 Okay, here we are. First Thessalonians 4. We'll look at verses 1 through 8 today, but I'll introduce our passage by looking at verses 1 and 2 and introducing, giving you some background to remind you of some things. I'm developing a foundation, but to be honest with you, the direction we're going is really found in verses 3 through 8. And this is speaking about the believer's walk. What does it mean to walk worthy of the Lord Jesus Christ? And so we'll be looking at that. He especially is going to spend some time in this passage speaking concerning purity. And so that is going to be really the heart of my message as we look at a believer's walk, a walk that is worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In order for us to get to verses 3 through 8 and to allow me to develop that with you and try to become very practical with that, I need to remind you of some of the things that we've already been looking at, a way of introducing this by reminder. There are some who've never, haven't been in any of our studies through this. So this will help you a bit to come up to speed with where we're at here in chapter 4. And so what I'll do is I'll read verses 1 and 2 first, give you some background. It'll take a few minutes to do that, develop the context, give you some reminders, and then move into the practical teaching that we're going to find in verses 3 through 8. So hold on as we go through verses 1 and 2, then we move into practical teaching verses 3 through 8. So I'll read beginning at verse 1, read verse 2, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. Paul writes, Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you receive from us how you ought to walk and to please God, for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. And so it's interesting as we begin how Paul begins this portion of his letter. Notice how he begins with the word finally. It's interesting in that he really has much more to say because he's got a lot to say as we go through from verse 1 of chapter 4 into chapter 5. He's got a lot of things that he wants to speak about. One of the things that we'll be looking at soon is a portion of Scripture that I've been looking for to spending time teaching. And it's a portion of Scripture that refers to something that we the church call the rapture. And we're going to see that Paul is going to be developing that with this church soon in chapter 4. And Paul is going to encourage and comfort the church by sharing about this particular event that we call the rapture. And the rapture is a promise that the Lord will suddenly remove his church in order that the church will be with him. He's going to make it clear that those who are alive will be caught up in the air and will join those who have preceded them by dying. And so this is going to be a word of encouragement. It's a word of encouragement because the church is afflicted. The church is persecuted. And so this word that the Lord is returning to take us would encourage and comfort them because they're facing afflictions. Now we saw in chapter 3 verses 12 and 13 how that Paul had prayed that they would increase in love for one another. And he also had prayed that their love would abound to all. In other words, may the church not only love one another because we're commanded to do that. And by this all men shall know that we're disciples of Christ if we have love for one another. And so we know that love is the birthmark of a believer. And so anybody who calls upon the name of Christ, well, the evidence of his reality of relationship is going to include the love of the Spirit. But it's not only going to be just for brothers and sisters. It's going to also include love for others in a general sense. The Bible in Romans 13 8 says, Oh, no man anything but to love one another. For he who loves another has fulfilled the law. So loving one another is a great testimony first to those who don't know the Lord. Somebody wrote at no other time in the history of Christianity did love so characterize the entire church as it did in the first three centuries. And Roman society took note. Tertullian reported that the Romans would exclaim, behold, how they love one another. And so loving one another is a demonstration that God dwells in us. But loving people in general is also a visible expression of the fruit of the Spirit. Again, the love of the early Christians wasn't limited simply to their fellow believers. Christians also lovingly help nonbelievers, the poor, the orphans, the elderly, the sick, the shipwrecked, even their persecutors. Jesus had said love your enemies and pray for those who spirefully use you and persecute you in Matthew 544. The early Christians accepted this statement as a command from the Lord rather than as an ideal that couldn't be actually practiced in real life. And the love of Christ was demonstrated in so many things that sometimes we forget about the love of Christ was demonstrated in the creation of orphanages. The love of Christ was demonstrated in the creation of hospitals. The love of Christ was those demonstrated in the establishing of universities. It was expressed to society in general. And so loving one another and loving others is a birthmark. It's an earmark of a Christian. And so Paul is speaking concerning that, how that were to abound in love for one another and for all people. We look to Jesus as our example. But Paul said his own example before them. He said, love one another just as we do to you. Not only have we loved you with word, but we have imparted the gospel to you and we have also imparted our very lives to you. So you can use us as an example. And though he was absent from them, he longed to be with them