How Does Sex Glorify God?

Does marital intimacy really glorify God? That's just one of the questions we'll be answering on today's edition of CORE Christianity. You can also post your question on our social media sites. And of course, you can always email us at questions at core Christianity dot com.

First up today, let's go to Jared, who is calling in from Texas. Jared, what's your question for Pastor Adriel? I know with gospel distortions like legalism and kind of more of an antinomianism on the other side, just if you could expound on that verse.

Yeah. I'd be curious kind of where you see or what you think in terms of legalism or antinomianism being pulled out of this verse. What I see this as, so Colossians chapter 2 verse 6, therefore as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught abounding in thanksgiving. I think a parallel passage that helps us to make sense of what Paul means by as you received Christ, so walk in him is in 1 Corinthians chapter 7 beginning in verse 17, only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches.

And so this makes sense that the Colossians would know about this as well. Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised?

Let him not seek circumcision, for neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision but keeping the commandments of God. Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. Were you a bondservant when called, do not be concerned about it, but if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity. For he who was called in the Lord as a bondservant is a freed man of the Lord. Likewise, he who was free when called is a bondservant of Christ. You were bought with a price, do not become bondservants of men. So brothers, in whatever condition each was called, therefore let him remain with God. And of course, even there as he's talking about those who are bondservants, he's not legalistic about this.

He's saying, look, if there's an opportunity for you to gain your freedom, avail yourself of that opportunity. But, and in particular, you think of with the Gentile inclusion early on and many Jews saying, if you really want to be a follower of Christ, you need to accept the mark of circumcision and the Mosaic law and so on and so forth. And so one of the things that Paul is doing here is he's saying, no, that's not the case at all. If you're a Gentile, you were called by the Lord in Christ, you received the gospel. You don't need to go and become Jewish all of a sudden. No, live as you were called. And so I think that that text helps to sort of expand on the idea there in Colossians chapter two, Jared. But I want to go back to you because you brought up legalism and antinomianism. Is there something else that you're thinking about specifically with that passage? I guess maybe I was perhaps taking it out of context. Something I struggle with is kind of that law gospel distinction and just not falling back into kind of a slavish fear of God, but also not, you know, just disobeying Christ.

I will want to be faithful in everything, but also not be paralyzed by every bit of indecision or weighed down by the law again. Yeah. Yeah, I know. Well, that's helpful.

Yeah. And I think so that that expansion there with 1 Corinthians 7, I think, gives a little bit more context to the principle that the Apostle Paul has in mind there. Now, you brought up the law gospel distinction, and I just want to talk about that briefly because, you know, we have a really broad listenership, and so some people might have, you know, questions about what do you mean by that? In scripture, right, you think of the law that God gives to us, which is good, ultimately summarized in the fact that we're called to love God and love our neighbor, but none of us are saved by that law. Oftentimes I get into conversations with people and say, okay, what is Christianity about?

What is the gospel about? And typically they point to the law. A lot of times if they're newer to the church or maybe have just never really been taught about the significance and importance of the gospel. And so, you know, they'll point to the law, you know, well, you do good things and you love your neighbor and you love God. Well, the law is good, but that's not the good news of the gospel because the fact of the matter is everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We don't perfectly keep God's law, and so the gospel is how God has made a way for those who have broken his law to experience his grace and forgiveness. And so distinguishing there between the law, what God calls us to do, and the gospel, what God has done for you in Jesus Christ to welcome you into his family.

Now you said, Jared, that there's a struggle there in terms of, okay, well, what does my relationship to the law look like now? As a believer, well, here's where you stand as someone who is in Christ. You are no longer under the law. This is Paul's point in Romans chapter 7. The law can't condemn you anymore because you are dead to it through the body of Jesus Christ. Now, by the Spirit, you and I are free to obey the righteous requirements of the law. That is, to see the law not as something over us to condemn us, but to see it as something that is calling us to honor the Lord. We're not justified by the law, by our keeping of the law, and the fact of the matter is that even when we do do truly good things before God in obedience to his law, they're never perfect, and so we can't be justified by those things. But for the believer, your relationship to the law has changed, and so I don't think that that's what the apostle Paul is getting into there in Colossians chapter 2 verse 6, but that is such an important point, and we want to walk in that freedom. And Jared, the place to camp out at in scripture I think is Romans chapters 6 through 8, or even beginning earlier in chapter 5 where Paul talks about justification that we've received, and then 6 through 8 where he talks about this new relationship that we have to God as believers by the Spirit. Dead to the law, but alive to God through Jesus Christ. God bless.

