The topic of pleasure and enjoying life is one that many Christians wrestle with. On one hand, some Christians believe that God wants us to enjoy life and experience pleasure. After all, God created many pleasurable things for us like delicious foods, the beauty of nature, relationships, and more. However, on the other hand, some Christians believe that too much pleasure-seeking can be sinful and that we should focus more on spiritual pursuits. What does the Bible have to say about this topic?
First, it’s important to note that God is not opposed to pleasure and enjoyment in and of itself. The Bible affirms that God created many good and enjoyable things for our delight. For example, in Genesis 1-2 we see that before the Fall, God put Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden which was full of pleasurable sights and delicious fruits. He created the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil which were “pleasant to the sight and good for food” (Gen 2:9). We also see that God declared His creation “very good” (Gen 1:31), so creation and pleasure were part of God’s original perfect design.
Further evidence that God is not entirely opposed to pleasure is that there are many verses in the Bible that talk about rejoicing, celebration, and enjoying life: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess 5:16-18). “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving” (1 Tim 4:4). “So I commend enjoyment, for there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be joyful” (Eccl 8:15). Jesus’ first miracle was turning water into wine at a wedding feast (John 2:1-11), indicating God’s desire for our joy. From cover to cover, the Bible affirms our ability to experience joy and delight in God’s good gifts.
However, the Bible does warn about the dangers of living solely to fulfill sinful pleasures or allowing even good things to become idols in our lives. 1 John 2:15-17 cautions, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him…the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life – is not from the Father but is from the world.” Paul also warns, “their god is their belly” (Phil 3:19) – in other words, allowing appetite and earthly pleasure to control us is dangerous. Gluttony, sexual immorality, greed, idolizing pleasure above God – the Bible clearly condemns these sins.
The key seems to be getting the right balance – pursuing holy pleasures without letting them control us. earthly pleasures can be appreciated and celebrated as God’s good gifts, but should not distract us from pursuing God as our greatest treasure. As Jesus said, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10) – true abundant life is found in relationship with Christ. Experiencing holy pleasures in balance and in submission to God seems to be the biblical model. Moderation, thanksgiving, and keeping pleasure in its proper place all allow us to both enjoy God’s blessings and pursue Him wholeheartedly.
In summary, is God opposed to pleasure? No, the Bible indicates that God created many good and pleasurable things for us to richly enjoy. However, God calls us to find ultimate satisfaction in Him, pursue pleasures in moral ways, and keep earthly pleasures from controlling us or becoming idols in our lives. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we learn to hold the good gifts of life with an open hand, thanking God for them, but knowing our true treasure and satisfaction is found in an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.
There are several key points the Bible makes about pleasure:
- God created many good and pleasurable things for us to enjoy (Genesis 1-2)
- We are called to rejoice, give thanks, and enjoy life in God (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
- Gluttony, sexual immorality, greed and idolizing pleasure above God are condemned as sinful (1 John 2:15-17)
- Moderation and thanksgiving allows us to enjoy God’s gifts without letting them control us (Philippians 3:19)
- True abundant life and joy is found in relationship with Jesus Christ (John 10:10)
In conclusion, pleasure in and of itself is not inherently evil. But we must pursue pleasure in holy ways, keep earthly pleasures subordinate to God, and find our ultimate delight in Christ above all else. This biblical balance allows us to both enjoy the good gifts of life and pursue wholehearted devotion to God.
One mistake some Christians make is believing that God is opposed to all pleasure and enjoyment. This belief can lead to unnecessary guilt, shame, and feeling like you have to deny every enjoyable part of life in order to be holy. But this is not the biblical perspective.
The truth is, God created enjoyment and pleasure for us. Even before the Fall in Genesis 3, God put Adam and Eve in the delightful Garden of Eden. He invented tasty foods, the beauty of nature, laughter, intimacy in marriage, rest, and more for our benefit. Throughout Scripture we see feasting, celebration, and the enjoyment of God’s gifts presented in a positive light (Esther 9:17-22, Luke 15:23-24, John 2:1-11). God is a creative, joyful God who desires his children to experience joy and delight as well.
This does not mean that the Bible promotes unrestrained hedonism or living only to fulfill fleshly desires. Gluttony, sexual immorality, greed, and other vices are condemned throughout Scripture. But the solution is not to avoid every good gift or pleasurable thing in life. The solution is developing self-control, gratefulness, and properly prioritizing our pursuit of God above all else. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we learn to receive life’s pleasures as undeserved gifts from our Father while staying focused on the Giver above the gift. We enjoy without idolizing God’s blessings.