because he wanted to bless them. In verse 13 of chapter 3, he had also prayed that their hearts would be, notice, blameless in holiness. In other words, if God's love filled their hearts, their lives would reveal His love. The fruit of God's Spirit would be evident in them. Galatians 5, 22 and 23, which speaks of the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such, there is no law. The fruit of the Spirit is evident in them. And he said, it's my great desire that you will demonstrate that in your love and in your walk, that you'll be blameless in holiness. And all of this is going to be based on the fact that you are anticipating the return of the Lord at any moment. You see, if you're waiting for the Lord to return, your life will evidence that. In Calvary Chapel, we're well known in the church world as those who are anticipating the return of Christ. The rapture is the next prophecy on the prophetic calendar that is awaiting fulfillment. And there's no other prophecy that needs to be fulfilled before that one is. This is the next event. So from the beginning in our heritage, we as believers and we who are Calvary Chapel pastors, we have known and anticipated the return of the Lord. And we've spoken concerning that for many years. And so this hope of the return of Christ, this hope of the rapture is something that is going to be evidenced by the way that we live. This knowledge that Jesus is returning at any moment is encouraging us to live in a certain way. Titus chapter two, verses 11 through 13 says it like this. The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. When the apostle Peter was writing in 2 Peter 312, he said, since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? Then he answered his own question. He said, you want to live holy and godly lives. So the promise of the return of Christ is intended to provoke response in the heart of a believer and the behavior of a believer. Because if we truly believe he's returning, our lives will evidence that. And that's what John was saying in 1 John 3, 2 and 3 when he said, beloved, now we are children of God and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when he's revealed, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself just as he is pure. So that's what Paul is leading to. He desires to give them more attention to prepare them for the return of Christ. He knows that there are false teachers that are coming in. He knows that they are moved by Satan and undermining the faith of the believers. And he knew that because they were suffering, false teachers could capitalize on this because a false teacher could undermine their faith by claiming believers shouldn't suffer. So that was something Paul had to address. And he's been doing that throughout the letter. And he pointed out that afflictions are part of what it means to be a believer. Instead of destroying faith, affliction is part of our life. Affliction is deep in our faith. It refines, it gets refined, it's strengthened, it makes our faith more focused. And that's the point he's been making. And now he continues his letter by picking up in verse one here in chapter four and saying, finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God. For you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. So he's continuing and urging them. Notice how he says, finally, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus. I urge you as a brother, but I exhort, I plead with you as an apostle. And what am I urging you to do? What am I exhorting you to do? I'm encouraging you to walk and please God. You're to live a life that is for the Lord. You're to walk worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This isn't his conclusion, by the way, but it is leading to an important section of his letter. And it's so important that he uses his authority to urge and exhort them. His plea is that they will abound more and more in the things that they've received. His plea is that they continue maturing in their walks with the Lord and steadily grow in him. Notice in verse one how he says, you received from us how you ought to walk and please God. So when he had first taught them, when he had first taught them, he clearly taught them that they were to live to please the Lord. And the teaching that he had given to them had been received. He says it in verse one. He says, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and please the Lord. The word received means to welcome. You welcomed this. You accepted this. You received these orders in order that you might live in such a way as to please the Lord. You wanted to be instructed on how to be saved, but you also need to know as a saved person how you're supposed to live. You've already been taught. You already know you're supposed to please the Lord. And you need to remember that your faith is going to inform the way that you live. There's a lot of people to date that you might encounter that I do. I'll see them either personally or I'll see them on television sometimes or whatever I run into them in one way or another. And they'll be saying how much they love the Lord, but in fact, they're not obedient to him. They're not showing in any way through their life that they have a relationship with the Lord. And there are quite a number of people today who are doing that or living like that. But he says you need to abound more and more in the things you've received. You need to continue to grow. You need to walk properly. You need to learn to please the Lord. You see the teaching you accepted and the teaching you welcomed instructed you, but it also is instructing you not only how to be saved, but how to live. You know you're supposed to please