Sex & Marriage // 1 Cor. 7:1-9

What happens when the church swings between extremes on sexuality, from rigid purity culture to complete permissiveness? In this message, Pastor Evan tackles this challenging topic head-on, offering a balanced biblical perspective that celebrates sex as God's good gift while maintaining its sacred place within marriage. Drawing from 1 Corinthians 7:1-9, he presents eight biblical "P" lenses - including purity, promise, partnering, pleasure, and protection, passion, picture & pardon, to help us understand God's design for sexual intimacy. Using the vivid metaphor of fire in a fireplace, Pastor Evan illustrates how sexual passion isn't shameful but must be properly channeled to bring warmth and light rather than destruction. He emphasizes that marital intimacy isn't about power or entitlement, but mutual self-giving love that reflects Christ's covenant with His church. Most powerfully, he concludes with a message of hope and healing for those carrying sexual shame or past wounds, reminding us that in Christ we are washed clean and empowered to live in sexual wholeness. The sermon calls the church to be a voice of healing in a sexually confused culture, offering God's better way of covenant love and faithful stewardship of our sexuality. Thanks for listening to this sermon from Bethel Baptist Church. If the message encouraged you, we would love to meet you in person this Sunday. You can find service times, directions, and more information at www.betheltopeka.org. And if you would like to support the ministry of Bethel, you can give securely online at www.betheltopeka.org/give. God bless, and we hope to see you soon.