Busted: 5 of the biggest myths about sex viewed through the lens of God's word

People of this world will say just about anything to convince you that premarital sex is no biggie.

However, their words aren't gospel. So I've busted 5 myths you've probably encountered along your path of purity thanks to the true Gospel, the word of God.

1. Premarital sex is okay if you're in love. That's a classic, along with "It doesn't matter, because we're going to get married anyway." I don't remember that verse in the Bible. I can remember Hebrews 13:4 (ESV), which says, "Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous." They say true love waits. The Bible says if you truly love God, you will wait.

2. Exploring your sexuality is power and it's liberating. Instead of an act of love to be shared between a husband and his wife, sex has become a symbol of power, freedom and self-awareness. Choosing to sleep with whoever you want to is portrayed as a good thing. But sex is not about power, dominance or control. It is about intimacy between spouses. 1 Corinthians 7:3-5 (ESV) reads, "The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does." In marriage, your body belongs to the other person as much as it does to you. You are not sexually "dominating" each other or expressing your own power, but coming together as one (Mark 10:8.)

3. De-stigmatizing promiscuity is a matter of equality. "If men can do it, why can't I?" is a rapildly emerging twisted feminist rationale when it comes to sexuality. In our culture, men are often praised for having sex with multiple partners, but the Bible doesn't have a special male pass for fornication. And women, the appropriate response to this flawed view of male sexuality is not to start giving our bodies away indiscriminately as some sort of warped way of combating misogyny and sexism in society. We are all supposed to preserve our virginity until marriage, regardless of gender. God does not discriminate. Ephesians 5:3 (NLT) says, "Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God's people." The same biblical principal applies to men and women.

4. Casual sex is perfectly healthy! And somehow waiting is not? Virginity doesn't culminate in STDs or babies teens can't afford to have. It doesn't end in abortion or emotional attachments to people we'll never see again, nor does it leave us feeling empty and worthless because we've given it away to someone whom we thought loved us. Many times, we give it away because we do not know our own self-worth. 1 Corinthians 6:19 (NIV) asks, "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own." Build up your sense of self-worth in Christ, who loved you enough to die for you.

5. No one's waiting. This is perhaps the BIGGEST lie of all. In our sex-positive culture that says whatever you want to do in your bedroom is okay as long as it's consensual, some people are buying into the myth that everyone's feeding their lust and getting busy between the sheets. Not true. Many Christians value their walk with the Lord enough to wait for sex. I am one of them. You can be one as well. Psalms 119:9 (NIV) reads, "How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word." Honor your walk with God by remaining a virgin, stay in His word and he will guide you.

Abstinence is attainable, if you commit yourself to the Lord before you commit to anyone else.