Each week, these sermon discussion guides are made available to help you engage the sermon text more fully. For those in a small group, this is what your group will use as its jumping-off point. You are also encouraged to use this in the context of your own home, whether personally or as a family, as you seek to apply the message to your life.
Sermon Summary: Exodus 20:14
Main Ideas
I. God says “Yes” to marriage with you
II. God says “Yes” to true intimacy with you
III. God says “Yes” to forgiving your unfaithfulness
Application Points
I. You can’t talk about adultery without talking about our marriage relationship with God.
II. In our sinfulness, we pursue false intimacy in all the wrong places, both in our relationship with God and with our spouses.
III. When we pursue a moral righteousness of our own making, we deny the saving work of Jesus on our behalf.
Quotes
“Our problem with sex doesn’t begin with lust, with bad choices, or with sexual misbehavior.
Our problem with sex begins when we forget that God must be at the center of this part of our lives as he must be with any other.” — Paul Tripp, Sex in a Broken World
“The essence of sin is ‘I will never allow anyone to rule my life other than myself.’
That rebelliousness is alive in an outwardly good man or woman, and in an outwardly bad man or woman. Remember, sin is not about behavior but about our defiant claim to the right to rule our own life.” — Dr. Harry W. Schaumburg, False Intimacy
“Marriage provides the relational plumb line by which all sexual freedoms and prohibitions are understood.”
— John Scott Redd
Questions for Personal Response
What are some ways that we can address behavior without addressing people’s hearts? Why is this so dangerous?
What practical steps can we take to be a church where those shunned because of their sexual sin can experience grace and healing?
Where are you tempted to seek false intimacy right now, both sexually and spiritually?