Open Your Eyes

There is a lot of talk in the world about what we can and cannot do as Christians in order to make it into heaven. My heart was deeply disturbed when I read an article in May's issue of Ebony entitled, "Single, Saved-and Having Sex." Honestly the title alone bothered me. I just pray that no one has allowed themselves to fall because of this article. I just want to scream, "Open your eyes!" Can't you see that this goes against the word?! It's time to stand up for righteousness! It's time to address those closet issues that the church chooses to ignore.

Sex, before marriage is one thing that God clearly addresses in the bible. Everywhere that I've read about it in the Word speaks against it. Now, for this article to tell Christians that it's okay for them to fornicate (have sex before marriage) and that they will still make it into heaven is an outrage. In fact, one of the persons quoted says this, "I strive to live a righteous life. Just because I have a Bible on my nightstand and condoms in the drawer doesn't mean I love God any less or that He doesn't love me." Now you can still love God, that is true. But you are in fact loving Him less because you aren't walking according to what He commanded. He says in John 14:15 "If you love me, obey my commandments" (NLT). That scripture is very clear, so if you're walking contrary to God's word you are not loving Him. That is not to say that you won't mess up, but let's be clear if you are unmarried and confessing to be a Christian, and continuing to have sex then you are wrong.

Fornication, is a dangerous sin to become trapped in for many reasons. One of the main reasons is because it is sinning against your own body. 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 says, "Run from sexual sin! No other sin clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. 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, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body" (NLT). Here Paul is addressing the church at Corinth, but it still applies today. This is one of the main sins that can affect your body, just think of all of the STDs (now called STIs) you can get, HIV/Aids which is a huge epidemic, and unwanted pregnancies that are physical outcomes of fornication. And add onto that the ungodly soul ties that are even more dangerous to your spirit man.

A soul tie is often formed during sex, the two become one not only because of a physical act but because their souls have become connected. 1 Corinthians 6:15-17 say this: "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! 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.' But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him" (NLT). So if anyone has ever told you that you can just have sexual relations without any type of attachment forming they are lying to you. Any time you sleep with someone you are becoming one with that person. Also, you are sleeping with whoever they have slept with in the past. So when you find yourself struggling with depression, rage, jealousy, anything out of the ordinary you might be dealing with what those other people before you struggled with. Just imagine if one of the others was carrying a disease, you have now become susceptible to that. Mind you, I want you to concentrate on the spiritual reality of the situation. You are weakening your relationship with Christ by fornicating. Paul says that those who are joined to the Lord are one spirit with him, but if you are joining yourself to others then you are blocking your connection line to Him.

When we allow our flesh to rise we are blocking our communication line. The flesh is something that we have to deal with until we leave this earth; there is no way around it! But what we must do is kill our flesh daily, by the renewing of our minds. Then, we will be able to hear clearly from God. 

The article went on to talk about how Christians are "foregoing abstinence" while in the church. This is dangerous because the Bible clearly warns against this. There is no way to argue around the situation. At a few points in my life, I contemplated my stand on abstinence but I never swayed and I'm so glad I didn't. I have been wearing a "True Love Waits" ring since the age of 13/14, and although I faced many circumstances where I came close to giving up, I held tight to my decision to wait. In the back of my mind I always knew that fornication was wrong. I thank God for a youth department that decided to speak the truth and tell us what the word had to say about being pure. It's not impossible to remain abstinent in this day and age. You must be persistent and confident in your choice because there will be some who try to challenge you, but stand tall. When you look at all that God has to say about fornication, you will realize that waiting isn't that bad. You are giving yourself completely to God, mind, body, and soul until the day when it comes time for you to become one with the man or woman that He has provided solely for you. There is something so beautiful about waiting for God, that I couldn't imagine choosing to do otherwise when I know better. Especially when I know that God only gives me His best.

Now, I understand that a lot of my brothers and sisters have fallen to fornication. But that is not the sole issue, the issue is lying there and not attempting to get up. We all sin, we all fall sometimes, but we must ask God for forgiveness and turn away from that sin. God is our keeper, and He has given us a guide through His Holy Spirit. You must also allow yourself to be planted and rooted in a church that is preaching the word of God (without any additions or deletions) and let Him grow you while you're there. If you are struggling with sexual sin you need to ask the Lord to help you. He will not abandon you and leave you to fight that spirit of lust by yourself. Find an accountability partner! This is very important, although you might be able to handle some things on your own...you can't handle everything on your own. Find someone who is stronger than you in the faith, and ask them to pray with you and to help you remain faithful to the Lord's commands. Before you choose this person make sure that you pray and ask God for confirmation. There is nothing worse than trying to find an accountability partner and finding yourself mixed up with someone who is just trying to spread your business through the church. In all things...PRAY. Never stop seeking God. Ask Him to allow you to see yourself as He sees you. Open your eyes, and begin to see sin through God's eyes.

I love Heather Lindsey's ministry, and here is a status that she posted just yesterday via facebook concerning abstinence. "It blows my mind that the enemy can have a virgin thinking that there's something wrong with her because she hasn't had sex yet or a "real" boyfriend. Sis, you just saved time, energy, 30 seconds, medicine for STD's, a broken heart, unplanned pregnancies & so much more! You're RARE in this society & God would love to use you to encourage others to honor God with their body. Don't run off to give yourself away to "feel normal"- you don't want that kinda "normal"- its dysfunctional, empty & will have you so messed up. You're one-day husband is going to be honored that you waited. You belong to Christ & no other human deserves your body until they pay the price for it called marriage. Stay focused. ❤" I just love this because she is so real! And this is something that needs to be said especially when the world is trying to tell you otherwise.

Be Encouraged,
God's Servant