Call Us: 423 661-4734 | Email: requests@comeandreason.com      
Is Masturbation Harmful?

Is Masturbation Harmful?

I [did] not see a topic on your site about “self abuse” or masturbation as we call it.  Many [Christian] men [and women] still practice this habitually today, even while married.

  In today’s society, it is seen as harmless and so many practice this without a thought, even while imagining some sensual figure to increase their pleasure.  Can you please address this from your professional and spiritual point of view.  Also, please address the damage this practice does to marital relationships, and well as the children.

I know EG White has written extensively on it about the harm it does to brain/nerves.  She goes as far as saying:

“Some who make a high profession do not understand the sin of self-abuse and its sure results.  Long-established habit has blinded their understanding.  They do not realize the exceeding sinfulness of this degrading sin, which is enervating the system and destroying their brain nerve power.  Moral principle is exceedingly weak when it conflicts with established habit.  Solemn messages from heaven cannot forcibly impress the heart is not fortified against the indulgence of this degrading vice.  The sensitive nerve of the brain have lost their healthy tone by morbid excitation to gratify an unnatural desire for sensual  indulgence.  The brain nerves which communicate with the entire system are the only medium through which Heaven can communicate to man and affect his inmost life.  Whatever disturbs the circulation of the electric currents in the nervous system lessens the strength of the vital powers, and the resulting is a deadening of the sensibilities of the mind.” CH 616


I have been struggling with the topic of masturbation for a long time. Though masturbation per se has not been a hindrance in my relationships with family and friends, nor has it interfered with my education and career goals, it has been a big divider and such a great stumbling block in my relationship with God. I believe it is wrong, yet I continue to do it. To make matters worse, a few years ago in an attempt to have a prayer answered, I promised God that if he answered my prayer, I would stop masturbating. The prayer was answered, but I have not kept my promise. This has ridden me with more guilt since, though God has been so merciful to me in the past, and continues to bless me, I have not been able to keep the promise I have made to Him. Masturbation is an external manifestation of lustful desires that I have been harboring in my mind. I know that neurophysiologically, my brain is probably wired now in such a way that would make stopping harder every time I do the act. “By beholding we are changed.”  If its true that my brain (the seat of the mind) has changed its neural circuitry to desire and feel the effects of masturbation and lustful indulgences, is it really possible to reverse it? I have tried so many times, and continue to fail. I not only desire to stop the act of masturbation and keep my promise to God, but I want to have a “clean heart”, to be “transformed by the renewing of [my] mind.” I would really appreciate your advice. Thank you.


The proverbial elephant in the room, the difficult question that no one wants to talk about. First let’s review data found in the scientific literature and then what the Bible says.

The Science: According to multiple surveys in the US and Europe over 90% of men and 70% of women have masturbated at some time in their life. Recent surveys of adolescents reveal that 94% of males and 70% of females reported masturbating.

To date there has been no credible scientific evidence that masturbation causes any health problems, physical, mental or emotional. There has been some evidence indicating potential benefits, such as increased likelihood of achieving pregnancy following masturbation as older and less motile sperm are cleared out of the way for younger healthier sperm. Achieving orgasm, whether by intercourse or masturbation, results in lowered blood pressure – however the effect was greater with intercourse. A 2003 Australian study found that males who masturbated frequently had lower risk of prostate cancer later in life – however no direct causal relationship could be established.

The Bible: The Bible is silent on the issue of masturbation. Some scriptures have been misconstrued and wrongly applied to the question of masturbation. These include:

  1. Leviticus 15 – the Levitical law which required a person who experienced a “discharge” of semen to be ceremonially unclean until evening. This scripture passage is not speaking about masturbation but about nocturnal emissions.
  2. Genesis 38:1-10 – Onan’s discharge of his “seed” onto the ground and his subsequent death. Onan was practicing coitus interruptus not masturbation and his sin was that of greed not lust as he selfishly refused to consummate his marriage to his deceased brother’s wife, which would have resulted in a child and the splitting of his inheritance with her offspring.

