I'll refer to the physical union between the husband and wife (what the world calls "sex") as "the marriage act," because that's where it belongs. God intended the physical act of sex to be performed only in the marriage, flowing through a bond of love.

The marriage union, as God designed it, is something very beautiful, holy, honorable, and wonderful. It's a place where the husband and wife can freely express their love for one another at the deepest level—not just on a surface level, but spirit, soul, and body.

It's a place where they can say to the person to whom they've committed their whole life: "I love you, and I give the totality of myself to you." Nothing is withheld.

Hebrews 13:4 says that the marriage bed is to be undefiled: "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge" (The marriage bed has to do with the sexual act of marriage).

When you talk with a lot of people about sex, if they don't understand what the Bible says, you can make them feel like it's dirty, wrong, and unclean. I'm not telling you that, because the sexual act is beautiful, holy, and honorable…in marriage.

Remember, God's Word says, "…but fornicators and adulterers God will judge." Fornication is the sexual act between single people. Adultery is when two people commit the sexual act who are married (or one person is married and the other is single), but they're not married to each other.

God treats fornication and adultery in the same light. In either case, there's no commitment. There's no bond of love. There's no union. There's no covenant. They're joining together in the sexual act in violation of God's Word.

God looks at both adultery and fornication as a violation of His laws. He says, "I will judge these people."

In the marriage union, when two people come together in the marriage act, there's no guilt, no remorse, and no fear. In contrast, when two people come together in the sexual act out side of marriage, just the opposite is true:
  1. There will be sense of guilt, because God's laws have been violated.
  2. There will be remorse, because these two people aren't married and possible may never get married in the future.
  3. There will be fear of discovery or fear that a child will be conceived out of the relationship.
All types of heaviness and oppression come on people who enter the sexual act outside of marriage. The freedom, joy, pureness, and inner peace in their lives are gone once they begin to violate God's laws.

So commit yourself to stay pure before God, and enjoy the "marriage act" as He intended it!

Source: Building Stronger Marriages by Billy Joe Daugherty
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers