I have a ring on my finger and me and my boyfriend plan to marry within the next 5 years. We have not had sex and do not plan to until marriage, but we have done things with our hands. We are not sure whether it was a sin it not? We plan to marry so would that make using hands but not having sex okay?<\/p>\n\t
Future plans do not change your current situation. While you have not had intercourse, it is not the only sin to be avoided you are behaving in a lewd manner and both of you were lusting for sex.<\/p>\n
Lewdness translates the Greek word\u00a0aselgeia<\/em>. It refers to shameless behavior, particularly in regards to sex. It is behavior that is involved in pure self-enjoyment or behavior characteristic of an animal. Lust is a strong desire for something that is unlawful. “Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts<\/em>” (Romans 13:13-14).<\/p>\n The Greek word\u00a0haptomai<\/em>\u00a0means to touch, particularly in the sense of holding on. Thus, it doesn’t refer to an accidental brushing against someone, but a purposeful touch or grab. In the context of “Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman<\/em>” (I Corinthians 7:1), it is talking about the sexual touching between a man and woman, such as what goes on in foreplay, but it would also include the touching of genitals that takes place in mutual masturbation or hand jobs. “So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife; whoever touches her shall not be innocent<\/em>” (Proverbs 6:29).<\/p>\n People don’t appreciate the fact that sin is progressive. One seemingly small sin leads to additional sins. Eventually, those sins carry them beyond the boundaries they arbitrarily set for themselves, but the problem did not start at the boundary but at the start of the journey into sin.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Question: I have a ring on my finger and me and my boyfriend plan to marry within the next 5 years. We have not had sex and do not plan to until marriage, but we have done things with our hands. We are not sure whether it was a sin it not? We plan to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[149,662,203],"class_list":["post-40923","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-dating","tag-engagement","tag-sexual-touching"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":32883,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/weve-been-involved-in-lewd-behavior-in-the-past-which-we-know-is-wrong-so-how-do-we-stop\/","url_meta":{"origin":40923,"position":0},"title":"We’ve been involved in lewd behavior in the past, which we know is wrong. So how do we stop?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 15, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Sir, We have been in a relationship since childhood. We grew up together and we both are Christians. We are now in our early twenties. We have been kissing, fondling, and touching our private parts for the past few years. But we have kept it very strongly in our\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":34291,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-we-be-forgiven-if-we-plan-to-have-sex-before-we-marry\/","url_meta":{"origin":40923,"position":1},"title":"Can we be forgiven if we plan to have sex before we marry?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 4, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: My girlfriend and I have been together for eight months now and have been discussing having sex. We do plan on getting married because we are both loyal, honest and love each other very dearly. 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I have gone\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":22452,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-the-fate-of-a-man-who-was-involved-with-a-sexually-immoral-woman\/","url_meta":{"origin":40923,"position":3},"title":"What is the fate of a man who was involved with a sexually immoral woman?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 16, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it good to be in a relationship that one knows will not end up in marriage? What must a lady, who made love with many men, do to be clean? What is the sin that God will never forgive? If a man, who is clean, is in a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":39778,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-a-sin-to-marry-after-having-sex\/","url_meta":{"origin":40923,"position":4},"title":"Is it a sin to marry after having sex?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 26, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have one question for you because I'm really confused about what to decide. Please help me. My question is that my girlfriend and I plan to marry next year. We are both Christian, but we have already been having sex. I never had sex with another woman and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9942,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/if-i-had-sex-with-someone-does-that-mean-we-cant-get-married\/","url_meta":{"origin":40923,"position":5},"title":"If I had sex with someone, does that mean we can’t get married?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 19, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am a born-again Christian with a history of having multiple sexual partners (main chick and side-chicks). I got saved and gave my life to Christ, though I still could not control my sexual desires; hence, I continued to practice fornication. 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