Great explanation, Adriel. You know, you and I both really like Dr. Tim Keller, and I found a quote from Tim that fits really well with what you've been saying. He says, the gospel is good news about what has been done to save you, not what you have to do to save yourself. Yeah, well put, very simple, and honestly that distinction is so key for people because, as I said, a lot of times you ask them what is the gospel, what is Christianity all about, and they point to the law, what they do, not the gospel, what God has done to forgive sinners. That's the good news of the Christian faith.

Amen, and it is good news. This is CORE Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. Our phone lines are open.

If you have a question about the Bible, the Christian life, doctrine, theology, you name it, we would love to hear from you. Here's our phone number. It's 833-THE-CORE. That's 1-833-843-2673. Let's go to Deb calling in from Oklahoma. Deb, what's your question for Adriel? Hi, thank you for taking my call.

I love your ministry and listen to it almost daily. My question is this, whenever someone dies, you're at a funeral, they always say to be absent from the body, to be present with the Lord, and I get that. But then I read about the rapture and about, you know, when it says that the graves will be opened and they'll be joined in the sky. And I'm like, why? Why do they need that deceased, decaying body on the ground when they've already gone to heaven?

It just confuses me, and I'm sure people that are way more spiritual than me would know the answer, but I would like to hear your answer. Hey Deb, that's a great question, and I thank you so much for your encouragement, and I'm just blessed to hear that you are encouraged by the broadcast. You listen almost daily. Wonderful. And as I said, just an excellent question. Okay, so we die and we're in the presence of the Lord. We go to heaven if we're in Christ. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

This is something that we have said many times on the broadcast before. I think it's what the New Testament very clearly teaches. In other words, we're not, you know, when we die, just sort of sleeping and waiting for the final judgment.

No, we are in the presence of God and of the angels, perfected in holiness, worshipping the Lord around the throne of God in heaven. So then why, when Jesus returns, is there that resurrection? You know, the bodies, as you mentioned, those decaying bodies being raised up again. Why, if we're already in heaven?

Well, the answer is simple. When we die and we're in the presence of the Lord, our spirits are there in the presence of the Lord, but our bodies are in the grave. So you're right that they're decaying, but they're going to be raised just like Jesus' body was raised and glorified, perfected, if you will.

And this is exactly what Paul said to the Thessalonians in 1 Thessalonians 4. He says, I don't want you to be uninformed, brothers, verse 13, about those who are asleep, that is, those who have died, our brothers and sisters in Christ, who have gone before us, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep, those who have died. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with the cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and who are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Now, in terms of your why question, why would that happen?

Why would we want that to happen? Well, here's the good news of the Christian faith. God isn't just redeeming our spirits. He's saving all of us, including our bodies, restoring them, glorifying them, and not just us and our bodies, but the whole creation is groaning to be renewed for the new creation that we have described in places like the book of Revelation. And so the resurrection of Jesus Christ, his resurrection from the dead, is the assurance that one day we too, in the same way that he was raised, will rise as well. And that our bodies, when they go on the ground now, they decay, they turn to dust, but they are going to be restored, perfected in holiness. And that's precisely what the Apostle Paul says in places like 1 Corinthians 15. And so our hope as Christians isn't just that when we die we get to be in heaven with the Lord. It's that everything is going to be restored, including this world, renewed, a new creation. So we're going to be on that new creation in our glorified bodies, worshipping King Jesus together with all those who are in Christ and all the angels.

That's what we have to look forward to ultimately. Deb, thank you for that question. Again, a wonderful question, and God bless you.

Thank you, Deb and Adriel. Every morning when I get out of bed, my back kind of goes, oh man, I can't wait till glorification because it just doesn't feel good. Bill, some of us long for the resurrection more than others, and I know Bill definitely longs for the resurrection. We all do, we all do. I mean, and honestly, as our bodies break down, it is.

