Bible Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:3
Do you resent people telling you that you should be abstinent until you are married? Do you think that God is forcing you to abstain from something enjoyable just to boss you
around? Do you feel like shouting, “You can’t make me?”
Well, you are right. No one can “make” you abstain from sex until you are married. (No one can “make” you abstain from overeating or drinking alcohol or taking drugs either.) No one can make you live by the plan God has for you in 1 Thessalonians 4:3 -- “It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality…”
Nelson’s Bible Dictionary defines abstinence as – “The voluntary, self-imposed, and deliberate denial of certain pleasures, such as food, drink, and sex.”
You alone have to choose whether or not you will do any of those things. However, while you do have the choice, today’s verse says that it is God’s will that you remain pure. In other words, God’s special plan for your life includes abstinence from sex until marriage.
Are you trying to live within God’s will – God’s plan – for your life?
God’s plan for you is that you remain pure. That includes abstaining from sex until marriage. If you want to follow God’s plan for your life, you’ll want to make the choice that fits into that plan.
“You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.” Acts 15:29
Prayer: Heavenly Father, I know that You have designed the best plan for my life, including abstinence. Help me to remain pure from today on. In Jesus’ name. Amen.