The Question: Is touching yourself a Sin?
Im going to take a different approach to the whole situation because I think alot of people just give yes or no answers and honestly I am sick of the debate... Hopefully this will present a NEW standard for you, and further encourage your sexual purity...
"Is it a sin? Is it not a sin? I dont want it to be a sin! I dont think it is a sin. Is it ok when you are married? Is it ok when you are single? Why do we produce so much if we arent supposed to get rid of it?" These are questions that even Christian guys ask...
Heres the oppinion of a 21 year old single guy who's hormones are raging like a 18 wheeler inside of him...
I dont think we should be asking questions like "is it a sin?" as often as we do... Let me show you what I mean.
1 Corinthians 6:12
"Everything is permissible for me", but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me," but I will not be mastered by anything.
Ok lets see... Everything is permissible? -BUT- not everything is beneficial? So Paul hits a deeper issue here. We stand around all the time and like to make rules and laws like --- touching yourself=SIN (on tuesdays and if you are lusting) to throw a little comedy in there --- I mean we are getting as stupid about things as the religious Jews of Jesus' time. Its not about it being a sin or not. The real issue here is what is MOST beneficial for our lives! I recently commited myself to a new standard... No masterbating... Its out of the question to me right now, it doesnt mean that I dont struggle with it, but I look at my life and say "How is masterbating BENEFICIAL to me?" Its not! As a single guy who used to touch daily I can tell you, it wastes time, energy, and honestly it was affecting my relationship with women because I wasnt respecting them. I am an artist and have a very wild imagination... I could be sitting talking to a girl on a date and in my mind I was undressing her. Almost constantly I was struggling with these things. I began reading 1 Corinthians and took an honest look at myself... In my mind I was a sick perverted person that should be locked up with sex offenders. I had imagined all sorts of things that I cant even talk about and keep this PG-13... But on the outside I was leading worship at a growing church, running the college ministry, working with the youthgroup, and working at a Christian book store... I had it all together, but reading 1 Corinthians tore me apart. I couldnt view touching yourself as natural anymore, I remember the first time I actualy realized how sick my mind was I ran to the bathroom and was dry heaving over the toilet. Not everything is beneficial, and when we are blinded by lust and our sexual cravings we miss the bigger picture. The life Paul talks about is not simply following the rules... Its living life to the fullest extent! Check this out:
1 Corinthians 9:24-27
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified from the prize.
This is not an encouraging word for a 21 year old unmarried (yet dating) guy...
"Wait STRICT TRAINING? are you kidding me? BEAT MY BODY INTO SUBMISSION?" We get freaked out and right about now just trying to slide by is sounding alot better than going into strict training. Like I said the issue is alot bigger than "To SIN or not to SIN? that is the question!" No, no, no.... Thats where Christianity is falling into religiosity... We are becoming like the Pharisees each time we ad another little rule... Instead of SIN/NO SIN begin asking God what is MOST beneficial for your life!
Personal story, then I will stop rambling...
I have gone over a month now without masterbating and let me tell you... It is terrible... -now here me out- I went from masterbating at least once a day to nothing, AT ALL. I have more erections throught the course of the day than I have the patience for... I have had more wet dreams than you can imagine, forget that whole month fact stated before, I only lasted 2 days without a wet dream. They are starting to decrease now but it hasnt been easy. I cannot help the fact that some of the things I have looked at in the past are popping up in my dreams. What I can do is not add anymore thoughts, and strive to have a pure mind. Let me tell you something about quitting touching yourself, you feel it... You feel the full swing of testostrone (spelling?) hit you like a 24 pack of mountain dew... I have lost alot of weight over the past month and my muscles are toning and I am not really doing a thing to help... I spend most of my time writing a book, speaking at church, and leading worship... I am not the big sports fanatic... But my body is cycling all the testostrone back into my system and I feel alive like never before. That is just a physical aspect of the benefits... Get this- although I struggle, lie awake at night battling temptation, have to change sheets, ect. I have noticed my respect for women, more importantly my girlfriend, raise to a whole new level. I never knew that I could look at a woman like I look at her. It used to be all sex apeal and lust with previous relationships. But when I look her in the eyes I desire her more than any other girl I have looked at, I see her... I believe the way Christ wants me to see her. I could really go on all day about this topic because since I have had victory over it I have felt like an entirely more whole, pure, focused person.
Let me close this out with a challenge, and I commend you if you read this far... Please make it all the way to the end. I challenge you to STOP looking for loopholes. Because really its not a matter of SIN, its a matter of WHAT is the MOST BENEFICIAL choice you can make for your life? I challenge you to try a little personal sacrifice and see what I am talking about. Set up some accountability partners and tackle touching yourself head on. I garrenty that you will see which life is MORE beneficial. Go into strict training and life the beneficial life!
-Dan
I did not write this, it is from a prevous debate.
That passage was not meant to be taken literally:
Brothers and sisters, Christians are to refrain from earthly desires so that we do not fall into temptation. That is painfully clear in the Bible, as it states to flee from temptation. If you are serving your fleshly desires then you cannot be serving the Lord at the same time, thus His will must be our will. The Bible also makes it painfully clear that we are to be in the world, not of it. Remember, it's the spirit of the Law. God Bless!