the Lord. You know to live in that way. It's like what he says to the Colossians in chapter one, verse 10, that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. So when he speaks concerning the walk, how you're to walk, the word walk there is a word that speaks concerning your way of life. It's how you conduct yourself. The way that you walk in Scripture is another way of speaking the way you live. And the word please there simply means to accommodate yourself to the opinion, desire and interests of someone else. So he's saying a Christian's desire to yield to God's desire for him or her to be pleasing to him ought to inform the way that he lives. And so he's speaking about a walk that pleases God. When you read the Bible, you'll see that there are a lot of Scriptures that speak about how to please God, how to walk and please the Lord. The Bible tells us that we can please the Lord with a walk of faith. Hebrews 116 says without faith it's impossible to please him, for he who comes to God must believe that he is and that he's a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. If we're going to live a life that pleases the Lord, we need to have a walk that is sensitive to the leading of the spirit. In Galatians 516 Paul said walk in the spirit, you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. If we're going to walk and please the Lord, we need a walk that is producing good works. Ephesians 2-10 says we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. If we're going to please the Lord, we need a walk that is earmarked by his love. Ephesians 5-2, walk in love as Christ also has loved us and given himself for us and offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling aroma. If we're going to walk in a way that pleases him, we need a walk earmarked by wisdom. Colossians 4 verse 5, walk in wisdom toward those who are outside redeeming the time. If we're going to walk in a way that pleases him, we need a walk that is morally pure, one that values Christian fellowship. 1 John 1-7, if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ's Son cleanses us from all sin. If I'm going to have a walk that pleases him, I need a walk earmarked by obedience to his word. 2 John verse 6, this is love that we walk according to his commandments. And if I'm going to have a walk that pleases him, I need a walk that is consistently holy. Ephesians 5 verse 8, you were once darkness, but now you are a light in the Lord, walk as children of light. And so he's saying, you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God. You welcomed it as the word of God. You embraced it, receiving and acting upon it. Because when I gave you the message of salvation, I also intended to communicate you how to live. And he said in verse 2, for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. So I've previously instructed you and these instructions are binding because of the authority that Christ has given to me. So we have divine orders concerning our lifestyles. We are to be set apart for Jesus Christ. The Christian must live in the world, but he must not let the world live in him. Jesus said in John 17 15 through 17, I do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth. So he's saying, I want to speak to you and command you how to walk and please God. Now we pick up the application of that walking and pleasing God, how to walk. The believers walk. Verse three, this is the will of God, your sanctification, that you should abstain from sexual immorality, that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel and sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God, that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the Avenger of all such as we also forewarned you and testified for God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore, he who rejects this does not reject man, but God who has also given us his Holy Spirit. The believers walk. How to walk and please the Lord. Let's look at that. You know there are guys who speak, I've heard this before, some of you perhaps have heard it also, maybe even said it, where people have said, I just want to know the will of the Lord. Why doesn't God tell me what his will is? I really want to know the will of the Lord, as if the Lord is going to, you know, hire somebody in one of those airplanes to go right across the sky. This is my will for you. Well, God has given to us his will. It's determined, it's rather demonstrated here in verse three. Listen to what he says. This is the will of God, your sanctification. And you see that's great, but he goes on to say that you should abstain from sexual immorality. This is the will of God, that you might have a life that set apart to God. And a life that is set apart to God is sexually pure. That's what he's saying. Many years ago I was an assisting pastor in another Calvary ministry. And the secretary of the church received a phone call with a request from somebody who didn't go to the church, but had been told that she ought to call and see if she could sit down with me. This was back in like 1979, 1980. And so I did a lot of the ministry counseling there and all. And so the senior pastor said, well, see if David will meet with her. And so long story made short, she didn't go to the church. She had just received advice to give a call and speak to me. And so I made an appointment to meet with her after a Sunday morning. And I waited for her. And she was supposed to bring her boyfriend. And she and her boyfriend were having some problems. And so as they came, as he came, rather she came and sat down in the office, I remember opening the conversation by saying something like, I thought you were having problems with a