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How in the world do we remain sexually pure in a world that throws sex at us at every turn? Is it possible for young people to grow up and remain virgins? What about adults who feel that they aren’t sexually fulfilled in their marriage? I believe that it is possible to remain sexually pure, but it will only happen whe we make certain choices. Regardless of your past, regardless of what happened yesterday, last week, last month or ten years ago, you can get your act together in this area by making four key, positive choices.

The first choice is to make a commitment to what God has laid out as guidelines. And God definitely has some standards, some principles that guide us in the area of our sexuality. Obviously, we know that sex is God’s idea. God’s standard is very clear. And God’s standard has never changed. Sex is only for a wife and a husband committed to each other in a marriage relationship. . If you’re married you need to say to your wife or to your husband, “Whether you ever are unfaithful to me or not, I will always be faithful to you. Because my commitment is not based on your response. My commitment is not based on what you do. My commitment is based on God’s standard and God says no sex outside of marriage. You need to let everybody know, “I intend to live by God’s standard.”

The second choice you have to make is to manage your thoughts and manage your mind.
The battle for any temptation begins and ends in the mind. So ground zero for getting control of any area of your life is your thoughts, deciding what you’re going to think about. Two scriptures that are very relevant. Proverbs 4:23 (NIV), “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Then Psalm 101:3 (NLT), says “I will refuse to look at anything vile and vulgar.” The Bible clearly over and over and over tells us that what we think about will effect our behavior and our thoughts. Even Christians get caught in the trap thinking, “It’s no big deal. It’s just a thought. Just a harmless thought.” That’s not what the Bible says. The Bible says our lives are shaped by our thoughts.

The third coice you must make to remain sexually pure is to run from situations that provide opportunity for sexual misconduct. 1 Corinthians 10:12 says, ““If you think you are standing strong, be careful, for you, too, may fall into the same sin.” Given the right opportunity, given the right circumstance, anybody can commit any sin. If you don’t think you’re vulnerable, you are going to let your pride keep you from putting the barriers and the safeguards around your heart and your lifestyle that you need to put into place. I’m going to suggest some of those to you. The Bible says that as people who call on the name of Jesus Christ, who call themselves Christians, we are to live lives of such purity there shouldn’t even be a hint of sexual immorality about our lives. People would have to make up stories about us to accuse us of doing anything wrong. 

The fourth and last choice you you must make is to realize the consequences  of  sexual immorality.  When you’re tempted you don’t think clearly.  You allow the moment’s pleasure, the moment’s drive, impulse, desire, whatever cause you to forget what you’re going to be giving up.  You need to just pause and remind yourself of the devastation and the destruction that sexual sin causes in lives. I will have been married to Julie for 25 years next May and by the grace of God and my commitments and the accountability of other friends, I intend to be faithful to her the rest of my life no matter what happens. Why?  For three very important reasons. I love Jesus Christ, I love my wife.  And I love my kids, and I have a healthy fear of the judgement of God.

God gave you your sexual drive and used properly it bonds a husband and wife together physically, emotionally and spiritually.  Used improperly it destroys marriages and families, it damages self esteem, it fills you with insecurities, it creates misery, guilt, shame, depression not mentioning all the diseases that promiscuity has given us in our society.