Intimacy

We live in a sex-saturated culture, but society’s slant on sex tends to be totally contrary to that of Scripture.

KEY VERSES

Genesis 2:18-25 (NASB)

18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” 19 And out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all the livestock, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field, but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. 22 And the Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said, “At last this is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken out of man.” 24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked, but they were not ashamed.

Proverbs 5:18-19 (NASB)

18 Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth. 19 Like a loving doe and a graceful mountain goat, let her breasts satisfy you at all times; be exhilarated always with her love.

1 Corinthians 6:15-18 (NASB)

15 Do you not know that your bodies are parts of Christ? Shall I then take away the parts of Christ and make them parts of a prostitute? Far from it! 16 Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “The two shall become one flesh.” 17 But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. 18 Flee sexual immorality. Every other sin that a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.

UNDERSTANDING

  • If you could only learn about sex from pop culture, what would you learn?

  • Growing up, who were the people that taught you about sex? How helpful and influential were they?

  • What have you learned about sex from the church? Why do you think we don’t often talk about sex and intimacy in church?

  • What are the benefits of exposing younger people to sexuality first in church before they have a chance to hear about it from popular culture?

  • How would you characterize the relationship between Adam and Eve? Between God and man? What makes this kind of fellowship possible?

  • Why do you think marriage necessitates that a man leaves his family? What is the ultimate purpose of this?

  • Why would God set the context for human sexual expression? Why get involved at all?

  • How does being made in the image of God affect your personal sexual expression?

  • What is the point of Genesis 2:25? How has the perfection of this verse been broken by sin? How can we fight back against sin and develop transparency in our marriages?

  • What do you think “let your fountain be blessed” means?

  • What can we learn about romantic love from this passage? What are some ways that we as a culture idolize romantic love?

  • What worldly distractions can undermine finding fulfillment in our spouses?

  • If the cultures of 1st-century Corinth and 21st-century America have a wrong view of the body, what is a right view? From where is this view derived?

  • When Paul said “sexual immorality,” what did he have in mind? How do we know?

  • How does fleeing from sexual immorality become our default response? What would that look like practically?

  • How does the cross redeem and bring value to our physical bodies? Why should this give us a greater sense of urgency to maintain purity in our lives and marriages?

APPLICATION

  • In light of our culture’s obsession with sex, what does it look like to “flee sexual immorality” (1 Cor. 6:18)?

  • For those who are single, what impact does today’s study have?

  • How has reading about God’s design for sexual relationships changed the way you think about sex?

  • Sex is exclusively God’s idea, for both procreation and for pleasure. He gives us boundaries, and we all need His grace and forgiveness when it comes to our sexuality. How do these truths provide a unique and prevalent entryway into gospel conversations?

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