Will there be Sex in Heaven?

The description of seventy-two sultry virgins said - by some Islamic preachers - to be awaiting the faithful Muslim in paradise has caused just about every Christian teenage boy to consider converting at some point. Mohammed’s description of the afterlife just seems a bit more interesting than the games played at St. Bartholemew's youth club and more exciting than the impression they have about heaven - which often comes across as an everlasting worship set.

Now for me, the idea of having to teach seventy-two women how to have sex just sounds like a lot of work. Whether that is because I'm getting holier or I'm getting older, I will let others speculate.

So.... What does the Bible actually say about sex - or romance - in heaven? 

Nothing directly. But, as you may imagine, that doesn’t keep some from speculating. Many say, ‘no’ claiming that Jesus said there will be no marriage after the resurrection. That’s actually a slight deviation from Jesus words in Matthew 22. People won’t be getting married to each other, but there will be one marriage: the marriage of a united humanity with God.

Some say, 'yes' because in the next life our bodies will be raised. When Jesus rose from the dead he still ate food. People could touch him. If we still have our bodies and do other physical things, why not sex - even if it operates under a different set of rules? There’s nothing sinful about sex - it existed before sin came into the world (Genesis 2).

I think the discussion needs some perspective. I remember my son (age 7) asking me what sex was. I replied that sex was a fun game that a man and a woman can play once they're married. He then asked me if it was as fun as eating chocolate. I told him that it was even better than eating chocolate. He looked at me with eyes full of incredulity and said, ‘Nothing is better than eating chocolate!’

I assured him that when he started playing with his wife, he be having so much fun that he wouldn’t even think about chocolate. My son still doesn’t believe me. At his age, he is unable to imagine that type of mature pleasure. He must grow up before it even makes sense to him. 

Yes, after his resurrection Jesus did have a body that could do what ours did. He could eat, walk and shake hands. But his body did lots of things ours can’t. It could walk through walls and ascend up into heaven. We have five senses now. At the resurrection, we’ll have many more. Though existence in the next life will include what we now experience, it will also contain joys unimaginable.

The one who asks if there is sex or romance in heaven is a lot like my son. He cannot now imagine a greater pleasure. At the resurrection - when we do experience them - I doubt we’ll even be thinking about sex.

I doubt there will be sex (at least as we know it) in heaven - but we can’t rule out the possibility based on the Bible. But I am certain that there will be superior joys that will cause current experiences to pale by comparison.

I am also certain there will be no angelic pharmacy dispensing an everlasting supply of blue pills to fuel a Muhammadan vision of paradise. 

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