Session 15 · 1 Corinthians 6:12-20
Sexual Morality
Appetite, self-control and hope for change
Book reading: Book Three, Chapter 5 (Sexual Morality)
This is a topic where many of us arrive carrying shame, confusion or both. So start with this: Lewis's chapter on sexual morality is aimed at helping, not at crushing. In his framing, it is the sexual appetite that has gotten out of order, not Christian teaching that has gotten out of touch. The chapter also asks what hope and what challenges face anyone seeking change. Read it with that tone in mind: honest about the struggle, and hopeful.
Paul meets a similar problem in Corinth. Some believers there had slogans to justify their habits. Paul quotes one of them: "All things are lawful for me." Then he answers it. Not everything is helpful, he says, and he refuses to be mastered by anything. That is a useful test for any appetite. The question is not only whether something is allowed. It is whether it is good for me, and whether it is running me.
He quotes another slogan: "Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food." The idea is that the body just does what bodies do, so nothing here matters. Paul disagrees. The body, he says, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. He points to the resurrection: God raised the Lord and will raise us too. Our bodies are not disposable. They have a future.
Paul then gets personal. Our bodies are members of Christ, and he calls the body a temple of the Holy Spirit. His command is short: "Flee from sexual immorality." Fleeing is the word of someone who knows that sometimes the wisest move is not to stand and argue with temptation, but to leave the room.
Then comes the reason that makes the rest bearable: "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price." That can sound heavy until you notice who paid and why. We belong to someone who values us enough to pay. Paul closes with a gentle, practical line: "So glorify God in your body." It is a call to honor, not only a ban.
What does this mean for real life? Self-control grows slowly, and grace covers the stumbles. If your struggle feels bigger than willpower, such as a habit that has you trapped, or pain and shame from your past, please talk with a pastor, counselor or trusted friend. Asking for help is part of fleeing, not a sign you have failed. Change is a long road for nearly everyone, and Christ walks it with those who keep turning toward him.
Key idea
Paul does not stop at asking whether something is allowed. He asks whether it is helpful and whether it is mastering you, and he anchors the answer in belonging to Christ, not in shame.
Questions to consider
- Paul tests an appetite by asking if it is helpful and if it masters us. Where in your life, not only sexual, would that test change your answer?
- What does it mean to you that you "were bought with a price," and how does that change the way you handle shame and struggle?
Journal prompt
Write a short, honest prayer about one area where an appetite feels bigger than you would like. Ask for help, and list one trusted person you could tell about it.
Practice
1. Choose one habit or appetite you want to bring under better control. 2. Write down 3 specific moments when it pulls hardest and one "flee" step for each (leave the room, call someone, change the setting). 3. Tell one trusted person your plan this week.