Plain Truth: God created sex to the satisfaction of all in marriage

Date: 20 July 2012   Read: 562

There are many reasons why some Christian couples do not enjoy sex in marriage, and one of those is that sex is considered to be a non-spiritual matter.

Many pastors would rather not have sex on Saturday night or have the Sunday morning glory because they fear defilement before preaching. Some Christian couples shy away from talking about sex because it is synonymous with evil in their vocabulary. That is why many couples prefer the missionary position over exploring new ways of keeping each other happy. Those women who try and spice up their relationships by exploring new ways to enjoy sex are often perceived to be cheating because of new behaviour that they introduce.

Sex is a spiritual matter inasmuch as nothing in our day-to-day life can be excluded from the realm of spirituality. It was the Dutch statesman and theologian, Abraham Kuyper, who once said that there is no square inch in life which Christ does not claim as his. We can therefore not afford to leave the issue of sex to the devil and shy away from talking about it as Christians.

Those who shy away from talking about sex or those who relegate it to a non-spiritual realm are those Christians who are more comfortable with the God of salvation and not the God of creation. They are not even comfortable with the God of sanctification, who sanctifies our sexual activities to be part of glorying his name, as long as they are done within the confines of marriage.

What the Bible teaches us is that things which do not belong to the spiritual realm are such relations where the natural creation order about marriage and sex is turned around, sexual infidelity and sexually promiscuity included.

The God of creation, who is the God of salvation and sanctification, created humanity as male and female. It is in the book of creation that we first read of the first marriage in the history of humanity, which  was solemnized by God. “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him” (Genesis 2:18).

Contrary to the view that the first act of sin was “the eating of a fruit”, which is understood by many as “the enjoyment of sex”, the Bible says: “This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one” (Genesis 2:24). This means that the whole issue of sex as part and parcel of the entire package of marriage was solemnised by God.

That is why it is recorded: “Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25). They were not ashamed of being naked, because sexual intimacy was very much part of the activities that they had to do. For this reason, when God blessed the first marriage, He said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it” (Genesis 1:28).

Sexual intimacy became distorted with the fall of man; hence the God of creation, who is also the God of salvation and sanctification, wants to change our perspective, to the extent that those who are married should enjoy it is a holy matter. The happier the pastor is with his wife regarding sexual matters, the happier he is to deliver the best spiritual messages to his congregation. The same can be said to all Christian men and women: “God has created sex for the enjoyment by all in marriage”. - Prof Derrick Mashau ([email protected])

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