When God looked at everything He had made, including our physical bodies, He deemed it “very good” (Gen. 1:31). This approval alone could serve as an imprimatur on sexual activity if there were no other biblical texts on the subject. But that is not the case. We can conclude explicitly and implicitly from dozens of scriptures on the subject that human sexuality is intended by God. Yet, it is carefully regulated (Gen. 1:28, 4:1, 9:1, Exod. 20:14, Lev. 18:1–30, Prov. 6:32, 1 Cor. 6:9, Gal. 5:19, Heb. 13:4).
Seventh-day Adventists believe that bodies matter. What happens to the body is going to affect who a person is or becomes. Our belief in this causal relationship stems from our conviction that humans are a wholistic unity of both physical and nonphysical dimensions. A maxim often heard when discussing biblical anthropology is “A human doesn’t have a soul; a human is a soul” (see Gen. 2:7). That means that bodily actions, such as eating, exercising, physical contact, and sex, are soulish activities and are not to be thought of as events isolated from affecting the whole person. Because God has created our bodies and has a serious stake in our well-being, it should be no surprise that He has something to say about our sexual lives. He knows just how important a subject it is. If any think that God is squeamish about the topic and has austere or puritanical restrictions on sexuality, then we commend to you the Song of Solomon.
Some of the beautiful themes nestled in the Song of Solomon are that love has many faces. The Shulamite can present her lover to Jerusalem’s daughters by declaring, “This is my friend” (Song of Sol. 5:16). Seeing intimacy in other contexts besides the physical deepens our understanding of the love on display. “Knowing,” a veiled expression for sexual union (Gen. 4:1), is not just a random euphemism. Rather, it is a profound description of the depth of personal familiarity and vulnerability that gives sexuality its God-intended meaning.
Wholism Versus Dualism
How one views the relationship of our material dimension (our bodies) to our immaterial dimension (our mental, emotional, spiritual states) has a tremendous influence on how we live. One of the most influential theological breaks our church made with existing Christian tradition was to view the human as a whole rather than as a duality. Though we believe that a person is multifaceted (physical, spiritual, mental, emotional), we believe all those dimensions are woven into a complex whole in which each dimension affects the other. Repercussions of this view are immediately apparent on a number of theological topics. One may be tempted to think that the Adventist Church holds unique positions on any number of independent subjects, such as Creation, resurrection, death, hell, sanctification, and health. But these positions are based on the biblical relationship of the human psyche with human physicality. It is our view of the wholeness of humans that informs, and sets us apart from, the dualism of fellow Christians.
Let’s take an extreme example from Gnosticism that was acutely dualistic and believed anything physical was inherently evil. Sexuality took two different paths (at least) among Gnostics. First, given that the body, according to Gnosticism, is inherently evil, sexuality was to be strictly avoided in all circumstances. Other Gnostics concluded that because the spirit cannot be affected by the body (dualism), what is done in the body is irrelevant. Thus, one can indulge in all the unrestricted sex one wants. So, ascetic or hedonistic sexuality are the extreme results of strong dualism. Though there may not be many card-carrying Gnostics around today, dualism and its consequences can still be detected in Christian experience.
How?
Anytime a Christian thinks that what he or she does in his or her body is not as important as what is done in the “soul,” he or she is in danger of flirting with Gnostic/dualistic philosophies and their consequences. A dualistic Christian may be well aware of Bible prohibitions against inappropriate sexual behavior. But because this individual has done spiritual things, such as submitting his or her “soul” to God, praying and worshiping, and loving God in his or her heart, then sex with his or her unmarried partner doesn’t rank in importance with all the “spiritual” commitments this person has made to God. The “spiritual” has trumped the “physical” in their religious anthropology. This thinking leaves the Christian susceptible to committing sins of the body.
Another problem with this view, besides its variance with biblical wholism, is that it directly violates our experience. Sexuality is meant to be as much an act of the heart and spirit as it is of the body and, ideally, is to be an expression of a very nonphysical entity we call love. Again, those in recovery from abusing their bodies in any number of ways (food, sex, drugs, etc.) are often led to realize the core of their issues as nonphysical (e.g., one’s self-image, dysfunctional relationships, emotional issues). In conclusion, our spiritual/relational life with one another, with God, and with ourselves is dramatically affected by what we do in our bodies. The physical affects the spiritual and vice versa. This conclusion can be leveraged to support biblical principles of sexuality, premarital physical involvement, substance abuse, and health/wellness issues.
Part II: Commentary
A Song for Today
The speed and degree to which Western culture is redefining all things sexual (gender, marriage, appropriate/inappropriate sexual expression, etc.) is dizzying. Fortunately, the echoes of a Judeo-Christian worldview have held in check secular societies’ determined liberation from all religiously informed moral norms. To invoke an almost three-thousand-yearold Hebrew love poem for guidance today on intimacy and sexuality most certainly would be considered laughable in mixed company. However, the Song of Solomon contains themes that, if heeded, would reorient sex and relationships along God’s ideal—an ideal that always restores fulfillment and joy.
