The buzzword in this post is "pleasure" and I will be talking about how God wants us to worship him in our pleasures. Maybe you find that inappropriate to put words like worship and pleasure together. If so, then you are just the one I want to speak to.
If I were a betting man, I would bet that a street survey would tell us most of the world thinks Christianity teaches that pleasure in general is sinful. No doubt they got this idea from well-meaning Christians who rightly spoke out against certain sinful pleasures but said little about what sort of pleasures were good and holy. In fact, the word pleasure strikes most Christians as a naughty word that relates to the flesh and the indulgence of various fleshly sins, particularly sexual ones. But pleasure is not a dirty word. In fact, God enjoys pleasure, in himself, in the revealing of his glory through creation and redemption, and in sharing the spoils of redemption with us the objects of his mercy.
The point is pleasure is good thing. God took great pleasure in all that he created. When he finished he saw that it was very good. (Genesis 1:31) In other words he was pleased with it. If creation is good, then the pleasure creation brings us is good too.
Proverbs 5 reveals that God created sex not merely for the purpose of procreation, but for the purpose of pleasure. Husbands are told that enjoying their wives' bodies is not just a good thing, but it glorifies God.
There are other types of pleasure that are deemed good. Psalm 104:15 says God gave man wine to gladden his heart and bread to strengthen it. There are other places in scripture that reveal food was given not just for our health, but for our pleasure. "And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food." It was good tasting and good looking food. Adam and Eve were supposed to enjoy it thoroughly. Proverbs 24:13 says, "My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste." It's no accident that honey is sweet. God made it that way for our enjoyment. But still, there is an ultimate purpose behind pleasure and it is to point us to the ultimate pleasures of God.
The Message Pleasure Sends
Pleasure is meant to be a sign that points us to the Pleasure-Giver. Psalm 16:11 tells us"...in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." All pleasures in creation, (including sex) direct our attention to the one who has given us the things that give us pleasure. Pleasure is meant to lead us to praise the Creator of pleasure and to experience the greatest pleasure of all: knowing God and being known by him. Psalm 4:7 says, "You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound." What is David saying? I take great pleasure in these blessings of wine and bread, yet such pleasures lead me to take even greater pleasure in you the one who gave the grain and the new wine. Psalm 36:8–9 declares, "They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light." The good gifts of God that give pleasure lead God's people to a greater feast and a greater pleasure in God himself. Thus the pleasures remind us: "I am only here to point you to the Pleasure-Giver. Don't worship me - I merely point."
When Pleasure Becomes a Problem
Pleasure becomes a problem when we make it ultimate and allow it to rule over our hearts. Paul Tripp has some helpful things to say:
"Pleasure can never be an end in itself. I can never just say I am going to go wherever pleasure leads me, because pleasure requires boundaries. And that is because my heart is always living under the rulership of something. What controls my heart will control my body. And so I must not let pleasure, the pursuit of pleasure, be the thing that rules me." [1]
How do we keep this from happening? Again Paul Tripp helps us out:
It is the greater pleasure of God, my joy in my relationship with God, my joy in pleasing God, my celebration of God’s grace, my desire to live the way this beautiful Creator made me that protects me from a slavery to pleasure that gets me in trouble. [1]
The answer is not to become negative on pleasure and conclude its safer to avoid it all-together. Paul speaks to this in Colossians 2:21–23 when he says, “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch...have an appearance of wisdom...but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh."They key then is this: "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Corinthians 10:31) We must consider how the pleasures of sex, food and other things is meant to lead us to a greater experience of God and the pleasure that comes from knowing him. The lie of Satan is that unregulated pleasures lead to lasting joy. That's when sexual pleasures turn into lust, fornication, adultery and homosexuality. It is also what causes the good pleasures of food to become gluttony and the pleasure sof wine into drunkenness.
