What does this mean? “We should fear and love God so that we lead a sexually pure and decent life in what we say and do, and husband and wife love and honour each other.”
Marriage and the family are under attack. Confess the biblical truth that God created mankind as male and female and that only these two genders are designed for sexual union in marriage, you risk being under vicious verbal attack for saying what God’s Word says (or even losing your job or education in some cases). Who knows how long it will be until we’re killed for confessing this truth? Some will say marriage is a private matter and therefore whom people marry is none of our business. This is far from the truth, for since the beginning God has made marriage the foundation of society. It affects the couple, children, friends, neighbours, your church family, and your community. If marriage were a private matter, people wouldn’t alter public laws concerning the matter, and neither would they threaten to put asunder a businessman’s small business for remaining true to his religious conscience.
This Commandment forbids not only infidelity in marriage, but also all kinds of adultery: fornication, masturbation, homosexuality, incest, rape, lust, etc. Thus, we are commanded to lead a sexually pure—or chaste—life. What does it mean to be chaste? It depends on your vocation. If you’re unmarried, to be chaste means to be abstinent until you marry. If you’re married, to be chaste means to have sex only with your spouse. For those who suffer with homosexuality and pedophilia or any other disorder, to be chaste means to remain celibate.
Whether divorce or any sexual immorality happens, one mustn’t ever forget that God is gracious and merciful. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9). There is no sin that the death and resurrection of Christ has not redeemed.
The Lutheran Column 