I debated posting this blog but you know I decided, nope. It needs to be written about. I think oftentimes in the church, people think there are too many things that are too “taboo” to be talked about in the church, but if we are being honest, there shouldn’t be anything we can’t talk about in the church because God created all. Purity is something I think we very much need to talk about. The Bible is supposed to mature us and I think sex is something needed to be talked about for us to be mature and understand things. Sex is often seen as a bad thing, but it is not. Sex is a GOOD thing, you should not be ashamed of sex, but sex is for a married couple. Sex is a gift from God for a married couple (Proverbs 5:19). We are called to purity and the enemy has tried to use it against us.
Many people often wonder why we are taught to wait till marriage, we are taught to wait till marriage because God calls us to be pure as He is pure and the Bible calls us to imitate Him. (1 John 2:6) That is not saying you have to be a virgin or have waited till marriage to be pure because that is not true. We are made pure through Him. We are called to purity, not virginity, although it is a part of it. You should not be ashamed if you have had sex before marriage. The reason I am speaking out about sex before marriage is because this is a part of purity. He cleanses us. The reason we are taught to wait till marriage though is because God gave us life as a gift as well, and He wants the absolute best for us out of life. And when you wait till marriage it is God giving you the most fulfillment you could want because there is so much sexual temptation out in the world. I know, it is hard. it is such a strong temptation that is so easy to give into and you know what? I, myself, have given into premarital temptations. The enemy tries to turn what God gives us for good and uses it to attempt to have us stray away from Him. I feel although this is difficult we need to continue to fight for purity because the enemy is constantly trying to turn God’s gift of sex into a weapon to push us away from Him and purity.
I’m not saying that if you want to wait for marriage you should have one of these, but I have a purity ring. For those who don’t know what a purity ring is, it is a ring that is a symbol that you are abstaining from sex before marriage. I got mine in September after deciding that I wanted to wait for my future wife on our wedding night. It is something I thought a lot about and, I decided, “Yes, I want to make that commitment and wear a symbol of it so I may be a role model for others to not be ashamed of refraining till marriage”.
So where did this start? I read a book this summer and am about to finally finish it's called, “31 prayers for my future wife: Preparing our hearts for marriage by praying for her”. What an awesome book! It was that book that gave me insight into how sacred marriage truly is and how beautifully God created it. I learned a lot in that book about what it means to be a good loving and Christian husband, and what it means for two to become one in marriage, which is something I never really thought about considering I am only 19. The book stresses how ‘’Purity=Power” and it is just that. Remaining pure till marriage is powerful. The Lord created sex to be with man and wife once they are married as the whole point of marriage is to have marriage privileges.
Okay, what I tell you next is going to sound silly, and it is….a little. I know many of you are gonna go, “Really Barrett??”, but it is just another reason why my purity ring means a lot to me and why we should promote waiting till marriage on this level. And, I am unashamed! This August, I watched the Twilight series for the first time, I genuinely binged watched them for a week over and over again. And I loved how the character of Edward stresses to his love, Bella, that he wants to wait till marriage because from what time he is from(he is an immortal vampire) that’s how you say, “I love you”. He valued Bella that much in a way that he wanted to be married to her first because he respected her. I so was inspired by that. I want to wait till marriage, so the girl I marry knows I respect her and she is the only one till death do us part. That is why I wear my purity ring because if a movie like Twilight can give me another reason to wait till marriage, think of how many others it can? Oftentimes people hear this in church, “Wait till marriage”, but when they see it on the big screen that two famous teenage romance lovers are waiting till marriage, they may be inspired even more like I was. People need to see things like this in pop culture! I feel often people are ashamed because they have decided to wait till marriage and I feel it is something we should attempt to normalize.
1 Timothy 4:12 says, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and purity” (NIV)
Refraining from sex before marriage is not the only way to be pure or be seen as pure in the Father’s eyes. It is not just about sexual ideas. It is honoring Him with our mind, our thoughts, our actions, our words, etc. We should be asking, “Will this honor the Lord?’’ or “Will this help me imitate Him and be pure in His eyes?”. Purity is so much more than just sex, everything we do should help us strive for purity for Him. I also want it to be known I am not judging you at all, if you have or are having sex before marriage because that is God’s place and you should not be ashamed of it as we are all flawed! I pray in this new year we all strive for purity through Him and that we allow Him to take over, purify our hearts and our words. (Psalms 12:6) Thank you all of course for reading! Don't forget to subscribe and fill out my prayer request form so I can know how to pray for you better! God bless you all!
Blessings,
Barrett
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