No Scripture deals directly with the subject of masturbation. But one Christian book that handles the subject quite nicely is Soul Virgins by Doug Rosenau and Michael Todd Wilson, published by Baker Books. For anyone struggling with questions of a sexual nature I recommend you read this book.

In their book they rightly conclude that the issue is one of heart renewal and unity with God. In their words:

We could endlessly debate the subject of masturbation. But here’s the place we must start: each believer must go deeper to seek and discern God’s heart from the inside out.

How do we synchronize our hearts with God’s, applying heart-directed motivation to produce godly behavior? Whether considering masturbation, fantasy, or any other sexual concern, we’d like to suggest a three-step process that may help you develop an appropriate heart attitude from God’s heart in Scripture:

Step One: If scriptural guidelines exist that directly address the topic of interest, seek to understand them and fully and obediently apply them to your heart, mind, and behaviors. Heart-directed morality always begins with obedience to clear teaching.

Step Two: If direct scriptural guidelines do not exist, seek to understand and obediently apply passages that indirectly address the behavior or that support any guidelines you found from step one.

Step Three: For topics that are still unclear after applying steps one and two, each believer should prayerfully determine his or her own heart about the issue. God has a sexual economy that works, and he will help you discover his will—however, you must act on what you already know as you build your godly attitudes and behaviors.

While there is no Scripture which directly addresses the issue of masturbation, here are a few that indirectly apply and from which we can gain principles that apply:

Matthew 5:27-28: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

Is the behavior lustful? Are there sexual fantasies of someone who is not your spouse underpinning the behavior? If so it is unhealthy to your mind.

1Corinthians 6:12: “Someone will say, “I am allowed to do anything.” Yes; but not everything is good for you. I could say that I am allowed to do anything, but I am not going to let anything make me its slave.”

Are you becoming enslaved or addicted to the behavior? If so it is harmful. In fact this is where modern medicine and the Ellen White quote cited in the question above agree.Ellen White appears to be speaking about an “established habit” or compulsive behavior to which the person has become addicted. Modern medicine recognizes such compulsive masturbation as unhealthy and an evidence of psychological, or rarely, neurological, problems.

Addictions of any kind, whether substance (alcohol, drugs, food) or behavioral (sex, gambling, shopping) have a destructive effect upon the brain. The reward pathways are artificially over excited and result in diminished ability of the prefrontal cortex to self-govern. The brain responds to this excess stimulation by reducing the number of receptors that respond to the brain chemical that triggers the reward feeling. This means, addictions reduce the intensity of pleasure from the same stimuli and therefore greater indulgence is needed to experience the same satisfaction. The judgment is impaired, spiritual discernment is eroded and impulsivity is increased. The good news is that our brains are pliable or changeable. As we, through God’s grace, exercise healthy neural pathways of self-control and leave dormant the addictive pathways our brains will rewire in healthy ways!

Philippians 2:4:Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

Are you thinking about the welfare of others? Is your behavior damaging or disrespectful to your spouse or future spouse? Is it self-centered and selfishly motivated? If so it is inappropriate and inflames the anxiety centers and results in damage to brain and body.

Romans 14:14: “But if a person believes something is wrong, that thing is wrong for him.”

Do you believe in your heart the behavior is wrong? If so then you are being damaged by engaging in the behavior. How? By experiencing guilt, internal tension, worry, uneasiness, and loss of peace all of which cause a cascade of destructive inflammatory factors which damage brain and body.

What conclusions do we draw from all of this? That God created us in His image to be self-governed sexual beings operating on the principle of other-centered love. Any activity which damages pre-frontal cortex (where we experience other-centered love, judgment and exercise self-control) and strengthens limbic system (reward pathways) ultimately results in self-destruction. The brain becomes imbalanced by all addictive processes and if not reversed ultimately results in self-destruction. As with all addictions, as we experience greater loss of self-control time is diverted to the addiction, relationships are strained, guilt is experienced, secrecy is practiced and tensions arise. Thus a toll is taken on family as well as self when addictive behaviors are not overcome.