boyfriend. She said, we are having problems. And I said, and I was told that you wanted to talk to me with him that he was supposed to be here. And she said, well, he was supposed to be here. And I said, may I ask where he is? And she said, well, I went to go pick him up to bring him. But he was playing, I think he was playing either a football or playing a softball game with some friends. She said, I went to pick him up to bring him so we could meet with you, but he didn't want to come. So I chose to come by myself. And I said, oh, you've got a relational problem, but the person that you're having the problem with didn't want to come to counsel. She said, no, he wanted to place whatever game he was playing. I said, okay. I said, so what can we speak about? So she starts speaking to me concerning the problems and all. And it's never going to really be that effective if he's not there to kind of give his side or whatever. And so finally, as she's sharing, I asked her a couple of questions. I said to her this, I said, listen, are you a Christian? She said, yes. I said, and how do you know that you're a Christian? And she shared with me and she obviously knew enough of the gospel to have claimed Christ as her savior. And I said, okay, now your boyfriend, is he a Christian? She says, no, he's not. I said, your boyfriend's not a believer. And she said, no, I said, what are you doing with him? She says, well, he's my boyfriend. I said, I know. But the Bible says, be not unequally yoked together with an unbeliever. I said, the scripture teaches that a believer is not to have relationship with the nonbeliever. I said, have you not heard that? And she says, no, I've never heard that. I said, do you go to church? And she says, I go every Sunday. I said, you go to church every Sunday, but you've never been taught about relationships like that, that believing women, believing men are not to be unequally yoked with those who don't have relationships with the Lord. She said, I've never been taught that. I said, well, there's a root of your problem. So we continued conversing. And then I said, what is it in particular that you really want to talk about? And she says, well, we've been having sex. And I said, oh, no, wait a minute. Okay, so you're with an unbeliever. And you're having sexual intercourse. And she said, yes. I said, okay, has anybody ever told you that that's called fornication? That's a sexual sin? And she says, no, I said, you're a Christian. Yes, you go to church. Yes. Has your pastor ever taught a passage that relates to that? She says he never has. I said, well, let me show you what the scripture says. We had our conversation at that time. And I said to her listening, I said, one, you're already violating God's word because you're in a relationship with the nonbeliever. Two, you're violating God's word because you're having sexual intercourse outside of marriage. I said, so you're expected to somehow heal this? I said, it's not going to heal. I said, he didn't care enough about you to even come and sit down and talk to me about the problem. He's telling you how he feels by his absence. He's speaking loudly in this room by the fact that he's not here. So if you want advice, my advice is simple, break up with the guy and get right with God. He's not a believer. You're in sexual sin and you need to repent and move on with Christ. And she says, well, thank you. You know, that's not the kind of advice you probably wanted. But she said, thank you. And she left. She didn't go to the church. She never phoned again. We planted this church. So it was in 81. So we planted this church. And I got a letter in the mail and I still remember. I have it somewhere. I remember reading that letter where she said, you probably won't remember me. I was the young lady in your office crying about the relationship I had with a guy. And you told me that I was in sin. I needed to repent, get right with God and that God would heal me. She said, I just wanted to do some follow up. And it had by that time been three or four years. She said, I just wanted to do some follow up. She said, I took your advice. I broke up with him. I went to school. I joined went to college. I was in the Christian club on the college campus. I became the president of the Christian club. When I became president of the Christian club, I met a young man. We began to date. He asked me to marry him. And I want you to know that I was that young girl crying in your office. But now I'm that young woman following Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ. And I met the right guy. And I just want you to know that the Bible, you know, it isn't that this young lady wanted to be in sin. This young lady was basically following the course of the age, the course of the world, the things that people did. Because after all, if you like somebody, don't you sleep with them? And that's the way the world was even back almost 40 years ago now. It was already moving in that direction. But the Bible is very clear. And when I spoke to her and said, has nobody taught you this? She was not in a church that went through the Bible. And so she'd never been taught that. See, Paul made it very clear. And we're going to look at that right now. He says in verse three, this is the will of God, your sanctification that you should abstain from sexual immorality. Sexual immorality is really a single Greek word. And it's the Greek word is pernaeus. The word pernaeus speaks of every form of sexual practice that lies outside the circle of God's revealed will, including adultery, premarital, and extramarital intercourse, homosexuality, bestiality, and other perversions. Pornia, that is where you get the word porn from