On Free Love

I'll try to keep this short and sweet. I think there are some common misconceptions about Christian sexuality and sexual ethics. One common school of thought may be:
Christians are prudes, and they refrain from sex outside of marriage because they are scared and ashamed of their bodies.

--There is some truth in this particular tenet. I am not one to underestimate the depths of the shame that Christians carry around, and the grips Satan keeps God's people in that deal with shame. And I would suggest that fear is not limited to Christians. Not to say that all people are fearful of sex, but I am certain there are some non-Christians who are as hesitant about sex as any hesitant Christian might be. Therefore, it is not an accurate summation to place the heart of Christian sexual ethics and behavior on fear.

I would go further to say that the reasons Christians approach sex in a manner so altogether different than the world does has more to do with a sense of sacredness and a call to holiness than it has to do with fear, sexual 'repression' (as opposed to free sexual expression, etc.).

It is because we believe our bodies are created in the image of God. It is because we see intricate and implicit value in our bodies, and therefore the sexual acts that are possible because of the amazing creation of our values. It is because God has created sex as a good thing, an intimate thing. It is because we cannot cheapen something our God has made holy and intended for the purest of circumstances.

It is really something beautiful, not repressed, prudish, or full of fear. I think the appropriate place to exercise such a vulnerable gift is in the covenant of trust that Christian marriage established under and blessed by God. Now that is truly "free love".