If I were a betting man, I would bet that a street survey would tell us most of the world thinks Christianity teaches that pleasure in general is sinful. No doubt they got this idea from well-meaning Christians who rightly spoke out against certain sinful pleasures but said little about what sort of pleasures were good and holy. In fact, the word pleasure strikes most Christians as a naughty word that relates to the flesh and the indulgence of various fleshly sins, particularly sexual ones. But pleasure is not a dirty word. In fact, God enjoys pleasure, in himself, in the revealing of his glory through creation and redemption, and in sharing the spoils of redemption with us the objects of his mercy.
The point is pleasure is good thing. God took great pleasure in all that he created. When he finished he saw that it was very good. (Genesis 1:31) In other words he was pleased with it. If creation is good, then the pleasure creation brings us is good too.
Proverbs 5 reveals that God created sex not merely for the purpose of procreation, but for the purpose of pleasure. Husbands are told that enjoying their wives' bodies is not just a good thing, but it glorifies God.
There are other types of pleasure that are deemed good. Psalm 104:15 says God gave man wine to gladden his heart and bread to strengthen it. There are other places in scripture that reveal food was given not just for our health, but for our pleasure. "And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food." It was good tasting and good looking food. Adam and Eve were supposed to enjoy it thoroughly. Proverbs 24:13 says, "My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste." It's no accident that honey is sweet. God made it that way for our enjoyment. But still, there is an ultimate purpose behind pleasure and it is to point us to the ultimate pleasures of God.
The Message Pleasure Sends
Pleasure is meant to be a sign that points us to the Pleasure-Giver. Psalm 16:11 tells us"...in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." All pleasures in creation, (including sex) direct our attention to the one who has given us the things that give us pleasure. Pleasure is meant to lead us to praise the Creator of pleasure and to experience the greatest pleasure of all: knowing God and being known by him. Psalm 4:7 says, "You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound." What is David saying? I take great pleasure in these blessings of wine and bread, yet such pleasures lead me to take even greater pleasure in you the one who gave the grain and the new wine. Psalm 36:8–9 declares, "They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light." The good gifts of God that give pleasure lead God's people to a greater feast and a greater pleasure in God himself. Thus the pleasures remind us: "I am only here to point you to the Pleasure-Giver. Don't worship me - I merely point."
When Pleasure Becomes a Problem
Pleasure becomes a problem when we make it ultimate and allow it to rule over our hearts. Paul Tripp has some helpful things to say:
"Pleasure can never be an end in itself. I can never just say I am going to go wherever pleasure leads me, because pleasure requires boundaries. And that is because my heart is always living under the rulership of something. What controls my heart will control my body. And so I must not let pleasure, the pursuit of pleasure, be the thing that rules me." [1]
How do we keep this from happening? Again Paul Tripp helps us out:
It is the greater pleasure of God, my joy in my relationship with God, my joy in pleasing God, my celebration of God’s grace, my desire to live the way this beautiful Creator made me that protects me from a slavery to pleasure that gets me in trouble. [1]
The answer is not to become negative on pleasure and conclude its safer to avoid it all-together. Paul speaks to this in Colossians 2:21–23 when he says, “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch...have an appearance of wisdom...but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh."They key then is this: "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Corinthians 10:31) We must consider how the pleasures of sex, food and other things is meant to lead us to a greater experience of God and the pleasure that comes from knowing him. The lie of Satan is that unregulated pleasures lead to lasting joy. That's when sexual pleasures turn into lust, fornication, adultery and homosexuality. It is also what causes the good pleasures of food to become gluttony and the pleasure sof wine into drunkenness.
Unless we submit our pleasures to the Ultimate Pleasure to which they point, then joy will elude us. If we are grasping at sex or food then it shows we have a problem. But when our hearts are under the rule of God, then we are free to enjoy the pleasures of sex, food and even creation in a way that worships God and honors Jesus Christ. The key then is to use such things in a manner that brings God pleasure!
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[1] Paul David Tripp interview with Desiring God. http://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/pleasure-is-only-protected-by-pleasure
[1] Paul David Tripp interview with Desiring God. http://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/pleasure-is-only-protected-by-pleasure
This is so right on David! This has given us 31 years of honeymoon in our marriage and some of our favorite worship together. Thank you for your words! Barry
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