For those struggling with a “habit” pattern of masturbation, for which you are powerless to overcome, I would suggest this may be an addiction. Consider joining a 12 step program for compulsive sexual disorders (Sexual Compulsives Anonymous website is https://www.sca-recovery.org/ ). The first step is admitting that we are powerless to change ourselves and we need a power higher than ourselves to restore us to wholeness. This is the prayer of all sinners. It is only in a heart relationship with Jesus Christ that true healing occurs. It is in union with God that we experience restoration to His original intent and experience the full joy of our sexuality as He intended it to be! And this transformation is not only in character and behavior but in brain circuitry as well!

Email me the blog whenever a new one is published.

Donate online, securely via PayPal using your credit or debit card (no PayPal account needed, unless you want to set up a monthly, recurring payment).


cancel recurring payment

 

Want to use zelle instead?
See how on our
Support and Donations page.

Upcoming Events

calendar

Testimonial Post Slider

Testimony 27

Your teachings about our heavenly Father have changed my life. Thank you sooooooo very very much! I know He’s doing some serious healing in my heart and life and I look forward to each new day to learn something new about Him and to just hear you speak about Him. Thank you, forever.

Nancy S.

 

Testimony 24

I wanted to thank you very much for presenting your understanding of God. I’ve always been troubled by this question: Why did Jesus have to die? Since my conversion I understood that The Father & Jesus are one, I did not have issues with that. But was there not any other way to save us than for Jesus to die? I guess I actually had a question about God – if He is so wise, how come He did not find another way? I did not see the real ‘beauty’  in the cross. Only when you explained the picture in the medical context, Jesus providing medicine for my selfishness, have I started to finally ‘see the light’. Thank you so much. Your seminar, “Healing the Mind,” are absolutely marvelous & have shared them with my family and many other people, including colleagues at work. Thanks, thanks, thanks. May God bless you abundantly in your ministry.

M. W., Australia

 

Testimony 60

Just watched watched lesson 10 in the 1st quarter 2021 bible study classs on Isaiah. I want to thank you for your intellectual spirituality; it’s not an oxymoron! From the point of view of a teacher I also enjoy seeing how much personal pleasure you clearly take in not just tasting, but feasting on God’s word – it reminds me of Jeremiah not being able to hold it in! It makes me smile that your cup is so full and overflowing that you make it to Tuesday’s lesson (on a good day). It just goes to show the richness of God’s Word.

God bless the Come and Reason Team from our church here in Great Britain.

Andrew H., Great Britain

 

Testimony 18

The Healing the Mind DVD set tarted me on a journey that has changed my relationship with our loving God more significantly than any other study, and brought me to your book and Bible study podcasts, which I now listen to daily, thanks to the availability of archived content on your site and on iTunes.

Anonymous

 

Testimony 57

You have helped make sense of thirty two years of confusion. The material you freely provide reorganized so much of my life into such a beautiful pattern that has always been hinted at from within, but misguided with my training and what I was experiencing externally. My filipno parents, who were converted from Catholicism to SDA, were sincere and did their best to raise me the right way and I have deep respect for them. However, being immigrants and not understanding the language made for a difficult transition as I was growing up, which also applied to my spiritual growth as I learned the patterns of religion. I have been listening to as many bible study classes and reading blog posts as my time in a work truck will allow, searching for the practical applications of where spirituality and reality meet, and I thank you for helping me find that. You have helped me reach a point in which I can truly say that I love God, that I believe He loves me, and, like David, I delight in His law. God bless.

Emmanuel V., Calgary, AB Canada

Testimony 12

I have been really blessed reading your response to the various questions on your site.

