Man, Woman, & Sexuality (KC)

INTRODUCTION

There might not be a more contested topic in the modern era than human sexuality, and this is because a constellation of cultural leaders going back to Darwin, Rousseau, Freud, and Marx have successfully discipled a number of generations in their claims that human freedom, happiness, and fulfillment come from individuals following their own feelings and desires, and sexual desires have come to be seen as the center of what it means to be human. While it is sometimes claimed that Jesus had nothing to say about these things, that is simply not true. And here, in this text, is one such place where Jesus gives us His authoritative word on human sexuality. It has been a massive failure of the Christian Church not to declare these words authoritatively and stand behind them with loving discipline.

THE TEXT

“…But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; and the twain shall be one flesh: so that they are not more twain but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mk. 10:2-9).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The Pharisees come to test Jesus with a question about divorce, no doubt trying to catch Him in the intricacies of their traditions, the law, and public opinion (Mk. 10:2). Jesus turns the question back on them, asking them for the law given by Moses (Mk. 10:3), and they reply by quoting from Dt. 24 (Mk. 10:4, cf. Jer. 3:8). But Jesus replies that Moses made this concession for Israel because of the hardness of Israelite hearts (Mk. 10:5). Jesus says that this was never God’s intention, since God made them male and female at the beginning of creation (Mk. 10:6). And it is because they are made male and female, that a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife (Mk. 10:7). This is the only way two people become one flesh, and this is something that God does and therefore man must not try to defy this union (Mk. 10:8-9).

THE MODERN LIE

The modern world has embraced the lie that human freedom and happiness is found in what Carl Trueman has called “expressive individualism,” the idea that you and I are most free when we are the least inhibited in acting on our internal desires. Sigmund Freud pressed that lie into a particularly dark and sexualized direction, insisting that the very essence of being human and human happiness was found in sexual pleasure. This is why the modern world has rejected nearly every moral and legal constraint on sexuality because if an individual’s fundamental humanity is expressed in their sexual desires and gratification, to restrain or restrict that is to deny their humanity. This of course began with pornography and fornication, but has quickly led to the rejection of marriage, homosexuality, transgenderism, and gender fluid queer theory.

THE AUTHORITY OF GOD

What Jesus teaches here fundamentally is the authority of God and His Word over human sexuality. If Jesus was the original flower child, this was an important moment for Him to say something like “chill out, dudes, the kingdom of God isn’t about that” (in Aramaic). But that isn’t at all what Jesus said. He first appealed to the Mosaic law and then all the way back to the authority of God in creation itself (Mk. 10:5-6). Not only did God Himself make mankind male and female, God Himself made marriage between one man and one woman (Mk. 10:7-8). We must not miss the fact that God is the One who joins a husband and wife together (Mk. 10:9). This is why we may not break it apart, but also why we cannot force anything else together.

SEXUAL IDOLATRY

We touched on this last week, but every person must begin all reasoning about truth and morality from some ultimate authority, either God the Creator or else something or someone within the creation. When somethi