Two themes will be briefly noted here: (1) intimate exclusivity and (2) timely love. It is apparent that the loving drama in the poem is between Solomon and his beloved. Though both bride and bridegroom have their respective companions that make frequent appearances (e.g., Song of Sol. 1:4, 5, 11; 2:7; 3:7, 8; 3:11), the intimacy between Solomon and the Shulamite is exclusive (Song of Sol. 2:16). Now imagine a world in which this single principle was taken seriously: a lifelong monogamous intimate relationship with one’s best friend (Song of Sol. 5:16). (Note: All are aware that Solomon was polygamous. But all also are aware that Solomon has become the epitome of violating his own wise counsel. Solomon’s experience is a case in which we must do as he says, not as he did.)
As the lesson notes, the Shulamite is a “wall” and a “garden enclosed” (Song of Sol. 4:12, 8:10). She rightly esteems her heart and virginity as valuable enough to be given only to a committed lifelong companion. She rejects the temptation to be a revolving “door” for a multitude of worthless suitors (Song of Sol. 8:9). The blessings this perspective entails and the heartaches it avoids are too legion to enumerate. However, space will allow at least one lesser-known insight into following this principle.
While traditional/biblical values on sexual abstinence until marriage are often mocked as being an idealistic and antiquated killjoy, it turns out the opposite may be the case. There is evidence that having numerous sexual partners before committing to a single partner for life (in marriage) can undermine the prospects of a “high-quality marriage.”— See Galena K. Rhoades and Scott M. Stanley, “Before ‘I Do’: What Do Premarital Experiences Have to Do With Marital Quality Among Today’s Young Adults?” (Charlottesville, Va.: The National Marriage Project), p. 5. Let that sink in for a moment. God should never be seen as restricting human pleasure, only as regulating it in order to maximize it in the proper time. Here our second theme, timely love, comes into play: the leitmotif of the Shulamite, charging the daughters of Jerusalem to “not stir up or awaken love until it pleases” (Song of Sol. 2:7, 3:5, 8:4, ESV). Sexuality not only was meant to be expressed with a single mate for life (“his eyes are as the eyes of doves” [Song of Sol. 5:12]; doves are known to mate for life), but was intended to be preserved till a threshold of personal and relational maturity was reached.
A current worldwide phenomenon that violates both of these Song of Solomon principles is the explosion of early exposure to graphic sex through the Internet and other media. Again, the consequences of this exposure, no doubt, will be studied for decades to come. But some preliminary observations reinforce that God’s ways preserve the potential for lifelong sexual intimacy within marriage, whereas alternatives are often damaging. For instance, a Time article reported on a population of young men attempting to avoid pornography permanently. Why? Not for religious reasons or any high moral convictions. Rather, they had “marinated” their minds in sexually explicit material so extensively they were not able to perform normal sexual functions in the real world. As one recovering dad sensitively expressed: “I would tell my son, I’ll be straight up with you, all superstimulating things, like Internet porn, junk food, and drugs, can be fun and pleasurable, temporarily . . . however, they also have the potential to desensitize you to normal, natural things and ultimately rob you of the one thing you thought they would give you, the ability to experience pleasure.”—Belinda Luscombe, “Porn and the Threat to Virility,” Time, March 2016: Web accessed: Aug. 2, 2017.
Whereas some poor souls are literally destroying their capacity for sexual pleasure through illicit sexual activity, God is trying to use whatever means He can, including the Song of Solomon, to preserve and maximize the emotional, relational, spiritual, and, yes, physical satisfaction that marriage can bring. Praise His name.
Part III: Life Application
Though necessary, it still can be difficult to broach topics of sexuality in a group setting, such as Sabbath School. Use your discretion in presenting the following activities and hold back using sexually explicit language so as not to offend. Remember, there are most likely church members struggling in this area right now.
Earlier it was stated that the physical affects the spiritual and vice versa. Nowhere is this more glaringly obvious than in sexual activity. Ask the class to elaborate on why that is or to come up with other examples of body/spirit interactions.
Enjoying “the pleasures of sin for a season” is an allure for all, including the Christian (Heb. 11:25). Traditionally, self-denial is seen as the answer to such an allure. But in light of the above reflections, seeking superior pleasure over inferior pleasure can be appealed to as motivation. See if the class can elaborate on this strategy for a number of issues.
Notice the attention to detail the characters in the Song of Solomon use to describe one another. What character attribute do they possess that fosters such adoration? How is this attribute a clue for a happy marriage?