pornography is speaking of sexual practices. Now fornication or sexual immorality was common amongst the pagans and it still is. It's possible that the Thessalonians had continued its practice after their conversion. That's not improbable because sexual restraint was almost unheard of in Greek culture. For pagan Greeks, it was unreasonable to encourage people to sexual restraint. Because at that time it was assumed that a man would find sexual pleasure outside of marriage. And because of this sexual activity was lightly regarded, widely accepted as natural. And some even argued that sexual fulfillment was natural and neutral. It was simply an appetite. And they likened it to an appetite or a desire to drink or desire to eat. As a matter of fact, Paul addresses that in 1 Corinthians chapter six, verse 13, because there was a statement at that time. They're saying, if you're hungry, you eat. And in 1 Corinthians 6, 13, Paul said, food for the stomach and the stomach for food. But God will destroy them both. The body isn't meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord and the Lord for the body. You see, many today don't believe that fornication is a sin. Even in the church, there's a tremendous lack of understanding about this subject. Sexual promiscuity is incomplete with the life of holiness. Sexual sin destroys the foundation of intimacy that's established in the covenant of marriage. You see, by virtue of creation, marriage is God's design for proper sexual relationships. It's intended to be enjoyed between a man and a woman who are married. In Genesis 224, a man shall leave his father and mother be joined to his wife. They shall become one flesh. So God's command for marriage is intended to produce a godly couple producing God-fearing children. And sexual sin's a sin against God. It's not only a sin against God, but in a way, very practically, it's even a sin against your own self. In 1 Corinthians 6, 15, and 16, Paul said it like this, do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not. Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For the two, he says, shall become one flesh. Sexual purity recognizes our relationship to God. Sexual immorality is a violation of God's intent for sexual intimacy. It destroys the marriage covenant. It often leads to divorce, and it very often leaves behind broken children. In Scripture, sexual involvement outside of marriage is revealed as sin. In Hebrews 13 verse 4, marriage should be honored by all, the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. You see, the believer is to live a life that is blameless and holy before God and man. And the difference of our lifestyles, the difference between the lifestyle of a believer and an unbeliever should provide contrast. In Philippians 2 15, Paul said that you may become blameless and harmless children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation among whom you shine as lights in the world. Fornication is a serious sin. Some people don't think it is, but it is. Fornication is a sin that eliminates you from entrance into heaven. Somebody argues that that's not true. Really, Ephesians 5, 5 and 6, this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Let no one deceive you. So he's speaking concerning sexual sin, abstain, he says, from sexual immorality. He says in verse 4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God. We are to devote our bodies as sacred vessels that are devoted to Christ. Romans 12 1 and 2 says it like this, I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that you present your bodies as the living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. So we are to abstain through voluntary self-discipline from sexual sin. Now somebody says, well that's nice to say, but sexual desire can be very great. So you're with the girl, taking a male perspective, and as you're whether you're alone, nobody around, nobody watching you, you begin to kiss and then you move into other things, and before you know it, you're prepared, you're wanting to have sex. Let me ask you a question. Because there are those guys who will say, man, you know, pastor, that's where you're making a mistake. You don't understand or perhaps you don't remember, you know, you're an old man, let me remind you. You know, when all systems are go, it's not like you can just shut them down. You understand that, don't you pastor? You ever remember that? Okay, here's your hypothetical question. You're with a girl, you're moving into a moment of intimacy, all systems are go. Would it make any difference to you just before you enter into sex, if she said to you, oh by the way, I'm HIV positive? Would that make any difference to you? Would all systems shut down? I suspect they would. I suspect immediately all of that. That's what would happen to you. Why? Because the fear of AIDS is greater in you than the fear of God. That's why, because it isn't God you fear, it's disease. And that's why the church is so messed up today, because the church doesn't fear God, because the church doesn't listen to what God says, because we know better than God. That's why. And the bottom line is, your body is a sacred vessel into the Lord. You have been dedicated to him for his service. Yes, sexual desire can be very great, but you need to remember the consequences. There's no such thing as a harmless sexual activity, no such thing. Besides the fact of it being a sin, there are also consequences like diseases and pregnancies, and then some have moved into abortions. He says in verse 5, we're not to have our bodies, we're not to have them in passion of lust like Gentiles. Notice who do not know God. Pagans don't have an idea about God's