I. Christian model about Teens Sexuality:

1.      Sex is Key Way a Person Expresses Worship. Rom 1:18-27

Roman 1: 21-27 portrays sex as a principal way in which a person reveals what is really ruling his life. Sexual sin is by its very nature idolatrous; that is, it is a place where we refuse to live for God’s glory. It is driven by the sinful desires of the heart rather than a desire to live by God’s principles for his pleasure. A person submits his heart and body to God’s higher agenda or uses them to get pleasure when and where he wishes.

Teens need to see life as worship. They are either living in covenant with God, hoping in his promises, obeying his commands, relying on his grace, and desiring his glory, or they are living in an idol covenant where some part of creation has replaced the Creator, and they live for personal pleasure and the glory of self.

2.      Sex is a Key Way a Person Expresses His Identity. 1 Cor 6:12-20

In the final analysis, human beings live out one of only two identities; that I am ultimate and autonomous or that I am created and dependent on God.

In 1 Corinthians 6 Paul roots his entire discussion of sexual immorality in the identity of the believer. He points out four aspects of the Christian’s identity that provide wonderful boundaries for sex and every area of life:

1.       I am a servant of Christ.

2.       I am an eternal being. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also 1 Cor 6:14. This world is not all there is; neither its suffering nor its pleasure is worth comparing to the glory that is to come. A future hope changes the way a believer looks at the pressures, opportunities, and responsibilities of the moment. She lives patiently, conscious of the eternal value of every sacrifice she makes.

3.       I am one with Christ. Since our spirits are one with him, our bodies belong to Christ as well, so that our lives would practically express the will of Christ.

4.       I am the property of Christ. “You are not your own, you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body” 1 Cor 6: 19-20. God bought when he paid the price with the blood of his Son.

3.      Sex is a Key Revealer of a Person’s Heart. Eph 5: 3-7

For Christ, lust breaks the command against adultery. Another way of saying this is that a person’s sexual behaviour is a key revealer of what is ruling her heart. This is why a rejection of God’s revelation and authority leads to all kinds of sexual sin.

4.      Sex is a Key Revealer of My Need of Grace. Rom 7:7-25

Sex confronts us with our inability. In light of God’s standard of absolute purity.

Our young people need to connect their sexual struggles to these larger gospel themes. When they do, they will not only find victory, but they can develop a new dependency on Jesus and a deeper love for him. The lies of self-sufficiency and self-righteousness are exposed, giving us an opportunity to bring teens the hope of the gospel in ways they have never before grasped.

II. Biblical goals for Teens and Sex

There has been a renewed interest in virginity both inside and outside the church. Christian community groups are rallying teenagers to sign abstinence contracts, committing themselves to virginity until marriage, but this agenda does not go far enough.

For one thing, it moves us toward a less-than biblical definition of moral purity. To be physically abstinent is not the same as being morally pure! Moral purity is matter of the heart. If the heart is not pure, the body will not be kept pure for long.

God wants nothing less than the hearts of his people (Ezek. 14.5). We cannot allow our teens to relax because they have kept the letter of the law while breaking the spirit, like the Scribes and Pharisees (Matt 5:17-20).

We must place the boundaries where Christ does. Keeping within the physical boundaries is not a high enough goal. Our goal should be to live within the heart boundaries and not settle for culturally popular, humanly doable goals that encourage self-righteousness without solving the problem. We must uphold God’s standard and watch his Spirit recapture the hearts of our children.

A Threefold Plan for Helping Teens.

There are three ways in which we want to communicate these biblical principles about sex to our youth.

Prevention: Responsibly Educating Our Teens

It is important to give teens a full biblical perspective as the foundation for a practical sexual agenda.  Here are some principles from “Paul D. Tripp “Teens and Sex”:

1.       God is the Creator, and it is important to understand his original purpose for all thing (Ps. 24)

2.       People are God’s creatures, and therefore we are responsible to him for all we are and do. The goal of life is to live for his pleasure and glory. (Gen 1, Col 3:17)

3.       People are unified beings. Sin is both spiritual and physical, a matter of the heart and behaviour. (Rom 8:1-17)

4.       Life is worship. Everything I do expresses worship to God or something else. The deepest questions of human life are not questions of my pain or pleasure, but of what I worship. (Rom 1:18-32)

5.       God’s way, no matter how hard, is always best. As we the psalmist says, all the ways of the Lord are right and true, while the way that seems right to a man leads to death…. (Ps. 19:7-11)

6.       Because the goal of life is to follow the will of God and to live to his glory, I always have a higher agenda than momentary personal pleasure. ( 1 Cor 6:18-20; Titus 2: 9-10)

7.       Jesus Christ came not only to protect us fro external evil, but to free us from slavery to the desires of our sinful nature, so that we may live under the control of the Spirit. (Eph 2:1-5; 2 Peter 1:4)

Practical implications for teen sexuality:

• God does not single our teenagers for sacrifice and suffering. Rather, he calls them to experience the joys and blessing found by serving him in everyday situations.

• Since God, as Creator, formed our bodies and created sexuality, we will never properly experience this part of life until we understand his plan and purpose.

• God’s plan is that we would, within his boundaries, enjoy this area without ambivalence or shame.

• We are unified beings, so our sexuality is never isolated from the other parts of us. Sex is never just a physical act; it is always a matter of the heart. It is not enough to ask whether a person has “had sex” yet. We should also be asking about the desires, motives, and thoughts that shape his or her approach to a relationship.

• We must always examine the thoughts and motives of our hearts in the area of sex; “Have I accepted the sexual lies and the idols of the culture around me?”

• A person’s approach to sexuality must always be shaped by the Two Great command, to love God first and to love our neighbor as ourselves.