C.S. Lewis expressed this balance well: “If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak.”
In summary, God is 100% for our pleasure and enjoyment when it glorifies Him, draws us closer to Him, and is pursued in ways consistent with His Word. Our deepest satisfaction is found in God alone, not the gifts themselves. But as we walk in intimate fellowship with Jesus, we can gratefully receive all of life’s pleasures as gifts from our loving Father without guilt or hesitation.
Some Christians mistakenly believe that emotions and passions are inherently sinful. This leads to suppressing emotions, avoiding intimacy in relationships, and generally viewing our emotional desires with suspicion. But God, who created emotions and passions, does not actually view them as inherently sinful.
In fact, many emotions are God-given and play an important role in the Christian life. Emotions like romantic and marital love between a husband and wife are celebrated in Scripture as holy and good (Song of Solomon 1:2-4, Ephesians 5:25). Emotions like compassion that compel us to care for those in need are praised (Luke 10:33-35). Even Jesus Himself expressed human emotion: He wept at Lazarus’ death (John 11:35), felt joy at the return of the prodigal son (Luke 15:20-24), and experienced righteous anger at the moneychangers in the temple (Matthew 21:12-13). Our Creator gave us emotions to add color, beauty, and depth to our lives.
This is not to say emotions should rule us. Scripture warns, “The heart is deceitful above all things” (Jeremiah 17:9). So emotions must be guided by truth. Unchecked emotions can lead us into sin and shipwreck. But the solution is not total suppression of emotions; it is allowing the Holy Spirit to purify our passions so they are directed at righteous ends. As John Piper explains, “Our passions are to be released, not repressed. Feel as much delight as you possibly can in God and His ways.”
When our delight and other emotions are kindled by the Spirit to enjoy God and follow Christ, they propel us toward what is good, beautiful, and true. C.S. Lewis observed, “Emotions are the fountain. Let the fountain play and not be damned up into stagnant pools.” Out of the overflow of a heart in love with God, our passions become an offering of worship to our Creator.
So God is not opposed to emotions and passions themselves. But like all good gifts from above, they must be surrendered to the lordship of Christ. Under the Spirit’s guidance, our passions become a blazing fire directing all of our being to the glory of God.
One particular area where Christians wrestle with guilt over pleasure is sexuality and sexual desire. Some believe that all sexual passion and desire is impure. But is this truly what Scripture teaches?
Sexual intimacy within marriage is celebrated throughout the Bible as holy, good, and God-ordained: “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure” (Hebrews 13:4). The entire Song of Solomon poetic book in the Bible is an erotic love poem celebrating the joyful intimacy between husband and wife. In fact, several verses indicate that passion and desire between spouses is beneficial: “Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well” (Proverbs 5:15) and “Rejoice in the wife of your youth…may her breasts satisfy you always” (Proverbs 5:18-19). In God’s perfect design, sex is wholesome and pleasurable.
However, sexual immorality outside of marriage is consistently condemned. Pornography, adultery, sexual violence, and other distortions of God’s intent for sexuality deeply grieve our Creator. Sexual desire in the confines of a marriage covenant is life-giving; outside of these boundaries it breeds destruction.
So Scripture does not teach that sexual pleasure or desire in itself is impure. Sex is a gift God created for married couples to enjoy and unite in profound intimacy that reflects Christ’s love for the church (Ephesians 5:31-32). As with all good gifts from above, healthy sexuality brings joy when it flourishes within God’s loving parameters.
The mistake, then, is not seeing sexual pleasure as evil, but divorcing it from God’s design for flourishing. With the Spirit’s help, our sexuality becomes fully alive within a marriage covenant, just as God intends.
Some Christians believe that activities like the arts are unnecessary distractions from spiritual things. However, the Bible paints a different picture of the arts and creativity.
In Exodus, God specifically chose artists, craftsmen, musicians and other creative workers to help construct the tabernacle, saying, “I have given skill to all the craftsmen to make everything I have commanded” (Exodus 36:1). The Psalms overflow with musical worship. Jesus told parables – creative stories to reveal spiritual truth. Revelation describes angels singing praises continually around God’s throne.
Far from condemning or avoiding creativity, the Bible portrays God as the supremely creative being. He made humans in His image, thus bestowing on us a measure of His creativity. Our artistic gifts, though tainted by sin like all human endeavors, still contain traces of the original goodness of our Creator. Christians throughout history have sought to honor God through creativity in literature, visual arts, music and more. C.S. Lewis called imagination “a God-given faculty of the mind.”
