Is masturbating a sin?
Even if you are not doing it to porn. Is it a sin to fantasize & masturbate?
Give me some scriptures/opinions on this please.
HolyTriX
To fantasise is still to lust, so in its true sense it must be sin. But I believe the answer is a little understood one.
An American told me on a Christian website that half the sex addicts in America had been to 'holiness' churches. The emphasis was on being 'good enough' for God. In other words acceptance with God by obeying his laws.
The Apostle Paul suffered from lust. He said.
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but for the law; for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
But sin taking occasion by the commandment wrought in me all manner of concupiscence(sexual desire). For without the law sin is dead. Rom7:7&8 KJV
I would bet that many Christians suffer from lust because they are judging there Christianity according to how good they can be, which means in regard to keeping God's good laws. When the Apostle tried to do this, sin used the law to arouse all kinds of sexual desires in him. He felt condemned. Before the law came he felt alive.
But he found the way out of his predicament.
Therefore now there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending His Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man in order that the righteous requirements of the law may be met in us who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. Rom8:1-4
If Christians truly lived in the knowledge and grace of the truth, that Jesus died on the cross for every sin we could ever commit, as long as we are sincerely looking to him, trusting him, and wanting to live for him, there would be far less lust in a Christians life. What happened to Paul I am sure happens to many now. No-one can be good enough to get to Heaven, earn there way to Heaven, or get there by obeying the law. Only by faith in Jesus. If people truly accepted that sin would have nowhere to go in their lives, it could no longer condemn them. Don't let your weaknesses condemn you. Praise God instead that you are saved because Jesus died for you on the cross. No true Christian will use this as a licence to sin, there heart has been circumcised by the Holy Spirit. If Christians had that attitude more instead of feeling self condemnation because of their wrong, there would be far less sinning by Christians.
Don't believe me, believe Paul
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law but under grace. Rom6:14
Do we then nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather we uphold the law. Rom3:31