sex, it seems, is nothing compared to vampire sex. Bella muses that “it didn’t feel like I was ever going to find a point where I wouldthink,
Now I’ve had enough for one day
. I was always going to want more.” 9 Because they don’t have to sleep, vampires have a lot of free time. The other couples in the Cullen family spend their nights having sex. His lack of a partner before Bella explains why Edward had so much time to study and practice the piano. Edward’s brother Emmett teases Bella and Edward for failing to get wild enough to reduce their house to dust. Married vampire sex is about never-ending pleasure.
A G OOD G IFT
Sex is a good gift from God. In the Old Testament, the book Song of Songs uses erotic language to talk about the love between God and God’s people and about human love. In Song of Songs, sexual love is portrayed as both beautiful and happy. Bible scholar Ellen Davis points out that the book shows human sexual love “in full mutuality and equality of status.” 10 Sex is not portrayed as something dangerous. It is not a matter of one person having power over another. Instead, it is about a self-giving that goes both ways.
In recent years, churches have made great efforts to remind people that sex is not a bad thing. In a sinful world, sex is often associated with problems: people have sex with people theyshouldn’t, at times that they shouldn’t, in ways that don’t reflect mutual love and self-giving. But the fact that in a sinful world sex sometimes comes with problems does
not
mean sex is bad. Sex is a gift from God created by God for God’s good purposes. It is a witness to God’s love and faithfulness in the world. It unites couples, bringing closeness, intimacy, and fun along with it. It is the way God has given us to bring children into the world. Churches have tried to recover the truth that sex is a good gift from God in order to free people from thinking that this gift is somehow shameful. Married people have been encouraged to enjoy the fullness of this gift.
Sex is a very good gift, but sex is not, as for Bella and Edward, merely about endless pleasure. Edward and Bella defer that pleasure, to be sure, but at the end of the day, their sexuality is only about one another. I see this often in Christians who are determined to wait until they marry to enjoy the goods of sexuality but who then picture sexuality as being ultimately about personal pleasure.
I am glad that Christians are now being told that sex is a gift from God, but I fear for people who picture marriage as an endless pleasure party. Sex in the Twilight Saga fits together perfectly with the fantasy that marriage is about limitless indulgence. But if we buy into this fantasy, if we believe married sex should look like it does for the vampires in the Twilight Saga, we will be stung and stunned when we experience the realities of daily life and commitment. Sex in marriage is aboutthe inevitable give-and-take of two sinful people trying to love and be faithful to each other through all kinds of difficulties. I fear for young Christian parents, trained to look forward to a marriage of unadulterated sensuality, when toddlers wake them up at night, leaving them tired and cranky. I fear for young couples who have to deal with sexual brokenness or the trauma of past abuse that can make it very difficult to enjoy the goods of married sexuality. Married sex is a good gift indeed, but it is not the whole of married life.
Even in marriage, sex can all too easily become selfish. Yet God designed sex to work against our tendency to selfishness. At its best, God’s good gift of sexuality takes a person and pulls him or her out of selfishness. Sex is not supposed to be a me-first indulgence. It ought to help a married couple pay attention to each other instead of living in self-absorption. For a couple who hope for their marriage to be centered on Jesus Christ, sexuality ought to turn them away from caring about only themselves
Now I’ve had enough for one day
. I was always going to want more.” 9 Because they don’t have to sleep, vampires have a lot of free time. The other couples in the Cullen family spend their nights having sex. His lack of a partner before Bella explains why Edward had so much time to study and practice the piano. Edward’s brother Emmett teases Bella and Edward for failing to get wild enough to reduce their house to dust. Married vampire sex is about never-ending pleasure.
A G OOD G IFT
Sex is a good gift from God. In the Old Testament, the book Song of Songs uses erotic language to talk about the love between God and God’s people and about human love. In Song of Songs, sexual love is portrayed as both beautiful and happy. Bible scholar Ellen Davis points out that the book shows human sexual love “in full mutuality and equality of status.” 10 Sex is not portrayed as something dangerous. It is not a matter of one person having power over another. Instead, it is about a self-giving that goes both ways.
In recent years, churches have made great efforts to remind people that sex is not a bad thing. In a sinful world, sex is often associated with problems: people have sex with people theyshouldn’t, at times that they shouldn’t, in ways that don’t reflect mutual love and self-giving. But the fact that in a sinful world sex sometimes comes with problems does
not
mean sex is bad. Sex is a gift from God created by God for God’s good purposes. It is a witness to God’s love and faithfulness in the world. It unites couples, bringing closeness, intimacy, and fun along with it. It is the way God has given us to bring children into the world. Churches have tried to recover the truth that sex is a good gift from God in order to free people from thinking that this gift is somehow shameful. Married people have been encouraged to enjoy the fullness of this gift.
Sex is a very good gift, but sex is not, as for Bella and Edward, merely about endless pleasure. Edward and Bella defer that pleasure, to be sure, but at the end of the day, their sexuality is only about one another. I see this often in Christians who are determined to wait until they marry to enjoy the goods of sexuality but who then picture sexuality as being ultimately about personal pleasure.
I am glad that Christians are now being told that sex is a gift from God, but I fear for people who picture marriage as an endless pleasure party. Sex in the Twilight Saga fits together perfectly with the fantasy that marriage is about limitless indulgence. But if we buy into this fantasy, if we believe married sex should look like it does for the vampires in the Twilight Saga, we will be stung and stunned when we experience the realities of daily life and commitment. Sex in marriage is aboutthe inevitable give-and-take of two sinful people trying to love and be faithful to each other through all kinds of difficulties. I fear for young Christian parents, trained to look forward to a marriage of unadulterated sensuality, when toddlers wake them up at night, leaving them tired and cranky. I fear for young couples who have to deal with sexual brokenness or the trauma of past abuse that can make it very difficult to enjoy the goods of married sexuality. Married sex is a good gift indeed, but it is not the whole of married life.
Even in marriage, sex can all too easily become selfish. Yet God designed sex to work against our tendency to selfishness. At its best, God’s good gift of sexuality takes a person and pulls him or her out of selfishness. Sex is not supposed to be a me-first indulgence. It ought to help a married couple pay attention to each other instead of living in self-absorption. For a couple who hope for their marriage to be centered on Jesus Christ, sexuality ought to turn them away from caring about only themselves
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