1月22日；
帖撒罗尼迦前书 4:1-10；
唱诗：诗篇 24:1, 2

神的旨意就是要你们成为圣洁，远避淫行。(帖前 4:3)

人生中时常发生的事情之一就是求偶。或早或晚，我们都会遇到一个吸引我们的男生或女生，我们或许会因此进入恋爱期，并最终走入婚姻。

人是有性欲的，同时也是充满罪性的，因此可想而知，在性的问题上我们很容易犯罪。在写给帖撒罗尼迦的书信中，使徒保罗警告我们，不可像外邦人那样带着“强烈的色欲”接近异性。保罗原始的用词就是如此，因为在罗马，特别是在几大主要城市，道德观非常低。也许，在我们这个时代也是如此，所以我们必须小心谨慎。

爱和色欲之间有着天壤之别。爱是一种无私的关爱，但不包括做主所禁止的事情，不管是单方面地对别人，还是和他人一起。从另一方面说，色欲是放纵私欲，满足个人在性上面的需要，甚至不惜牺牲他人为代价，就那个他声称爱着的人。

要摆脱色欲的辖制是非常困难的，对某些人来说，这场争战要持续一生之久。我们必须经历一个过程来学习如何“控制”自己身体，我们需要了解自已的弱点在哪里，以及如何克服它们。

上帝的旨意是要我们圣洁，即要成圣，这就意味着要我们远避淫行。因此，身体上的问题应该用属灵的方法来解决。我们要知道并时刻谨记，我们的身体是圣灵的殿，只有神的灵能够并且使我们刚强。我们要向神求这样的能力。

思考问题：我们如何远避淫行？我们是如何“招致”淫乱的？

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January 22
1Thessalonians 4:1-10
Song:Psalm 24:1,2

AVOIDING IMMORALITY

It is God's will that..you should avoid sexual immorality.."（1 Thessalonians 4:3)

One of the things that we often encounter in this life is the matter of courtship. Sooner or later, we meet a boy or a girl to whom we are attracted. Perhaps we enter into a courtship that eventually leads to marriage.

We are sexual beings. Because we are also sinful beings, it is to be expected that, in the matter of sexuality, sin is easily committed. In his letter to the Thessalonians, the apostle Paul warns us that we should not approach the other sex like the heathen do, "in passionate lust." Paul originally wrote these words because morality in the Roman Empire, especially in major cities, was generally very low. The same is probably true in our time as well and we should therefore take careful note.

There is a world of difference between love and lust. Love is an unselfish caring that excludes doing things to and with one another that are forbidden by the Lord. Lust, on the other hand, is an unbridled selfish desire to fulfill one's own sexual needs, even at the cost of the one we claim to love.

It is very hard to escape the grip of lust. For some, the battle is life-long. We must undergo a learning process to "control" our own bodies. We need to learn where our weaknesses lie and how we can overcome them. 

God's will is that we are sanctified, that is, made holy, and this means avoiding sexual immorality. Physical matters should therefore be approached in a spiritual way. We need to know and always remember that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and that the Spirit of God alone can and will strengthen us. We need to ask for this strength.

Questions: How do we avoid sexual immorality? How do we invite sexual immorality?