The Biblical Plan for Human Sexuality By Dr. Shane Stanford

The Biblical Plan for Human Sexuality By Dr. Shane Stanford Scripture: Genesis 1:26-31-- 26 Then God said, Let us make humanity in our image to resemble us so that they may take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and all the crawling things on earth. 27 God created humanity in God s own image, in the divine image God created them, male and female God created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and master it. Take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds in the sky, and everything crawling on the ground. 29 Then God said, I now give to you all the plants on the earth that yield seeds and all the trees whose fruit produces its seeds within it. These will be your food. 30 To all wildlife, to all the birds in the sky, and to everything crawling on the ground to everything that breathes I give all the green grasses for food. And that s what happened. 31 God saw everything he had made: it was supremely good. The Current Crisis I. Alternative Arguments A. An Outdated Theology B. An Issue of Civil Rights C. The Case for the Individual II. Inadequate Response A. Failure of the Concordance B. Proof Texting C. A Broken Theology III. Understanding the Meta- Narrative and the Authority of Scripture A. Context B. Covenant C. Master- Narrative Note: Chuck Colson said that the best sharing of the Gospel is to propose NOT impose the Good News of Jesus Christ. Student Notes: 1

The Biblical Plan for Human Sexuality Introduction: The story of God s Redemptive Plan for Humanity and Creation unfolds in a four act narrative. These four acts include Creation, The Fall, Redemption and New Creation. Understanding the complete narrative of this unfolding picture of God s great love for Creation, His broken heart in the Fall, God s resilience to redeem that broken creation through His Son, Jesus Christ, and the eternal glory of a New Creation provide clarity not just for the facts of the story itself but for all ways in which humanity finds itself falling short of God s plan in need of hope. The following is a narrative of how human sexuality is understood within the larger story of God s Redemptive Plan in Jesus. Act One: Creation Scripture: Genesis 1:26-31-- 26 Then God said, Let us make humanity in our image to resemble us so that they may take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and all the crawling things on earth. 27 God created humanity in God s own image, in the divine image God created them, male and female God created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and master it. Take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds in the sky, and everything crawling on the ground. 29 Then God said, I now give to you all the plants on the earth that yield seeds and all the trees whose fruit produces its seeds within it. These will be your food. 30 To all wildlife, to all the birds in the sky, and to everything crawling on the ground to everything that breathes I give all the green grasses for food. And that s what happened. 31 God saw everything he had made: it was supremely good. 1. Humanity is created in the Image of God a. Created for Relationship b. Created with Needs (Dependent) c. Created with Design and Purpose The Temple of the Living God Note: The fact that we were made in the Image of God speaks to the inherent and transcendent dignity of humanity as not just part of Creation but also as the representatives of God s presence in Creation. 2. Humanity is created Male or Female 2

Note: Gender is not a sociological construct forced upon human beings BUT part of God s goodness assigned by the Creator s determination. There are no crises of identity in God s plan for Creation. Scripture: Genesis 2:23-25-- 23 The human said, This one finally is bone from my bones and flesh from my flesh. She will be called woman because from a man she was taken. 24 This is the reason that a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife, and they become one flesh. 25 The two of them were naked, the man and his wife, but they weren t embarrassed. 3. Humanity is created as Sexual Beings Note: Human sexuality was part of our identity as having been created in the image of God. Thus, sexuality among human beings was created as more than a physical act, but as a form of intimate connection where two would become one physically, emotionally, relationally, spiritually. True, animals also procreated but their sexual acts were not the same as human sexuality whereby human intimacy not only had the power to create but to express the glory of God. Human sexuality is a Trinitarian experience between God, man and woman. Thus, it is holy by design and nature. Scripture: 1 Corinthians 7:2-4- - 2 Each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband because of sexual immorality. 3 The husband should meet his wife s sexual needs, and the wife should do the same for her husband. 4 The wife doesn t have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise, the husband doesn t have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 4. Humanity is Embodied: a. With Gifts b. As Stewards with Responsibilities i. Fruitful ii. Multiply iii. Fill iv. Subdue v. Have Dominion 5. Humanity lives in Covenant: a. With God b. With One Another Note: We were to multiply (for example) not just to procreate but to fill the earth with God s glory and presence. Our body is a Temple of the Holy Spirit. 3