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When God looked at everything He had made, including our physical bodies, He deemed it “very good” (Gen. 1:31). This approval alone could serve as an imprimatur on sexual activity if there were no other biblical texts on the subject. But that is not the case. We can conclude explicitly and implicitly from dozens of scriptures on the subject that human sexuality is intended by God. Yet, it is carefully regulated (Gen. 1:28, 4:1, 9:1, Exod. 20:14, Lev. 18:1–30, Prov. 6:32, 1 Cor. 6:9, Gal. 5:19, Heb. 13:4).
Seventh-day Adventists believe that bodies matter. What happens to the body is going to affect who a person is or becomes. Our belief in this causal relationship stems from our conviction that humans are a wholistic unity of both physical and nonphysical dimensions. A maxim often heard when discussing biblical anthropology is “A human doesn’t have a soul; a human is a soul” (see Gen. 2:7). That means that bodily actions, such as eating, exercising, physical contact, and sex, are soulish activities and are not to be thought of as events isolated from affecting the whole person. Because God has created our bodies and has a serious stake in our well-being, it should be no surprise that He has something to say about our sexual lives. He knows just how important a subject it is. If any think that God is squeamish about the topic and has austere or puritanical restrictions on sexuality, then we commend to you the Song of Solomon.
Some of the beautiful themes nestled in the Song of Solomon are that love has many faces. The Shulamite can present her lover to Jerusalem’s daughters by declaring, “This is my friend” (Song of Sol. 5:16). Seeing intimacy in other contexts besides the physical deepens our understanding of the love on display. “Knowing,” a veiled expression for sexual union (Gen. 4:1), is not just a random euphemism. Rather, it is a profound description of the depth of personal familiarity and vulnerability that gives sexuality its God-intended meaning.
Wholism Versus Dualism
How one views the relationship of our material dimension (our bodies) to our immaterial dimension (our mental, emotional, spiritual states) has a tremendous influence on how we live. One of the most influential theological breaks our church made with existing Christian tradition was to view the human as a whole rather than as a duality. Though we believe that a person is multifaceted (physical, spiritual, mental, emotional), we believe all those dimensions are woven into a complex whole in which each dimension affects the other. Repercussions of this view are immediately apparent on a number of theological topics. One may be tempted to think that the Adventist Church holds unique positions on any number of independent subjects, such as Creation, resurrection, death, hell, sanctification, and health. But these positions are based on the biblical relationship of the human psyche with human physicality. It is our view of the wholeness of humans that informs, and sets us apart from, the dualism of fellow Christians.
Let’s take an extreme example from Gnosticism that was acutely dualistic and believed anything physical was inherently evil. Sexuality took two different paths (at least) among Gnostics. First, given that the body, according to Gnosticism, is inherently evil, sexuality was to be strictly avoided in all circumstances. Other Gnostics concluded that because the spirit cannot be affected by the body (dualism), what is done in the body is irrelevant. Thus, one can indulge in all the unrestricted sex one wants. So, ascetic or hedonistic sexuality are the extreme results of strong dualism. Though there may not be many card-carrying Gnostics around today, dualism and its consequences can still be detected in Christian experience.
How?
Anytime a Christian thinks that what he or she does in his or her body is not as important as what is done in the “soul,” he or she is in danger of flirting with Gnostic/dualistic philosophies and their consequences. A dualistic Christian may be well aware of Bible prohibitions against inappropriate sexual behavior. But because this individual has done spiritual things, such as submitting his or her “soul” to God, praying and worshiping, and loving God in his or her heart, then sex with his or her unmarried partner doesn’t rank in importance with all the “spiritual” commitments this person has made to God. The “spiritual” has trumped the “physical” in their religious anthropology. This thinking leaves the Christian susceptible to committing sins of the body.
Another problem with this view, besides its variance with biblical wholism, is that it directly violates our experience. Sexuality is meant to be as much an act of the heart and spirit as it is of the body and, ideally, is to be an expression of a very nonphysical entity we call love. Again, those in recovery from abusing their bodies in any number of ways (food, sex, drugs, etc.) are often led to realize the core of their issues as nonphysical (e.g., one’s self-image, dysfunctional relationships, emotional issues). In conclusion, our spiritual/relational life with one another, with God, and with ourselves is dramatically affected by what we do in our bodies. The physical affects the spiritual and vice versa. This conclusion can be leveraged to support biblical principles of sexuality, premarital physical involvement, substance abuse, and health/wellness issues.
Part II: Commentary
A Song for Today
The speed and degree to which Western culture is redefining all things sexual (gender, marriage, appropriate/inappropriate sexual expression, etc.) is dizzying. Fortunately, the echoes of a Judeo-Christian worldview have held in check secular societies’ determined liberation from all religiously informed moral norms. To invoke an almost three-thousand-yearold Hebrew love poem for guidance today on intimacy and sexuality most certainly would be considered laughable in mixed company. However, the Song of Solomon contains themes that, if heeded, would reorient sex and relationships along God’s ideal—an ideal that always restores fulfillment and joy.
