Humans, by design, simply can’t help but want more and more and more of a great thing. Certain types of drugs, a favorite song, a delicious dessert, winning at poker or, yes, masturbation turn on those enjoyable “reward” lights, too. The danger in this is that man has discovered other ways to trigger that brain-reward system.
God made your brain to reward your body for a job well-done. In the book of Genesis, God gave mankind a commandment to have children ( Genesis 1:22 Genesis 1:28 Genesis 9:1) and, as an added benefit, He made it really, really enjoyable. Why? Are you sitting down? He designed your brain to want more of that feeling. God intentionally, wonderfully, designed the brain to light up like a Christmas tree when you orgasm. A recent study, in which a neuroscientist masturbated to the point of orgasm while the brain was being scanned by an fMRI machine, showed that masturbation to the point of orgasm activates and effects over 30 areas of the brain, including those involved in touch, memory, reward, and even pain.Ĭonsidered individually, the results looked random, but considered as a whole, the study revealed something that Christians should already know: there’s a design to all of it. The real harmful effects of masturbation are documented, too, and they’re a lot more damaging than some hair on your palms or going blind. And as men let’s be real: That’s what’s going to happen. While masturbation isn’t a sin, it can lead to sinful behaviors. I would like to point out an important point: Sexual “ownership” of your spouse is not ever against their own desire and should never be an excuse for sexual control or abuse. And if you’re not married yet? Your body still belongs to the Lord until it belongs also to your spouse one day. Paul takes it one step further, when he tells us that we should yield control of our bodies, sexually, to our loving marriage partner. However, the Bible’s perspective on “due affection” is all about providing sexual pleasure to your spouse.
This is contrary to the world’s way of thinking, because the world’s advice on masturbation is all about giving yourself pleasure. And, if you’re not married, your future wife.ġ Corinthians 7:3-4 says that due affection should be given to your spouse. So, while, masturbation is incredibly convenient for bringing yourself to an orgasm-for whatever reason you need it when you need it-it can also be very destructive to intimacy with your wife. 16:20) and ask Him for guidance, you’re on the right path.
As long as you are striving to “glorify God in your body and in your spirit,” ( 1 Cor. 6:19) This is a mindset, not a behavior-and it’s an important one.Īt the end of the day, you are accountable to the Owner of your body-that is Jesus Christ-for what you put into it, do to it, and use it for. Besides, your body doesn’t belong to you, anyway, it belongs to the Lord. Just because it’s not labeled a sin, doesn’t make it righteous. The bottom line? Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.
While it’s not too terribly specific, this passage does happen to mention two areas where a lot of people struggle: Food and sexual immorality ( 1 Cor. Maybe the most well-known section of Scripture, regarding how we should treat our bodies, can be found in 1 Corinthians 6:12-20. What the Bible does do is give you, the Christian, some very practical and powerful direction on how you should make decisions with your body, soul, and spirit. Of course, the Bible doesn’t address Oreo cookies, either, so the argument that masturbation is or isn’t an issue, because Paul didn’t write about it (or Jesus didn’t say it) is a very dangerous perspective of Scripture in all unaddressed areas. Along with so many other issues and struggles that Christians may have, the Bible doesn’t directly or specifically address masturbation.
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