Student Notes: Act Two: The Fall Scripture: Genesis 3- - 1 The snake was the most intelligent[a] of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, Did God really say that you shouldn t eat from any tree in the garden? 2 The woman said to the snake, We may eat the fruit of the garden s trees 3 but not the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden. God said, Don t eat from it, and don t touch it, or you will die. 4 The snake said to the woman, You won t die! 5 God knows that on the day you eat from it, you will see clearly and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. 6 The woman saw that the tree was beautiful with delicious food and that the tree would provide wisdom, so she took some of its fruit and ate it, and also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then they both saw clearly and knew that they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made garments for themselves. 8 During that day s cool evening breeze, they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden; and the man and his wife hid themselves from the Lord God in the middle of the garden s trees. 9 The Lord God called to the man and said to him, Where are you? 10 The man[b] replied, I heard your sound in the garden; I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself. 11 He said, Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from the tree, which I commanded you not to eat? 12 The man said, The woman you gave me, she gave me some fruit[c] from the tree, and I ate. 13 The Lord God said to the woman, What have you done?! And the woman said, The snake tricked me, and I ate. 14 The Lord God said to the snake, Because you did this, you are the one cursed out of all the farm animals, out of all the wild animals. On your belly you will crawl, and dust you will eat every day of your life. 15 I will put contempt between you and the woman, between your offspring and hers. They will strike your head, but you will strike at their heels. 16 To the woman he said, I will make your pregnancy very painful; in pain you will bear children. You will desire your husband, but he will rule over you. 17 To the man he said, Because you listened to your wife s voice and you ate from the tree that I commanded, Don t eat from it, cursed is the fertile land because of you; in pain you will eat from it every day of your life. 18 Weeds and thistles will grow for you, even as you eat the field s plants; 19 by the sweat of your face you will eat bread until you return to the fertile land, since from it you were taken; you are soil, to the soil you will return. 1. The Fall represents humanity s desire to be its own god. Note: The Tree of Knowledge symbolized humanity s line of willing dependence on God. When the serpent convinced Eve to cross the line, and then she convinced 4

Adam to follow, humanity moved into a new relationship with God and each other. Now, humanity took on responsibilities and roles that had belonged to God as Creator, and humanity was wholly unprepared or equipped to take on these responsibilities alone. But, that also meant that humanity was left with a distorted view of its most intimate gifts and experiences with God and each other again, wholly unprepared or equipped to navigate the emotional terrain. 2. Every part of Creation fell and was affected: a. Spiritual b. Physical c. Emotional d. Relational e. Natural Note: The immediate response to the Fall is full of representations of the impact it had on Creation. You have Eve s desire to rule over her husband (Gen. 3:16). Adam s leadership will be harsh (3:17-19). Eve will experience pain in childbearing (Gen. 3:16). God s verbal response is also telling 8 During that day s cool evening breeze, they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden; and the man and his wife hid themselves from the Lord God in the middle of the garden s trees. 9 The Lord God called to the man and said to him, Where are you? 10 The man[b] replied, I heard your sound in the garden; I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself. 11 He said, Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from the tree, which I commanded you not to eat? 12 The man said, The woman you gave me, she gave me some fruit[c] from the tree, and I ate. 13 The Lord God said to the woman, What have you done?! And the woman said, The snake tricked me, and I ate. 3. The Fall affected Human Sexuality by: a. Disrupting a Complimentary Nature b. Destroying Trust in Relationships c. Reframing the Moral Compass of Humanity d. Giving Humans Over to their Cravings Notes: The stories that follow the Creation and Fall accounts in Scripture are telling of the nature of the Fall s impact on Creation, especially the most intimate of our human relationships. In reference to human sexuality alone, there are accounts of rape, polygamy, adultery, orgies, etc. Thus, human sexuality ceased to be a reflection of God s Image in our relationships and us but a reflection of our own desires and cravings. 5