Two themes will be briefly noted here: (1) intimate exclusivity and (2) timely love. It is apparent that the loving drama in the poem is between Solomon and his beloved. Though both bride and bridegroom have their respective companions that make frequent appearances (e.g., Song of Sol. 1:4, 5, 11; 2:7; 3:7, 8; 3:11), the intimacy between Solomon and the Shulamite is exclusive (Song of Sol. 2:16). Now imagine a world in which this single principle was taken seriously: a lifelong monogamous intimate relationship with one’s best friend (Song of Sol. 5:16). (Note: All are aware that Solomon was polygamous. But all also are aware that Solomon has become the epitome of violating his own wise counsel. Solomon’s experience is a case in which we must do as he says, not as he did.)
As the lesson notes, the Shulamite is a “wall” and a “garden enclosed” (Song of Sol. 4:12, 8:10). She rightly esteems her heart and virginity as valuable enough to be given only to a committed lifelong companion. She rejects the temptation to be a revolving “door” for a multitude of worthless suitors (Song of Sol. 8:9). The blessings this perspective entails and the heartaches it avoids are too legion to enumerate. However, space will allow at least one lesser-known insight into following this principle.
While traditional/biblical values on sexual abstinence until marriage are often mocked as being an idealistic and antiquated killjoy, it turns out the opposite may be the case. There is evidence that having numerous sexual partners before committing to a single partner for life (in marriage) can undermine the prospects of a “high-quality marriage.”— See Galena K. Rhoades and Scott M. Stanley, “Before ‘I Do’: What Do Premarital Experiences Have to Do With Marital Quality Among Today’s Young Adults?” (Charlottesville, Va.: The National Marriage Project), p. 5. Let that sink in for a moment. God should never be seen as restricting human pleasure, only as regulating it in order to maximize it in the proper time. Here our second theme, timely love, comes into play: the leitmotif of the Shulamite, charging the daughters of Jerusalem to “not stir up or awaken love until it pleases” (Song of Sol. 2:7, 3:5, 8:4, ESV). Sexuality not only was meant to be expressed with a single mate for life (“his eyes are as the eyes of doves” [Song of Sol. 5:12]; doves are known to mate for life), but was intended to be preserved till a threshold of personal and relational maturity was reached.
A current worldwide phenomenon that violates both of these Song of Solomon principles is the explosion of early exposure to graphic sex through the Internet and other media. Again, the consequences of this exposure, no doubt, will be studied for decades to come. But some preliminary observations reinforce that God’s ways preserve the potential for lifelong sexual intimacy within marriage, whereas alternatives are often damaging. For instance, a Time article reported on a population of young men attempting to avoid pornography permanently. Why? Not for religious reasons or any high moral convictions. Rather, they had “marinated” their minds in sexually explicit material so extensively they were not able to perform normal sexual functions in the real world. As one recovering dad sensitively expressed: “I would tell my son, I’ll be straight up with you, all superstimulating things, like Internet porn, junk food, and drugs, can be fun and pleasurable, temporarily . . . however, they also have the potential to desensitize you to normal, natural things and ultimately rob you of the one thing you thought they would give you, the ability to experience pleasure.”—Belinda Luscombe, “Porn and the Threat to Virility,” Time, March 2016: Web accessed: Aug. 2, 2017.
Whereas some poor souls are literally destroying their capacity for sexual pleasure through illicit sexual activity, God is trying to use whatever means He can, including the Song of Solomon, to preserve and maximize the emotional, relational, spiritual, and, yes, physical satisfaction that marriage can bring. Praise His name.
Part III: Life Application
Though necessary, it still can be difficult to broach topics of sexuality in a group setting, such as Sabbath School. Use your discretion in presenting the following activities and hold back using sexually explicit language so as not to offend. Remember, there are most likely church members struggling in this area right now.
Earlier it was stated that the physical affects the spiritual and vice versa. Nowhere is this more glaringly obvious than in sexual activity. Ask the class to elaborate on why that is or to come up with other examples of body/spirit interactions.
Enjoying “the pleasures of sin for a season” is an allure for all, including the Christian (Heb. 11:25). Traditionally, self-denial is seen as the answer to such an allure. But in light of the above reflections, seeking superior pleasure over inferior pleasure can be appealed to as motivation. See if the class can elaborate on this strategy for a number of issues.
Notice the attention to detail the characters in the Song of Solomon use to describe one another. What character attribute do they possess that fosters such adoration? How is this attribute a clue for a happy marriage?