Part of God’s beautiful creation is that intimate, sensuous, physical attraction of a man and his wife. God finds no shame in the loving relationship of a man and his wife. But it is difficult to talk about it. Parents are afraid to talk about it with their children, and once children understand, they find is difficult to discuss it with their parents as well.

On the other hand, sex outside of marriage—illicit, immoral sex that God unconditionally and roundly condemns as pornographic—finds expression almost everywhere. I challenge you to sit in front of your TV some evening and to switch channels every time God’s view of sexuality is mocked or becomes the cause of laughter. You may need new batteries for your remote. We don’t blush at the misuse of sex. Yet we blush when God speaks of the pure love of husband and wife?!

Our blushers are all mixed up. We become products of our society rather than products of God’s good will. The Holy Spirit can lead us to get our blushers in sync with God’s when we listen to what the Bible says about our sexuality. God has given us our sexuality and given it an important place in our lives. In God’s place, it is not lewd, vulgar, or indecent. But pornography is all of that.

What is out of place

The apostle Paul clearly states God’s position: “Among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place” (Ephesians 5:3,4). Paul covers all the bases quite thoroughly. God wants us to live our lives in such a way that no one could even suspect us of having any part in pornography or sexual impurity. The attitude God requires is not, “Okay, God says it is a no-no, so I’ll go as far as I can without going all the way.” Nor is the attitude of the Christian, “It is nobody’s business what we do as consenting adults.” No. God says, “Not even a hint of sexual immorality.”

Don’t even joke about it. Paul condemns coarse gutter talk, including the “F-word.” That’s out of place, he says. That’s the talk of fools. But some have argued that it is okay if such talk is done in a clever, funny, sophisticated fashion.