. . . Being stronger than she, he violated her and lay with her. 2 Samuel 13:14
The problem with cancer is not that it purposefully tries to kill its host. The problem with cancer is that it does what it wants, growing, multiplying and spreading outside of its boundaries. Cancer lives only to propagate itself and in doing so, replaces healthy tissue, causing pain and death.
This is not unlike our own desires. Like cell growth, sex is good and necessary, within certain boundaries. Left unchecked, living only for themselves though, both cell growth and sexuality bring about pain and death.
Many will find the Bible’s views on sex to be draconian. Those of us who have known the pain and misery of following our own appetite in our drug addiction though, will perhaps be more likely to accept God’s boundaries.
King David discovered the misery of unchecked sexuality. He took whatever woman he wanted, eventually murdering a man, just so he could sleep with his wife. He passed this attitude on to his son Amnon, who burned with passion for his own sister, Tamar. Like his father, Amnon took whatever woman he wanted, so when Tamar resisted, he simply raped her.
David was angry when he found out but did nothing. Absalom, brother to both Tamar and Amnon, was enraged by the violation of his sister and by his father’s apathy. He killed Amnon, tried to overthrow his father, and was ultimately killed in the conflict. Thus, three more children of David became victims of his pathologic pursuit of sex. King David’s sexuality was a cancer that metastasized through his family, consuming and killing.
Sex, like cell growth, is designed by God and is necessary for life. It is a pleasurable, beautiful gift, but like cell growth, must exist within certain boundaries. These boundaries are made for our good, to protect us from the pain and death that come from living only to satisfy our appetites. Only when we accept God’s plan, do we save ourselves from the misery of our own destructive desires and find the beautiful life He intended.