4. The Giving of the Law Scripture: Romans 1:22-32-- 22 While they were claiming to be wise, they made fools of themselves. 23 They exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images that look like mortal humans: birds, animals, and reptiles. 24 So God abandoned them to their hearts desires, which led to the moral corruption of degrading their own bodies with each other. 25 They traded God s truth for a lie, and they worshipped and served the creation instead of the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 That s why God abandoned them to degrading lust. Their females traded natural sexual relations for unnatural sexual relations. 27 Also, in the same way, the males traded natural sexual relations with females, and burned with lust for each other. Males performed shameful actions with males, and they were paid back with the penalty they deserved for their mistake in their own bodies. 28 Since they didn t think it was worthwhile to acknowledge God, God abandoned them to a defective mind to do inappropriate things. 29 So they were filled with all injustice, wicked behavior, greed, and evil behavior. They are full of jealousy, murder, fighting, deception, and malice. They are gossips, 30 they slander people, and they hate God. They are rude and proud, and they brag. They invent ways to be evil, and they are disobedient to their parents. 31 They are without understanding, disloyal, without affection, and without mercy. 32 Though they know God s decision that those who persist in such practices deserve death, they not only keep doing these things but also approve others who practice them. Note: Aberrant sexual behavior continues after the Fall completely distorting God s gift of human sexuality and intimacy. The Apostle Paul s review of this period in Romans 1 (as he outlines the narrative for salvation in Jesus Christ) mirrors the power of the various accounts of disobedience. Paul calls this behavior the exchanging by humanity of God s blessings and truth in Creation for a lie and that humanity worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator (Romans 1:25). Paul concludes that humanity transformed human sexuality into potential idolatry. Thus, God sends the Law as a means of curbing these behaviors and providing boundaries for both maintaining God s relationship with Creation and the existence of God s chosen people (the Israelites) as the conduit for the coming of the Messiah. A. Types of Law 1. Civil: Boundaries for governing the nation and the governance of the civil system 2. Ceremonial/Temple: Boundaries for governing the Temple and religious life of the people 3. Moral: Boundaries for governing the health of the individual life, family, and the community. B. Transitions 6

Student Notes: 1. Civil: Laws primarily replaced by the Roman code and the Herrodic dynasty. Significantly reduced after Restoration period through the Exilic period. Nearly completely disbanded after the Diaspora. 2. Ceremonial/Temple: Laws primarily disbanded after the fall of the Temple in 70A.D. 3. Moral: Remain in practice and adopted by Christian tradition. Act Three: Redemption Scripture: John 3-- 1 There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a Jewish leader. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said to him, Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could do these miraculous signs that you do unless God is with him. 3 Jesus answered, I assure you, unless someone is born anew,[a] it s not possible to see God s kingdom. 4 Nicodemus asked, How is it possible for an adult to be born? It s impossible to enter the mother s womb for a second time and be born, isn t it? 5 Jesus answered, I assure you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, it s not possible to enter God s kingdom. 6 Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Don t be surprised that I said to you, You must be born anew. 8 God s Spirit[b] blows wherever it wishes. You hear its sound, but you don t know where it comes from or where it is going. It s the same with everyone who is born of the Spirit. 9 Nicodemus said, How are these things possible? 10 Jesus answered, You are a teacher of Israel and you don t know these things? 11 I assure you that we speak about what we know and testify about what we have seen, but you don t receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you don t believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has gone up to heaven except the one who came down from heaven, the Human One.[c] 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so must the Human One[d] be lifted up 15 so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. 16 God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him won t perish but will have eternal life. 17 God didn t send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever 7

