Is masturbation a sin?
Many Christians never come to the point of really believing that it’s a sin.
The world considers it to be as innocent as going to the bathroom. If you feel pressure on your bladder, you find a bathroom and go pee. If you feel sexual pressure building up, you find a private place and “release that tension”.
They say it’s a harmless and legitimate
way to have sexual release, especially if you are single, if your husband or
wife is gone for a long time, or if you would otherwise commit a crime if you
didn’t. Since the word “masturbation” is not mentioned in the Bible, they say
God does not care if you do or don’t. And if God doesn’t care, nobody else
should either, so stop meddling!
But the Bible says that without
holiness “no man shall see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14)
It also says, “Blessed are the pure
in heart: for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8)
In overcoming masturbation, you must decide if it is a hindrance to holiness and purity of
heart. If it is, Scripture promises that you will not see God.
In 1 Corinthians 7:9 God addresses the plight that many single people have.
“If they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn”
1 Corinthians 7:9
God does not say, “It is better to masturbate than to burn.”
Masturbation
does not put out the fire. It only adds fuel
to it.
To the question: Is masturbation a sin, some suggest it is not. In fact, many believe masturbation is a normal function and unless carried on
into marriage, usually proves to be harmless. But, what they do not realize is
that
sex is a desire that God gave us; not a need.
They give the argument that sex is like food. Just like it is natural and
healthy to eat when you are hungry, it is also natural and healthy to
masturbate when you are aroused. If you eat too much you become a slave to
appetite so you just need to be temperate. So, as long as you are temperate in your masturbation habits, it’s okay.
It is true that hunger and sexual desire are natural responses God
endowed us with, but if you go without food you’ll die. If you go without sex,
you’ll live.
One is a need. The other is a want.
When sexual passion
arises within you, your two options are self control or marriage. I
recommend
practicing self control because even in marriage you’ll need it.
Overcoming masturbation now will be a blessing to your sex life long term.
“The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. “
1 Corinthians 7:4-5, NASU
The passage here is saying that your body does not belong to yourself. Your sexual capacity does not exist for yourself but should be used to benefit your future husband or wife.
Masturbation is a perversion of the sexual act because it is by its very nature a completely self-centered act.
Love gives. Lust takes.
This is God’s paradigm of sexuality.
The modern, pleasure driven
culture’s idea of sexuality is that masturbation is their right.
But
masturbation “represents the very antithesis of the disciplined life Jesus
expects from His followers and its selfishness is utterly foreign to the
Kingdom of God.”(Steve Gallagher, Create in me a Pure Heart, p.73)
Self denial is at the core of
God’s Kingdom and is the lifestyle of any disciple.
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”
Luke 9:23 NASU
If you really want a good sex life, adopt the philosophy of Acts 20:35.
“It is more blessed to give than to receive.”
This is the attitude God designed us to have regarding sex and you won’t be completely fulfilled unless you operate in harmony with your design.
Overcoming masturbation will be a gift to your spouse and an evidence of true discipleship.
In the garden of Eden God said it is not good for man to be alone. To resolve this dilemma, God did not instruct Adam to self-stimulate.
Instead he
created a partner suitable for him. Of course there were also reasons of
companionship and procreation, but it is apparent that sexual activity
was never designed to be conducted as a solitaire, mechanical, physical
activity.
It must involve another person, if not physically then mentally.
To create the sexual excitement necessary to bring yourself to orgasm requires that you focus your thoughts on someone else whether that is a pornographic picture, a mental image of someone you know or some sexual romantic fantasy.
Jesus clearly says that lusting after another person in your heart is adultery (Matthew 5:27-28).
“Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”
Rom 6:13-14 NIV
Notice how many times these verses use the word “offer”?
If you offer food to idols or offer a lamb sacrifice to God, you are worshiping. It isn’t just something you are doing in private. How we treat our body reveals who we worship and who we serve.
If you are not overcoming masturbation, you are essentially putting your body
on the altar to the god of lust.
But
if you are tired of being lust’s slave, with its never ending demands for more,
the solution is simple. In the verse above it says to offer your body to God as
instruments of righteousness.
You will then become a slave to Christ which will
produce complete freedom from masturbation.
“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”
Gal 5:16, KJV
Walking in the Spirit is the antidote for fulfilling the lusts of the
flesh. What does “Walking in the Spirit” look like in practical terms? Look at
the next verse.
"Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires;
but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit
desires" (Romans 8:5).
What
you set your mind on determines whether or not you will live according to the
flesh or walk in the Spirit. It means thinking about what pleases God in
contrast to fixing your mind on things like nudity and sex, which outside of
marriage, does not please God.
"So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God"
Romans 8:8
Overcoming masturbation is therefore essential to please God.
Though the Bible never directly answers the question: is masturbation a sin, the above points suggest that the practice of masturbation is not in harmony with God's will for our lives, and therefore, is a sin.
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