I mean, that's one of the wonderful, the good news of the Christian faith, that Christ conquered death and decay, and that in Him we have the hope of the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen. This is Quora Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. I want to take a moment to say thank you to a very special group of people. We call them our inner Quora. These are folks that listen to this program on a regular basis, and they actually believe in this ministry so much that they're willing to support us on a monthly basis. Yeah, the inner Quora is a group of people who, as Bill says, support us on a monthly basis.

It's a $25 gift every month. And with those resources, we continue to produce this broadcast throughout the United States on the radio and podcast as well. By the way, if you listen to the podcast, please leave us a review in iTunes or wherever you listen to us. That helps us to continue to spread the word about Quora Christianity. It helps give us even more support.

And we're just grateful for all of you who are encouraged by the show. And if you are encouraged, consider joining the inner Quora. And as we often say, as a thank you, we'll send you a copy of the book, Quora Christianity by Dr. Michael Horton. You can find out more by going to QuoraChristianity.com forward slash inner Quora. Again, Quora Christianity forward slash inner Quora, as you prayerfully consider joining that special group of people that really believe in what we do on a regular basis. Well, we do get emails here at Quora Christianity. You can email us anytime. Here's our address. It's questions at QuoraChristianity.com. And here's one from Josh. He says, Hi, Adriel and Bill.

I love the show. I read one of your articles that describes sex as a way that we glorify God. But this seems to conflict with the real life experience, since sex is so often a difficult part of so many married couples' lives.

Yeah. As a pastor working with couples, I think I could affirm what you say there, that this is often one of the areas where there can be conflict. I mean, that doesn't mean that it can't be and shouldn't be something that is a blessing in marriage and a way in which even we can glorify the Lord in our relationship. But that, intimacy, I think often finances the way money is spent, and then also family.

Those are typically the three things that, at least one of those things, a couple oftentimes is wrestling with that in the marriage. We do know, according to scripture, that it's something that is used in various ways to not glorify God, that it's one of the greatest idols, frankly, of our culture and of our world today. It's one of the things that so often is abuse, a good gift that God has given to humanity that we abuse and turn into a god, if you will. And so I think that's one of the reasons why so many people, they hear about, well, this can even be something that we glorify the Lord in. They just think, how can that be?

Well, yeah. And frankly, I think we just need to recover what scripture has to say about intimacy in marriage. And it's celebrated in scripture. You think of a book like the Song of Songs, which is, I mean, just to be frank with you, it's love poetry.

It's erotic love poetry. I mean, it's tactful, it's done in a way that's pure and honoring to the Lord, but it's a celebration of marital intimacy. And so this is clear, but you have an entire book of the Bible there. You think of also some of the things that we read in the Proverbs as well. I think of Proverbs 5, for example, verse 18, let your fountain be blessed and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight, be intoxicated always in her love.

You think about that language there. There's passion, there's love, there's romance even. And so those are things that really can, I mean, when done in accordance with God's word, honor the Lord and glorify Him insofar as we're serving each other in marriage in this way. And so we're called to, in marriage, serve each other, to love each other, and this is one of the ways that we do that. And so quite simply, I would say that's how we glorify God in this, and may God help us to do that, especially in a world where this is so often taken and twisted and used in ways that are sinful. This is where we as, I think, Christians need to shine brightly in saying, no, this is what the word of God says, and not viewing it in a taboo way, or like it's gross or there's something wrong with it.

Not viewing it taboo at all, but viewing it as a good gift that the Lord has given to His people in certain contexts. And so I appreciate that question and sort of fitting for, I guess, Valentine's Day. Happy Valentine's Day.

Bill, any other thoughts? I think that's a really great word, Adriel, and I think you painted a really beautiful picture with that particular proverb. It's so true that in God's context, right, based on His design and how He wants us to best function as human beings in marital intimacy. And the stress, of course, is marital because, as you said, there are so many things in our culture right now that are ripping apart marriage and that are holding up sexuality as an idol, and it's a tragedy. And on this Valentine's, there's a lot of stuff right now online and social media that's just not of God. And so I'm glad you pointed that out.