However, as with all earthly pleasures, the arts can become idolatrous if given supremacy over God. But the solution is not to avoid creativity altogether, but to orient our creative gifts toward their intended purpose – proclaiming the glory of the Lord. The arts, enjoyed in balanced submission to Christ, become what they were meant to be – a reflection of the boundless creativity of the Divine.
So God is not opposed to the arts and creativity. In fact, when our art honors God and serves others, it taps into the creativity that our Maker first kindled within the human heart. Our imagination becomes an avenue to reconnect with God’s original intent for beauty and delight.
Over 3,000 verses in Scripture talk about money and possessions. More than a few discuss the potential pitfalls of wealth and living for material gain alone. But some Christians wrongly conclude that this means God opposes financial blessing and wants all believers to take a vow of poverty.
Yet while the Bible warns about the temptations of riches, it also teaches that financial provision can be part of God’s plan to bless and equip His people. For example, many righteous biblical figures like Abraham, Job, David and Solomon were extremely wealthy, with God’s favor. Jesus’ ministry was supported financially by His followers (Luke 8:3). And Scripture says that God “richly provides us with everything to enjoy” (1 Timothy 6:17).
The key distinction is the attitude of our hearts. Do we see wealth as our security and primary source of identity? Or do we hold material possessions loosely with open hands, understanding that true life is found in Christ alone? As Martin Luther put it, “I need to have God as the dearest and best thing in my heart, independent of all riches.”
When money and possessions become idols that lead us away from God, there is a serious problem. But when our finances are seen as gifts from our Heavenly Father to steward for His glory and purposes, they fall into proper alignment. All good gifts, including wealth, can be used to serve God’s Kingdom when rightly understood as temporary blessings subordinate to pursuing Christ above all.
So the issue is not possessions themselves, but the corruption within the human heart (Matthew 15:10-20). With the Holy Spirit’s help, believers can resist greed and use finances in positive ways without idolizing them. In God’s providence, material provision can equip His people to fulfill His calling.
In summary, Scripture consistently affirms the abundance of life that results from delighting in God. Holy pleasures – enjoyed in a balanced, God-honoring way with hearts oriented fully toward Christ – enable us to receive His gifts with gratitude. The problem only comes when earthly pleasures eclipse God in importance in our lives. May we walk in the Spirit and approach pleasure with neither legalism nor idolatry, but instead with thanksgiving for God’s overflowing generosity.
The Bible teaches that physical disciplines like fasting have spiritual value when pursued with the right motives. But sometimes Christians develop legalistic rules around food and ascetic practices that go beyond Scripture’s intention.
For instance, some believers impose strict dietary restrictions with no medical necessity, believing that certain foods or drink are sinful. But passages like Mark 7:19, Romans 14:17, and 1 Timothy 4:1-5 indicate that no food is forbidden or defiling for Christians. While temperance and moderation with food is wise, strictly forbidding certain foods as “worldly” is not commanded in Scripture now that Jesus has declared all foods clean.
Other Christians argue that alcohol is sinful in all circumstances due to its potential for abuse. However, Jesus Himself turned water into wine, even being falsely accused of drunkenness (Matthew 11:19). Several verses mention alcohol as an acceptable part of life when used moderately – Psalm 104:14-15, 1 Timothy 5:23. The Bible condemns drunkenness but does not necessarily label alcohol itself as inherently immoral.
Even fasting, which is commended in Scripture as a spiritual discipline (Luke 18:12), can become legalistic. Rigid fasting formulas, like refusing food for 40 days straight without medical oversight, go beyond biblical guidelines for fasting and can harm the body that God created.
In summary, while temperance and self-control are virtuous, biblical virtues, enforced asceticism and excessive dietary restrictions are man-made legalism. As Paul warned, “These have indeed an appearance of wisdom…but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh” (Colossians 2:23). Mature Christian freedom recognizes that no food or drink is unclean and embraces fasting and feasting alike with gratitude as gifts from God.
The Bible consistently directs our focus to treasuring Christ above all earthly pleasures. But Scripture does not demand utter abstinence from God’s good gifts in creation. With the Spirit’s guidance, believers navigate biblical wisdom on pleasure with discernment, avoiding license and legalism. In God’s design, we can gratefully receive and delight in His gifts without allowing them to rule our hearts.