K.C., OH, USA

 

Testimony 56

I cannot thank you enough for opening my understanding to the beautiful truth of God’s Law of Love and how it applies to everything. I have been a Christian for over forty years, but I feel like I am only now seeing with my eyes open. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!

Tammy Cinzio, Australia

 

Testimony 67

I was introduced to Come And Reason by a friend of my mother-in-law, who gave me several CD’s of Dr. Jennings. The clarity of the message and recognition that God’s is a God of love was so clear, advancing beyond Dr. Maxwell’s message. However, grappled with Maxwell saying God used emergency measures for the fallen world. Now after several years of being a regular listener of the Come And Reasoning bible study class and attending Jennings’ meetings in Dallas/Fort Worth, TX, things are becoming clearer for me. Design law versus imposed law has added so much to my personal understanding of theology. This message has really impacted my work in counseling so many people miserable because they are searching for and trusting human governments to create order and peace or believing in a God who says love Me or I will kill you. I am grateful that I have an alternative view to offer my clients that makes sense. I teach a bible study class on a semi-regular basis and I value the materials that Come And Reason so freely offers to aid me in presenting this vital message. Thank you for continuing to provide advancement in our very limited understanding of a Infinite God that is rational and believable.

Dr. Roger D, Arlington, TX, USA

 

Testimony 48

I just want to tell you how blessed I have been reading “The Remedy!” It has become a daily part of my devotional relationship with God. In it I have found a God of love and a God that loves me! The bible has come alive for me! It is the first time that I can say that I have felt hope fill my heart as I have read God’s word. This is good news I can share! Thank you, Dr Jennings! Thank you for your heart for others. I can’t put into words how this has set me free! It has strengthened my trust and love for God.

Jason H.

 

Testimony 14

We really appreciate your views on the judgment and they make good sense considering our free choice.

Anonymous

 

Testimony 15

I have been sharing Come And Reason Ministries Bible study lessons with several folk. You have such a beautiful view of the plan of salvation. If we had this message preached when I was young, my generation would still all be in church.

H. R., New Zealand

Testimony 30

God lead me to your book “The God-Shaped Brain” while I was searching for another book about the brain and then to your interview about your book on HeartWise Ministries [where] I found out about [Come And Reason Ministries]. I’m now devouring the webcasts of your Bible studies. I have been so greatly blessed and I thank God so much for your courage to speak the Truth in love no matter what. Listening to you contrast the two opposing systems (laws) and digging deep to unearth the hidden treasures in the Bible makes me so incredibly happy and I feel very blessed to be part of your Bible Study Group although I live far away. I am just so excited that there is a group of people that is spreading the Truth about the character of God and it saddens me how few realize what our Father in Heaven is really like.

Kessy B., Australia

 

Testimony 45

I have been confused for years about what [christianity] calls [its] most disgusting teaching. It has never made much sense to me and for that reason has been evermore empty. I have listened to your class off and on and have struggled determining what is truth, because of the resistance design law encounters in the church. So, I thank God for your ministry. What you teach makes sense. It’s logical and backed up by the power of love. I have never seen that in Christ until now. I am astounded by the insight that is found when we look at God’s ministry through design law. All strength to this message, as I believe it to be the power of God.

Brendon S.

 

Testimony 50

After coming into contact with Come And Reason Ministries, I can finally say that many of my unanswered questions have fallen into place. I discovered that my view of God’s Law was “imposed laws and rules” with “imposed punishments” and that this was the major culprit of my many unanswered questions. Thanks be to God for using you and those around you to help us who have struggled with this “infection” of thought. I have now rejected the “imposed law” concept to fully embrace “Design Law”… to look thru “Design Law,” instead of “imposed law,” is a relief.

Viliami L., Australia

 

Testimony 4

I’m a youth leader in South Africa. We as a youth group are currently using a lot of the material on the Come and Reason site. Since we’ve started using the material, our youth group has grown.

R. V. N., South Africa