How things have changed in a few decades! You know as well as I do that society no longer comes down on premarital sex as it did in previous generations. Young people growing up today may hear their Christian parents say, “It’s a sin; don’t do it!” And they may hear their pastor say, “It’s a sin; don’t do it!”—if he says anything at all. Some ministers no longer take a stand on this issue, because it might make him or her unpopular with the congregation. But that’s about where the similarity between generations ends. Our kids switch on television, and everybody’s doing it—even a former president of the United States! They tune into their music and hear, “Oh baby, let’s do it!” They go to school and hear administrators say, “If you’re going to do it, visit our clinic so you can do it safely.” They hear many of their peers say, “We’re doing it, and it’s great!”
Why are kids getting involved in premarital sex? Another significant reason is the culture in which they are growing up. An ever-widening circle of public opinion no longer views premarital and extramarital sex as wrong. Rather, such activities are accepted, condoned, even glorified and encouraged. It has been said that the typical high school student faces more sexual temptation on his way to school each morning than his grandfather did on Saturday night when he was out looking for it![i] Sadly, there is more truth than fiction in this quip. Today’s adolescents are participating in premarital sex because more and more voices around them are saying it’s OK.
[i] Mast, Coleen Kelly. Sex Respect. An Option of True Sexual Freedom. A Public Health workbook for students. Bradley, IL: Respect, Inc., 1986, p.18.
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