“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” – Matthew 5:27–28 (BSB)
“For it is God’s will that you should be holy: You must abstain from sexual immorality; each of you must learn to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God.” – 1 Thessalonians 4:3–5 (BSB)
“Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.” – Hebrews 13:4 (BSB)
“Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body… Therefore glorify God with your body.” – 1 Corinthians 6:18, 20 (BSB)
Jesus teaches that the commandment goes beyond external behavior to the thoughts of the heart. Lust, pornography, and flirtation all violate the spirit of this command. Fr. Keith Allen (AMiA, St. Brendan’s Anglican Church, AL) writes, “The Seventh Commandment calls us to see others not as objects of desire, but as persons of dignity. Holiness means turning desire toward love shaped by the cross.” (Teaching on Purity of Heart, 2019)
This commandment calls me to joyfully uphold God’s purposes for marriage as a sacred, lifelong union between one man and one woman. Gerald Bray (ACNA-affiliated, Beeson Divinity School) teaches, “Marriage reflects the covenant between Christ and the Church. Faithfulness in marriage, then, is not only obedience—it is doxology.” (God Is Love, 2012)
Anglican worship upholds this teaching through its marriage liturgy. The 1662 Book of Common Prayer declares that marriage was ordained “for the hallowing of the union betwixt man and woman” and “for a remedy against sin.” Canon George Grant (ACNA, Parish Presbyterian Church, TN) observes, “The Church must proclaim boldly: chastity and fidelity are not outdated—they are signs of hope in a broken world.” (Recovering Anglican Ethics, 2018)
Fr. William Beasley (AMiA, Anglican Awakening) sums it up: “The Seventh Commandment teaches me to love rightly—to order my affections, discipline my desires, and pursue purity not with shame, but with joy in God’s design.” (Living a Consecrated Life, 2016)
“The purity God requires is not only of the body, but of the mind. Chastity begins in the heart and shines outward in action.” – Augustine of Hippo, On the Good of Marriage, c. 401 AD
“The body is for the Lord, not for immorality. To sin with the body is to profane the temple of the Holy Spirit.” – Tertullian, On Modesty, c. 210 AD
“Let us guard our eyes, our thoughts, and our hands—for all are called to holiness. The commandment is not burdensome, but life-giving.” – Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, c. 195 AD
An Anglican Catechism (Expanded) offers over 350+ Scripture-based answers to the core truths of the Christian faith. Each entry includes biblical texts, theological insight, and reflections from historic and contemporary Anglican voices. Rooted in the classical tradition, it is designed for teaching, discipleship, and spiritual formation.
An Ancient Worship Movement invites readers into the rich, historic worship of the early Church rediscovered through the Anglican tradition. This book calls believers into a deeper, Spirit-filled encounter with Christ through timeless practices.
St. Thomas Church
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St. Thomas Church is a Church planting movement in ancient tradition.
