Did God really say we Are to avoid extramarital sex, (adultery, infidelity, unfaithfulness)?
Yes … yes He did.
And He takes sexual sin seriously.
“While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods … The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of these people, kill them and expose them in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the Lord’s fierce anger may turn away from Israel. … An Israelite man brought into the camp a Midianite woman right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting. When the son of Aaron the priest saw this, took a spear in his hand and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear into both of them, right through the Israelite man and into the woman’s stomach.” Numbers 25: 1, 6-8
Two things: First, the lust of the eyes leads to sexual sin. Second, sexual sin will, left unchecked, lead us to worship other gods. Our gods are often the gods of our own making. “My God approves of …” “My God is a God of love would never condemn me for …” “My God is inclusive, not exclusive, and tolerant of …”
When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron executed the man and woman and thus, God’s judgement on the couple: “Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped; but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.” Numbers 25:9
Stop sexual sin before it starts. Stop it in your heart.