Angela Chininin Buele
How Feeling Good Has Been Confused for the Reason for Living
Sex used to be commonly understood as the marital rite of passage that it is-a thrilling new secret adventure, entwining a husband and a wife into one heart, mind, and body. It has been increasingly shoved into the limelight, however, and even been marketed as a civilly protected right. Any economist can tell you that overstock drives prices down, and so it is now that we have lots and lots of cheap sex all around us. Not only has this overexposure led to heart-wrenching depravity of how, with whom, and how much; but even the dulling of passion strips this glorious intimacy of its due power.
I am often mocked when I highlight the side effects of the Industrial Revolution. The great thing about starting a “what if” conversation is that it should make both parties think more about what is, what could have been , and how they both might merge in the future. So, I think that the Industrial Revolution set us on a devastating course of producing cheap products (thus losing the capacity and drive to be dedicated craftsmen), overconsuming and wasting these products (as cheap things break, no one is upset when more stylish, cheap things come out to replace them), and diminishing the values of contentment and stewardship. There you go. That’s my opinion, and I’m happy to defend or amend it as any pushback would warrant.
The truth is, advancement in technology has been used in many ways to spread sexual “liberation” to all reaches of the globe at the speed of light. Clearly, two things are worthy of noting here. First, sexual immorality was already present around the world long before the internet – or even electricity – was invented. Also, almost all technology can also be used to the glory of God. But the clamor of convenience can also deafen the ears – and minds – to the things of God. As masses try to get more out of exchanges that mean less and less, the false gospel of sex salvation has been developed around two central doctrines: Everyone should celebrate what makes you sexually fulfilled, and no one should keep you from seeking sexual fulfillment. If he were alive today, Karl Marx would likely be forced to call sex a religion for it sure seems to be the opium of the masses. And no social stigma or “unwanted” babies will be allowed to kill the buzz.
Our evil desires lure us to sin. We seek that which will enslave us. But the solution is redeeming sex, not eliminating it, as many a caricature of Christians might like to infer. It’s not enough to reclaim it as a prize for our own dominion, but we must surrender it to glory of its Designer.
Key Question: Is all of this talk of sexual liberation actually leading you to deep enslavement?
Unshakable Truth: “Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.” Proverbs 26:11
Illicit encounters, images, and conversations, violent attacks and systematic abuse, and the deadening of intellectual and physiological excitement are the vomit one returns to when folly urges he rejection of God’s rightful dominion over the delights of the marriage bed.
The Real Choice: Are you willing to take a new litmus test and drink the living water to break the cycle of vomit?