“You shall not commit adultery.” – Exodus 20:14
Q: What is the seventh commandment?
A: You shall not commit adultery.
What does this mean?
Because we worship and love God, we should lead an innocent and good life in words and actions, and we should love and honor our spouse.
Sex is a beautiful thing. It is meant to be a means by which a husband and wife bond with one another in a way that is special to them and them alone. In the sex act there is a physical closeness that should only be shared with one person. It is a way of saying non-verbally to your spouse, “I am yours and you are mine. I am willing to give to you completely, my body included.”
Can you see why the ultimate act of betrayal would be to have sex with someone who is not your spouse? Can you see why that would be so hurtful? It is because sex is so sacred. It is holy. Do you remember what “holy” means? It means, special, set apart, different, and not for normal use.
In the truest sense of the word, sex between a husband and wife is holy. It is not for use in all different sorts of human relationships. It is set apart for one person. It is one way that the marriage relationship is different than all others.
In the Old Testament, God’s people were unfaithful to him over and over again. As a result, the prophets of God frequently called God’s people, “whores”. A whore is someone who sleeps around with lots of different people and that is how God’s people treated him. They tried to have a special relationship with him and with lots of other “gods” (which we know were fake) all at the same time.
But God remained faithful to his people. His mercy triumphed over their unfaithfulness. God wants his people to model his faithfulness with each other in marriage. It is beautiful beyond measure.
Read 1 Thessalonians 4:3–8:
For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.
- What is God’s will for us? (v.3)
- Did you notice how Paul uses language of family in these verses? How should that effect how to think about sexual sin? (v. 5, if someone is not our spouse, they are our family member)
- If we ignore this command and sin against our brothers and sisters, who is that ultimately sin against? (v.8)
Prayer
Our Father, we want to be faithful to you and to our spouses in marriage. Help us to define our love for our spouses based on your love for us that never fails. May we display to an unbelieving world the beauty of holy love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.