Spoiler Alert: Someone tells you the end of the movie before it starts

Director’s Cut: The director’s version of the movie that has not been altered by the studio.  The director retains complete artistic control.

• A good movie is about a good story!

What did you learn about sex?

• What did your parents teach you about sex?
• What did your friends teach you about sex?
• What did culture teach you about sex?

What does the Bible teach us about sex?
What is sex?

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.  The man and his wife were naked, and they felt no shame.” Genesis 2:24-25

Did you hear that?  God’s gift, One flesh, United, Covenant relationship

What is sexual immorality?  adultery, fornication, prostitution, bestiality, rape, incest, homosexuality

We all have sexual desires, sexual attractions, and sexual temptations.

God’s truth on sin and sex is still true even when:

• Inconvenient
• Unpopular
• Rejected by Culture
• Disliked by you

Background on Thessalonica and Paul: Paul gives a great deal of space to this theme of purity in the early church.  He addresses this issue through multiple letters to these young early churches to protect them from the fall of sexual sin.  Thessalonica is the capital of Macedonia.  Paul visited here on his 2nd Missionary Journey(Acts 17:1-9).  This Greek City worshipped the Babylonian goddess, Calibri.  This twisted culture married sex with religion.  The worship Calibri involved temple prostitutes who would invite people into many lewd and sexual activities. 

“Finally brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God as in fact you are living.  Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.  For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.  It is God’s will that you should be sanctified:  that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God.” 1Thessalonians 4:1-5

Living to Please God

1. Avoid sexual immorality

• Be sanctified = cleanse mind, heart, and soul
• Divorced sex & faith (Music, TV, Movies, E-Books, Magazines, Internet)

2. Control own body

• Holy [shalom] to become whole  “Be holy as I am holy” 1Peter 1:13-16
• Honorable – Our culture talks about losing our virginity like losing car keys or sunglasses.  Did we lose our pants first?

3. Be different

• Lust (selfish) vs. Love (give)
• Heathen = unbeliever

Are you living to please God?

“Marriage should honored by all, and marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.” Hebrews 13:4

“The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap distruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:8

“For God did not call you to be impure, but to live a holy life.  Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man, but God, who gives you the Holy Spirit.” 1Thessalonians 4:6-8

Will you reject God?  God’s presence can change you, not rules.

• Authority of God and His Word
• Will you trust his ways?  Tranformation happens (think, feel, do)
• Will you trust the Holy Spirit?

Jesus is the answer for all sexual sins!  Whether you have made mistakes or whether you have been sexually abused.

• We have all sinned whether heterosexual or homosexual
• Perhaps you have been sexually against.
• God is telling a greater story, but you may not like it at first. 
• Repentance is the way in!