commands, Christian purity. They don't really care. They don't know the Lord. They haven't responded to him, but when we're saved, we're not to use our bodies for sinful passion, but for service to him. And says, so he says in verse 5, not in passion of lust like the Gentiles who don't know God, but here's something very practical, verse 6, that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter because the Lord is the Avenger of all such as we also forewarned you and testified that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother. The word advantage means to gain something from somebody else. It speaks of taking advantage of somebody. The word defraud means to corrupt or try to corrupt the wife of somebody else, to try to alienate her affection or fidelity from her husband. One of the things that isn't spoken about is what Paul is speaking about right here. I'll read it again and I'll give you some insight into this. No one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter because the Lord is the Avenger of all such as we also forewarned you and testified. You're in church. You're single. You meet somebody. We'll take again. I'll use the male perspective as a man. You meet a young lady. She's sitting. You see her. You walk up to her. Hi, how are you? Go to the church. Yeah, how long you've been here? You make small talk. Before you know it, you see her again. Then you see her again. And after a while, you start thinking she doesn't seem to be attached. You looked at her hand. There's no ring there. So you talk to her. She's unmarried. She's unattached. Before you know it, you ask her out. Why not? So you say, would you like to go out and get some coffee or whatever you do? And she says, why not? So out you go and you go on a date and you like her. You visit with her. She's nice. She likes you. You go to Bible studies together. You go to church together. As a matter of fact, at first, you even meet each other in church. I'll see you there on Sunday. I'll see you there once or whenever you go. I'll see you. And now you're connecting. And as you're connecting, you're starting to think more about her and you're starting to like her even more. But you've gone out once or twice and all. And you kind of played it kind of cool with her and all. You don't know whether or not she finds you attractive. So you're wondering. I wonder, you know, maybe, you know, I'll just hold her hand, but maybe you're a shy kind of guy. I was real shy. You know, I'm a shy kind of guy. And I thought, well, you know, I don't know if she wants to hold my hand. Maybe that's too forward. So Marie and I, the girl I ended up marrying, Marie and I, you know, we go out on a date. And I started thinking, I wonder if I wonder if she'd like me to hold her hand. And we'd been going out for several weeks and I'd never touched her, never held her hand or anything like that. So I'm thinking, I wonder if she wants me to hold her hand. So I noticed she would put her purse on her left shoulder with her right hand free when I was standing on her right side. I noticed that. So I thought, I wonder if that's a hint. So what I did, this is a truth. I'm not lying. This is the truth. What I did is I pretended there was something on the ground as she took a couple of steps in front of me. Then I picked up my, and I walked around the other side where her purse was. And she switched her purse to the other side. So I thought, ah, she wants the touch. You know, I, so I thought, so I thought, I wonder if she's leaving that free for a reason. So I stopped again and she keeps walking and then I just kind of moseyed onto the other side. And now she's switching her purse to that. I didn't hold her hand for several weeks, several weeks, never did. Then one day the guy touches her hand. It's like electricity. Your hair goes straight up. Oh, she's holding my hand. But you know what, that after a while, you know, I was just holding hands. So you think, kiss her good night. So now some of you guys make out in the first night. I didn't. So I ain't kissing her for five months. So I think, yeah, maybe you ought to try that. So you kiss and all of a sudden my glasses fell off my face. Well, what I'm really talking about is the law of diminishing return. There's this anticipation that you have even the first time you call him up for a date and your heart begins to raise. I hope that they answer the phone. I hope that she doesn't mind me calling. And then you have this rush when she says, oh, hi. And then there's that, how she visits with me. But now she's going out. Now I've held her hand. Now I've kissed her. And what happens, guys, is the thrill doesn't last. So you can potentially, first you called up, first you met him, then you called him, then you dated, then you touched the hand, then you kissed him, and then you got bored and then you decided to get handsy. And before you know it, she's respecting you. She thinks you're a spiritual guy. And you begin to act, oh, you know, like you are. But now you're starting to make moves on her. After a while, you'll wear her down a little bit before you know it. You're into relationship. You're in sex. And you're saying, this is wrong. I know I'm wrong. You feel like you're trapped for a while. She's feeling trapped. And then one day you say to her, you know what, we're not good for each other. And I'm so sorry, God forgive me how I've sinned against you and I've sinned against God. Forgive me, but we got to break up. And she says, I hear you on that. And you go one way and he goes the other. She goes the other. And then one day some guy meets her in the same way you did. And he likes her and he talks to her. He takes her out, but he treats