Sex in marriage, just like other physical gifts from God, is not an absolute cure for lust, but it can be a great help in the battle. Will marriage cure my lust? That’s today’s question from an unmarried listener named Mark. “Dear Pastor John, I’m a 22-year-old burdened with strong sexual desires. Sometimes I submit to the flesh and look at pornography. I hate this and am fighting against this sin with the help of friends. “In the meantime, I have some friends who seek to care for my soul by quoting the apostle Paul — ‘For it is better to marry than to burn with passion’ ( 1 Corinthians 7:9 9 But if they have not continency, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn. ) — and they say I should marry soon. But I also have married friends who assure me that marriage will not cure my lust and tell me it would be a battle I would carry into marriage! I’m confused. If marriage cures lust, I should marry soon. If it doesn’t cure lust, then I need to work on personal purity now, without urgency to marry. Which is it?” Episode 1345: https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/will-marriage-cure-my-lust Related Resources: “Two Strategies to Win the War on Lust” https://youtu.be/0yOHIGOSmMs “Six Steps to Defeating Sexual Sin” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQ-tC_SpM34&list=PLAcB0f-21Xj06Xs3tmMl0FuVQRp0gGu5A “Can a Husband Lust After His Wife?” https://youtu.be/9yq4PPMzt-o “Is Oral Sex Okay?” https://youtu.be/SzimKdJKi6Q Ask Pastor John Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFF7F6AE365DA3564 Find other recent and popular Ask Pastor John episodes, http://desiringgod.org/ask-pastor-john