain single as I am. But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion."

I masturbated a lot before converting, and I was actually addicted for quite some time. What killed my addiction? Falling in love. I remember masturbating and watching inappropriate content once, and immediately I began thinking about my best friend at the time, who is now my girlfriend. I became scared because I did not want to have feelings for her, but at the same time, I felt guilty for what I did. So I stopped.

Masturbation is not necessarily a sin, in fact science has shown that regular and frequent ejaculations increase the quality of a male's sperm by stimulating the production of fresh and healthy gametes. Therefore men who touch regularly are more likely to father a child. Thus, the spilt sperm is but a sacrifice toward a more favorable chance of achieving conception. However, when something becomes an addiction, it's clearly bad.

You must realize that Christianity is not a set of rules. There are many gray areas, and God recognizes those gray areas. If you're sexual needs are not being taken care of by a spouse, then you need to devote more time them. If you're not of age yet, or have not found the right person to be with, it's time to find some other activities. I simply had way too much time on my hands.

Hope this helps.

 

[food4thought]

As best as I can discern, there are no scriptures that say touching yourself is sinfull (the thing in the OT about "spilling his seed on the ground" being wrong had to do with not fulfilling his duty of raising up offspring for his relative as prescribed by law, not the act). What is sinfull, though, is lusting after someone in your heart (Matthew 5:27-28)... if you imagine and objectify a woman, or man, in your mind during masturbation, I believe that is sinfull. And as Parth said, anything that becomes an addiction is sinful (1st Corinthians 6:12).

 

[ViaCrucis]

Is it?

Christianity doesn't have anything to say on the matter.

Christians, however, are going to be divided on the issue. Some will make the argument on the grounds that masturbation involves active and intentional lust; others will argue that it's a completely natural, and healthy, human activity. I don't believe there's anything wrong with it, I think that it's a natural and healthy--and safe--facet of human sexuality.

Lusting is sinful; undisciplined and unrestrained desire to self-gratify by turning others into objects, which is a far deeper and bigger ethical issue, absolutely.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[Metal Minister]

I think it depends on what is in your mind and heart. Remember Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:27-28

27 "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

May God Richly Bless You! MM

 

[grasping the after wind]

No.

 

[DCJazz]

I'd have to say no, it's not ok. While it's not directly forbidden via the word itself, there are all sorts of warnings against sexual immorality in there. And addiction.

Can you honestly say you touch (you in general, not specifically) for anything but pleasure?

 

[oi_antz]

Why don't you post a confidential poll? I think that would generate an interesting statistic.

 

[beastmaster]

Yeah. It's a pretty funny topic. What inspired it was a news snippet featuring some group called Christian youth against masturbation (or something like that).

 

[oi_antz]

Yeah. It's a pretty funny topic. What inspired it was a news snippet featuring some group called Christian youth against masturbation (or something like that).

There are all sorts of beliefs in this world. For instance, some people believe it is sinful to eat pork, while others believe it is ok. I tend to use this verse when people are confused about sin:

Romans 14: Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. 2 For instance, one person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables. 3 Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive his approval.

Read what Paul wrote at the end of this chapter:

23 But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.

How does that attitude rest with you? Did that particular group of Christians demonstrate this attitude?

 

[doubtingmerle]

No mention of Onan?

7 And Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord slew him.

8 And Judah said unto Onan, Go in unto thy brother's wife, and marry her, and raise up seed to thy brother.

9 And Onan knew that the seed should not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in unto his brother's wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest that he should give seed to his brother.

10 And the thing which he did displeased the Lord: wherefore he slew him also.
​

BTW, I knew of a parakeet that was named Onan, because he spilled his seed on the ground!

 

[hedrick]

No mention of Onan?

7 And Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord slew him.

8 And Judah said unto Onan, Go in unto thy brother's wife, and marry her, and raise up seed to thy brother.

9 And Onan knew that the seed should not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in unto his brother's wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest that he should give seed to his brother.

10 And the thing which he did displeased the Lord: wherefore he slew him also.
​

BTW, I knew of a parakeet that was named Onan, because he spilled his seed on the ground!

No, that wasn't masturbation. That was violating his responsibility to his brother.

 

[Parth]

I'd have to say no, it's not ok. While it's not directly forbidden via the word itself, there are all sorts of warnings against sexual immorality in there. And addiction.

Can you honestly say you touch (you in general, not specifically) for anything but pleasure?

I have a good friend of mine (30 years older than me) who is addicted to masturbation. However, he used to be addicted to sex itself. He had 9 children from 4 different women. He also used to be addicted to alcohol, drugs, and ciggarrettes. All these were taken from him when he accepted Jesus into his heart. Now he lives by himself, but is a great father who is a part of all of his children's lives. He's had a rough life - grew up in a bad neighborhood, went to vietnam, dealt with his sexual immorality, held up a wendys and went to jail for it - but his heart is tranformed. A few weeks ago, he told me a story of how he went up to a homeless lady on the bus, and spoke ot her for 40 minutes. He really just listened to her. Homeless people have no one to talk to. At the end, he even gave her a hug, making her feel like a human being. He wrote down her name, and now prays for her everyday. This idea of just talking to a homeless person was foreign to me. In fact, when I first converted my friend did it while we were distributing sandwiches in NYC. I kept telling him we need to go, because I thought the homeless man was bothering him, but in reality my friend was doing God's work.

My point is that God knows your heart, and getting hung up over a small issue like masturbation makes us lose focus on what's really important: making a difference in people's lives, praying for others, and sharing the Gospel. That's all you have to do, and God will take care of the rest.