Young People Ask . . . Is it Normal to Be a Virgin? - 'Sinning Against One's Body'

By way of contrast, the Bible says at 1 Corinthians 6:18; "He that practices fornication is sinning against his own body." Popular folklore notwithstanding, there is no evidence that abstaining from sex is  physically harmful.  it is indulging that carries physical risks!  A prominent physician says: "Sexually transmitted diseases will continue to increase in incidence  unless effective control strategies can be applied, and the recent increase in incidence has been due, in part to increased levels of sexual activity among young people." - Current Controversies in Marriage and Family.

Promiscuous behavior among youths has also give rise to an epidemic of teen pregnancies. In the United States, half of these  pregnancies are terminated by spontaneous and induced abortions.  Then there is the emotional devastation immoral sex can wreak.  "After he'd gotten what  he'd wanted all along," recalls  young Diana, "he dropped me." Paul's words ring true. Premarital sex is a "sin against one's body.' 

Fornication also 'harms and encroaches upon the rights of others.  (1 Thessalonians  4:6) At the very least, it deprives another of the right to enter marriage in a clean moral state. A future marriage mate is also deprived of his or her right to have a virgin marriage partner.

The book Why Wait Till Marriage? thus makes this sobering observation:  "With your first sex experience, you are not longer a virgin. . . . You can choose only once." Make the right choice!  Do not be conned by the world's propaganda into thinking that something is wrong with you if you hold to Bible standards. Virginity is not strange or abnormal. It is immoral sex that is degrading, humiliating, and harmful. By retaining your virginity, you protect your health, your emotional well-being, and most important of all, your relationship with God.

Next time: Young People Ask -  What About Virginity Pledges?

From the jw.org publications