her like a lady. He treats her the way she's supposed to be treated. He treats her with honor and respect. He opens her door. He pays for the meal. He shows the kind of respect a man should show for a woman. And she says to herself, now this is a real man. He reads the word. He prays with her. He serves next to her. And then one day he says to her after weeks, months, a year, whatever, he says, you know what, you are the girl that I prayed for. I know that God prepared you just for me. And I want you to marry me. Will you marry me? And she looks at him. And she's kept a secret. She hasn't said anything. And she finally says, well, you know what, man, we've been doing well together and I really have grown to love you. But we haven't really talked about some things that you probably ought to know. You know, there was somebody else in my life. And I was with him. And I gave my purity to him. And that man looks at her. You defrauded your brother. That's what Paul's talking about. You defrauded your brother. You took from him what belonged to him, which is her purity. You took it. You used it, got rid of it. Oh, God, thank you for your forgiveness. I knew. But her husband was defrauded of what belonged rightfully to him because of what you did. And that's what Paul is saying here. He says it. Listen, no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter because the Lord is the Avenger of all such as we also forewarned you and testified. Somebody said promiscuity before marriage represents the robbing of the other of that virginity, which ought to be brought to a marriage. The future partner of such a one has been defrauded. Paul says, live in purity. Don't take what doesn't belong to you. If a man loves her enough to want to sleep with her, he ought to love her enough to marry her and keep her pure before the Lord. Because that's what God has called men to do is to honor, respect, and cherish those women. And when a woman yields herself, she loses a part of herself. You're defrauded. You're defrauding yourself and you're defrauding your brother. Sexual sin, yeah, it's a sin. God intends marriage to be a place where a godly couple has godly children. It's a testimony to people. There are people who talk about all the problems they have in marriage and this and that. It's not that we don't have problems. Marie and I have problems. She doesn't always agree with me. She eventually doesn't. That's why the problem is solved. No, we, but you know what? We've always known as a married couple, we've always known that God comes first. He's the one who brought us together. He's the one who keeps us together and we together serve him. And we haven't found any mountain or obstacle that we can overcome with him. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us, but we've had to learn. We have to learn how to love one another, how to care for one another. And so Paul is simply saying that, that, that a man should not be defrauding, taking advantage of another man by taking from that man that which didn't belong to him. And so be careful in these issues of sexual immorality because it's destructive in so many ways. He says in verse seven, God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore, he who rejects this doesn't reject man, but God who has also given us his Holy Spirit. If you ignore this, he's saying you will reap what you sow. And God is the Avenger. God administrates justice fairly and no sin goes ignored. There are repercussions that will follow. Remember, God didn't call us to uncleanness, but to live holy separated lives. You see, sexual purity reflects on the purity of the whole person. Your character is revealed through your obedience to God's Word because the Holy Spirit, coupled with the Holy Word, when obeyed, produces holy lives. And so God gives us his Word and he has not called us to live in an unclean, impure way, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he said in verse eight, he who rejects this doesn't reject man, but God. So somebody says, well, that's your opinion, Paul says, no, you're not rejecting me. You're rejecting God. You're rejecting what God says in his Word. And by rejecting the command, you in reality are rejecting the God who gave it. And so this is that serious sin, so serious that he took this much time to speak concerning it. Many have failed. I don't say this lightly because it could be taken lightly. Many have failed. But guess what? My God is forgiving God and a loving God. Our God forgives. And I believe in something called second virginity, which simply means that you can come to faith in Christ, you can be washed clean from your sin, and you can live as if you have never been touched. You can live in such a way that your life is as pure. And yes, there are physical things that cannot be denied, but you can start over in Christ and you can have a pure and beautiful life and you can and will be forgiven by God. And he changes you. Now, I don't want to go into many personal details about this. I have a friend whose wife and I'll leave him unnamed because it's too personal, but I will say this, a friend whose wife was a prostitute and the Lord saved her. And this friend of mine is a pastor and his wife serves Jesus with purity because God forgives and he heals and he cleanses anyone in Christ. It's a new creation. All things are passed away. Behold, all things become new. So if you failed, just lift it to God. God forgive me. I am a sinner. I need you. Wash me, cleanse me, make me new. I will follow you and the Lord will answer that prayer and you will be brand new in him. That's the God that we serve and he will wash and he will cleanse you. Keep that in mind. Keep that in mind.