Marriage Prep 101

• Garden of Eden – In the pure and sinless Eden, sex between Adam and Eve was pure, natural, and completely satisfying (Genesis 2:24-25).
• The fall of man – Sin entered between God and man and resulted in a complexity in marriage. Since then, there continues to be struggles and misuse of sex.
• 4th Century – Sex is seen as a continuation of Adam's sin passed on in a physical way.
• 17th Century – Views on sex changed to the opposite view sin in previous periods. Sex was considered dirty and only tolerated in marriage. Sex was seen primarily for procreation.
• 20th Century – Views on sex changed to the opposite view seen in previous periods. Sex is seen as fun and free from consequences. During the 1980's sex became more serious due to the presence of sexually transmitted diseases. This led to the view that sex should be practices safely. From 200 to the present, sex is focused on an individual's pleasure seen in the rise of pornography, homosexuality, and other gratification of self-desires.

Sex is good (Genesis 1:27, Genesis 1:31). God created sex and established that when practiced within the marriage, it is natural and without guilt or shame (Genesis 2:24-25). See also Hebrews 13:4, Song of Solomon 7:1-9, Proverbs 5:18-19.

Sex is for marriage only – God clearly designed sex to be engaged freely within the context of marriage. It is the basic teaching of sex within the Bible. See Exodus 20:14; I Corinthians 7:1-2.

Sex is unselfish affection – Although there is pleasure for an individual in sex, it reaches the highest level of satisfaction when it is focused on pleasing the other person rather than self. When we please the other person, we will be satisfied. Good sex requires giving from both partners.

Sex is uninterrupted – Sex is meant to provide pleasure for all of married life. God created marriage to last for a lifetime, therefore sex within a marriage should last a lifetime as well. It is a myth that older married couple cannot enjoy sex.

Without effective communication we will misunderstand our partner's needs and desires. This especially includes our communication about sex. We understand that our views and abilities with sex change as our life changes and we age. Therefore, it is all the more important that we continue to communicate about all parts of our life.

Activity: The objective of this activity is to foster connection, closeness, positive feelings, and gratitude between each other. It is intended as an assignment to be completed at home and shared only between the two of them.

Each partner is asked to choose a compliment or positive quality to describe their partner for each letter of their partner's name.

They then read their list, while describing the impact to their feelings about themselves and their partner.

Sex is a wonderful gift from God to help us grow closer with each other as we support, encourage, and express our love as He intends for us. In recognizing this, it offers us yet another reason to glorify God and to seek to discover more and draw closer to Him.

Our recognition of how God designed sex as part of the marriage, we help others discover God's will for purity in all things about our life.