18 May The Genesis of Sexual Sins in Genesis
Genesis 19:33 – So they made their father drink wine that night. And the firstborn went in and lay with her father. He did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
As soon as sin enters the world, the first thing that happens is that our first parents, who were naked and unashamed, realized they were naked and covered themselves in shame. Ever since, sex has been marred by sin and shame. As sin marches forward throughout Genesis, the devastation is perhaps most intense in sexual and gender confusion, dysfunction, and abuse.
Genesis is replete with many real-life examples of both sexual health and brokenness. Sexual sin and brokenness in Genesis include:
- Adam and Eve hiding their nakedness in shame, and then God covering their nakedness (3:7, 3:21)
- Homosexuality is culturally embraced and widespread in Sodom and Gomorrah (19:1-38)
- Incest occurs with Lot and his daughters (19:30-38) and Judah with his daughter-in-law Tamar (38:1-30)
- Lust is described when Israel’s son Reuben slept with his father’s concubine, Bilhah (35:22)
- Adultery appears when Potiphar’s wife seeks to seduce Joseph, who resists her advances (39:1-23)
- Rape occurs when Shechem raped Dinah (34:1-2)
- A false accusation of rape is recorded when Potiphar’s wife wrongfully accused Joseph of raping her, which leads to his imprisonment (39:1-23)
This same tragic trend continues in our day in everything from pornography to cohabitation, adultery, and every sort of scandalous sexual sin. The results are sin, which we need Jesus to forgive us from, bondage, which we need Jesus to deliver us from, uncleanness, which we need Jesus to purify us from, and shame, which we need Jesus to cleanse us from.
What does the story of Lot reveal to us about God, particularly His grace?
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