believes in him isn t judged; whoever doesn t believe in him is already judged, because they don t believe in the name of God s only Son. 19 This is the basis for judgment: The light came into the world, and people loved darkness more than the light, for their actions are evil. 20 All who do wicked things hate the light and don t come to the light for fear that their actions will be exposed to the light. 21 Whoever does the truth comes to the light so that it can be seen that their actions were done in God. Notes: After the Fall, humanity found itself distant from God. Sin is not a list of acts but a state of being that then leads to actions, decisions or patterns that create a broken life in need of redemption. Knowing that humanity was incapable of aligning itself back to God s perfect state of Creation, God decided to redeem Creation. To do this, God would need to take on the exact nature of existence and expression of Creation and then model the perfect experience of Creation. Therefore, God sent God s Son, the second person of the Trinity, to take on the experience of humanity as Jesus of Nazareth. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ became the sacrifice and model of humanity s salvation and therefore the foundation for Creation s restoration. This restoration would lead to a new Creation and would redeem all distorted views of the broken image of God in Creation. Therefore, Jesus Christ provides for the redemption and restoration of all aspects of Creation- - - physical, natural, relational, emotional and, yes, even the experience of humanity s most intimate expressions. A. A Savior in a Human Body: Salvation happens through a divine incarnation Scripture: Romans 6:12-14-- 12 So then, don t let sin rule your body, so that you do what it wants. 13 Don t offer parts of your body to sin, to be used as weapons to do wrong. Instead, present yourselves to God as people who have been brought back to life from the dead, and offer all the parts of your body to God to be used as weapons to do right. 14 Sin will have no power over you, because you aren t under Law but under grace. John 1:14-- The Word became flesh and made his home among us. We have seen his glory, glory like that of a father s only son, full of grace and truth. Philippians 2:5-11- - 5 Adopt the attitude that was in Christ Jesus: 6 Though he was in the form of God, he did not consider being equal with God something to exploit. 7 But he emptied himself by taking the form of a slave and by becoming like human beings. When he found himself in the form of a human, 8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God highly honored him and gave him a name above all names, 10 so that at the name of Jesus everyone in heaven, on earth, and under the earth might bow 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 8

B. Our Bodies are Part of Our Redemptive Experience in Jesus Christ Scripture: Romans 8:22-23-- We know that the whole creation is groaning together and suffering labor pains up until now. 23 And it s not only the creation. We ourselves who have the Spirit as the first crop of the harvest also groan inside as we wait to be adopted and for our bodies to be set free. Romans 12:1-2-- 1 So, brothers and sisters, because of God s mercies, I encourage you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice that is holy and pleasing to God. This is your appropriate priestly service. 2 Don t be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you can figure out what God s will is what is good and pleasing and mature. C. Porneia Sexual Immorality is condemned by Christ, the Apostle Paul and early Church leaders Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:18-20-- 18 Avoid sexual immorality! Every sin that a person can do is committed outside the body, except those who engage in sexual immorality commit sin against their own bodies. 19 Or don t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you? Don t you know that you have the Holy Spirit from God, and you don t belong to yourselves? 20 You have been bought and paid for, so honor God with your body. D. What did Jesus believe about the Moral Laws (and, therefore, about human sexuality)? Scripture: Matthew 19:1-9-- 1 When Jesus finished saying these things, he left Galilee and came to the area of Judea on the east side of the Jordan. 2 Large crowds followed him, and he healed them. 3 Some Pharisees came to him. In order to test him, they said, Does the Law allow a man to divorce his wife for just any reason? 4 Jesus answered, Haven t you read that at the beginning the creator made them male and female?[a] 5 And God said, Because of this a man should leave his father and mother and be joined together with his wife, and the two will be one flesh. [b] 6 So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore, humans must not pull apart what God has put together. 7 The Pharisees said to him, Then why did Moses command us to give a divorce certificate and divorce her? [c] 8 Jesus replied, Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because your hearts are unyielding. But it wasn t that way from the beginning. 9 I say to you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery. 9

