Genesis 2:18, 24 The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." . . . Therefore, a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh.
For the first time in the Bible, God says something was “not good” (v. 18); earlier God had looked at His beautiful creation and repeatedly said that it was good (see 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31). Since it was not good for man to be alone, God created woman. In other words, marriage is God’s idea and He is the one who instituted it. Thus, marriage is good! It is very important, however, to understand that from the very beginning God’s ideal for marriage has been a heterosexual monogamous relationship. We need to be careful about the changing definitions of marriage in the world today!
Moreover, the institution of marriage unites the man and the woman into one flesh. Therefore, it is an exclusive relationship. Any sexual activity outside of marriage is a perversion and is inappropriate. Unmarried individuals need to be careful to flee premarital sex; married individuals need to be careful to flee extramarital affair/sex. Marriage is God’s normal plan for human beings. However, He might call some individuals to celibacy allowing them a singular focus on serving the Lord (1 Corinthians 7:32-34).
May the Lord help us uphold His ideals of marriage and sex!