Sexual Devolution

We can recognize that God is serious about the area of sexual immorality.  When you consider that, according to Ephesians chapter 5, that marriage represents the relationship between Christ and the church, this sort of behavior outside of marriage, because it weakens marriage, does not please the Lord - it is sinful. Ephesians 5 states:

3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; 
4 neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
5 For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

The Lord, in His Word, has given us principles by which we can live the life He desires for us. We can attempt to live outside the boundaries that He is set, but we know that we will reap the negative consequences. We can be careful to not only read the Bible, but to know it and make sure that it is part of our consciousness, so that we can make good decisions and make sure that we are strong in order to resist temptation.

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The Bible cautions us not to pursue sinful pleasures, but to submit ourselves to the satisfaction of a right relationship with God. Hebrews 11 says:
24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter,
25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,
26 esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.

You can also find the phrase "passing pleasures of sin" translated as "pleasures of sin for a season."

The permissiveness of our society as it pertains to sex is quite stunning, and the Biblical principle of sex within the bonds of marriage is being disregarded, even by Christians.  Consider the results of a new Pew Research survey; the summary of which makes this bold statement: "Half of Christians say casual sex – defined in the survey as sex between consenting adults who are not in a committed romantic relationship – is sometimes or always acceptable."

Breaking that down, you find that just under a-fifth of Christians say that such activity under those conditions is always acceptable.  In a committed relationship, one-third of Christians in the survey say sex is always acceptable and about a quarter say it is sometimes acceptable, for a total of around 57%.  These results do have a caveat: respondents indicated whether they believed that this activity was acceptable, not whether or not they would do it themselves.

The survey also shows that one-third of evangelical Christians believe that "casual sex" is always or sometimes acceptable. 

The summary also says:

Among those who are religiously unaffiliated, meanwhile, the vast majority (84%) say casual sex is sometimes or always acceptable, including roughly nine-in-ten atheists (94%) and agnostics (95%) who say this.

The Pew survey summary notes:

How often Americans attend religious services is another factor in how they responded to the questions. Those who said before the coronavirus outbreak that they typically attend monthly or more are less likely than others to approve of sex and dating practices asked about in the survey.

For example, a little less than half (46%) of U.S. adults who attend services at least once a month say sex between unmarried adults in a committed relationship is sometimes or always acceptable, compared with three-quarters (74%) of those who go less often.

The expressions of the so-called "sexual revolution" reverberate throughout society.  Glenn Stanton of Focus on the Family wrote in a piece late last year at The Federalist website:

What people do in their intimate lives indeed affects their neighbors, whether they are those next door, co-workers, or extended family.

The effects of sexual relationships also reveal themselves in our community institutions — in schools, hospitals, police stations, social service offices, and nearly all levels of government — in various ways. Each of these must deal with the positive and negative consequences, often daily, of who had sex with whom and under what circumstances.

Just a couple of examples - citing research, Stanton writes, "Sex within marriage cultivates responsible men who are more likely to be employed, hold jobs longer, go to school to improve their futures, and be more involved in the lives of their children, making those young people less likely to cause trouble in their neighborhoods. Responsible men are essential to creating healthy communities." He also decries the spike in out-of-wedlock births:

Despite women’s increased fertility control, out-of-wedlock births have skyrocketed. They now account for 40 percent of all births, with many of these children being raised by single parents, resulting in not only poverty, but sometimes abuse. A live-in boyfriend is substantially more likely to be physically and sexually abusive to his single-parent girlfriend and her children than if they were married and raising their own biological children. Thus, women, children, and the larger community suffer from what people have done in the bedroom.

Bottom line: No architect or facilitator of the sexual revolution could have ever imaged the deep and vast human suffering their project has wrought. But there it is.

The violation of God's principles concerning sexual practice has ramifications for the individuals involved, as well as society, and, I would contend, the Church.  When professing Christians are involved in sexual sin, it does not contribute to a healthy body of Christ, and the fallout results in widespread brokenness that weakens the mission of the Church.  We cannot expect the fullness of a satisfying, dynamic relationship with Christ when we are willfully sinning against Him, pursuing the pleasures of sin for a season. 

The Bible is explicit regarding fornication, which includes various degrees, I believe, of sexual practice outside marriage.  In an age in which we need to see the beauty of marriage exemplified, there are those who unfortunately weaken marriage by not following the principles of Scripture.  In all of the decisions we make, we should be guided by the Scriptures, so that we can glorify the Lord in the way that He would intend.