i. Jesus states that marriage is between a man and a woman. ii. When Jesus referred to moral laws, He meant to strengthen their expression. iii. Silence = acceptance for moral laws in Jesus Christ s teachings iv. But, Jesus always wrapped moral laws in grace Refer to John 3:16-17. 1. Connect not Condemn 2. Restore/Redeem not Reject 3. Freedom not Frozen E. In the Redemption of Jesus Christ, all people are offered grace and redemption, but also expected to sin no more (John 8:1-11) Student Notes: Act Four: New Creation Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:42-57- - 42 It s the same with the resurrection of the dead: a rotting body is put into the ground, but what is raised won t ever decay. 43 It s degraded when it s put into the ground, but it s raised in glory. It s weak when it s put into the ground, but it s raised in power. 44 It s a physical body when it s put into the ground, but it s raised as a spiritual body. If there s a physical body, there s also a spiritual body. 45 So it is also written, The first human, Adam, became a living person,[e] and the last Adam became a spirit that gives life. 46 But the physical body comes first, not the spiritual one the spiritual body comes afterward. 47 The first human was from the earth made from dust; the second human is from heaven. 48 The nature of the person made of dust is shared by people who are made of dust, and the nature of the heavenly person is shared by heavenly people. 49 We will look like[f] the heavenly person in the same way as we have looked like the person made from dust. 50 This is what I m saying, brothers and sisters: Flesh and blood can t inherit God s kingdom. Something that rots can t inherit something that doesn t decay. 51 Listen, I m telling you a secret: All of us won t die, but we will all be changed 52 in an instant, in the blink of an eye, at the final trumpet. The trumpet will blast, and the dead will be raised with bodies that won t decay, and we will be changed. 53 It s necessary for this rotting body to be clothed with what can t decay, and for the body that is dying to be clothed in what can t die. 54 And when the rotting body has been clothed in what can t decay, and the dying body has been clothed in what can t die, then this statement in scripture will happen: Death has been swallowed up by a victory. 55 Where is your victory, Death? Where is your sting, Death?[h] 10

(56 Death s sting is sin, and the power of sin is the Law.) 57 Thanks be to God, who gives us this victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Note: God s plan of salvation results in a New Creation, where all of the broken aspects of Creation are redeemed. 1. The Body Not Re-set but Redeemed Note: Scripture tells us that we will have the same body in this New Creation but it will be glorified just as Christ s body is glorified. That makes this present body so important as a symbol of God s great care and connection to humanity through the Incarnation. Now, whether it is the actual physical matter of one body or the next, the meaning is clear our physical natures and what happens in our physical bodies is important to God. The redemption of that body in all aspects of its brokenness from the Fall matters to God. This is not simply a re- set of an old body but the redemption of our bodies into their perfectly created forms as the Image of God. 2. Eternal Glory in God s Presence Note: There will be no need for sexual activity in eternity because there is no need to fill the earth with God s glory. God s presence will shine throughout the New Creation and His Glory will embody all aspects of eternity. 3. The Two Adams Note: The discussion of the Two Adams is important because what was supposed to be in Creation through the First Adam was distorted by the Fall and the inclusion of sin or separation into humanity and creation. The Second Adam (Christ) did in his body what the first Adam could not do namely the redemption of broken humanity. But, the goal was to restore humanity to the image of the first Adam. 4. Living New Amidst Old Struggles a. Don t create a response that limits our Christian Witness b. Treat everyone as valuable Children of God c. Stay focused on Truth and the Authority of Scripture d. Put sin in perspective with grace e. Faithfully respond to the needs of the entire community f. Pray for Unity Student Notes: 11

About the author: Dr. Shane Stanford is the Senior Pastor of Christ UMC in Memphis, TN. 2015 The Biblical Plan of Human Sexuality by Dr. Shane Stanford. Christ UMC, Memphis, TN. 12