It's so, so critical. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. And if you have a question about the Bible or the Christian life, you can call us at 833-THE-CORE. And let's go to Rodney, who's calling in from Fort Madison, Iowa. Rodney, what's your question for Adriel? Hi, Adriel. Hey, love your show.

Man, you give some good answers. My question is, I don't know if you can hear me or not, my phone's cracking up a little bit, but my question is, in my Christian walk, I've been saved for about seven years. And in my walk, sometimes I get so discouraged, I simply have to go back to the basics. Got to go back, literally, to the foot of the cross, I'll just say. And I was kind of wondering, how many times do you have to do that, Adriel?

And what do you do when you do? Thank you, Adriel. Yeah. Rodney, thanks for the encouragement. Man, I will just be honest with you, I've got to go to the foot of the cross every day, and multiple times a day, to be honest. We never get away from the cross. We never get away from the cross in the Christian life. We never get away from the gospel. Our entire lives as Christians need to be grounded in the gospel, and as we mature, we don't move on from the gospel, from the message of the cross. We just go deeper and deeper and deeper in God's love for us in His Son, Jesus. Now, of course, we're learning other things, and we're growing, hopefully, in our understanding of the Scriptures and doctrine and all of those things, but the doctrine, the main thing that we grow in, is our grasp of, our understanding of the love of God in Christ, which is inexhaustible, which is beyond knowing, as Paul says to the Ephesians.

It just, we'll never plumb the depths of it. And so, let me just encourage you with those words, and saying, look, if you find yourself needing to go back to the cross every day and say, God, be merciful to me, a sinner, Lord, help me, help me to grow in my love for you and in my appreciation of what you've done for me, you are not alone. And every believer, you know, the greatest theologians throughout history, I think they would say, yeah, I'm there with you in that boat, too. Now, as Christians, I think that there is a danger of not growing in the gospel, drifting from it. There was a church, actually, in the New Testament that was really wrestling with that issue. The book of Hebrews is written to address that specifically. I just want to read two passages for you, Hebrews chapter 2, beginning in verse 1, the author of the Hebrews writing this church, he says, we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. And then he says in verse 3, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? In other words, we never want to drift away from the gospel, from that message that we've heard.

He goes on to tell them in chapter 5, verse 11, about this time, I have much to say, and it's hard to explain since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone else to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness since he is a child.

But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish between good and evil. And so look, we are called to move from the milk to the meat, Christian maturity. But the meat is not something other than the word of the gospel.

That's what they were drifting away from. The meat is growing in our apprehension of the glory of God and his gospel through his word. And so as we're learning all of the things that we learn when we study the scriptures, that's something that we continue to go deeper and deeper in, and we never leave the foot of the cross. God bless you, brother.

Amen. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. On this Valentine's Day we want to mention a special resource that we have available. It's called Seven Truths About Marital Sex, and it really fits in with that question that was asked earlier, the one question from Josh. You can find that by going to Christianity.com forward slash download. Again, CoreChristianity.com forward slash download.

Look for Seven Truths About Marital Sex. Before we go, I wanted to mention an email we got from a listener named Ryan Adriel, and he says this, I just wanted to say thank you so very much for your explanations on struggling with sin and assurance of salvation. I've had so many doubts of myself lately, not of what Christ has done, but of my own self-doubt in what I believe and the proof of it.

You answer these questions beautifully, and I want to thank you so much. You know, Ryan, I really consider it a privilege to be able to answer these questions, and I often just have to laugh because there was a long period of time in my own life, especially as a newer believer, where I really wrestled with these questions myself, assurance. I would go to my pastor almost every day, poor guy, call him on his cell phone.

He probably wishes he never gave me his cell phone number, but I'd call him. And he was so patient with me in encouraging me and in pointing me to the gospel, so it's such a privilege for me now to be able to do that for many others. And so God bless you in your walk with the Lord, and may God fill you with his Spirit and continually draw you to himself through his word. Thanks, everyone, for listening, and have a happy Valentine's Day. We'll be right back.