Abstinence is the deliberate, principled restraint from something — particularly things that are either sinful in themselves or harmful to one's spiritual life and the lives of others. Scripture calls believers to abstain from sexual immorality (1 Thess 4:3), from "every form of evil" (1 Thess 5:22), and from the passions of the flesh (1 Pet 2:11). Abstinence in the biblical sense is not mere willpower but the fruit of Spirit-given self-control (enkrateia) and a mind set on what is above. It can also refer to voluntary fasting — abstaining from food for spiritual purposes — and to wise restriction in matters of Christian liberty (Romans 14–15), where one abstains not because something is sinful but out of love for a weaker brother.
AB'STINENCE, n. In general, the act or practice of voluntarily refraining from or forbearing any action. More specifically: 1. The refraining from an indulgence of appetite, or from customary gratification of animal propensities. 2. Fasting, or forbearing to eat and drink. Abstinence from food is called fasting. 3. The refraining from spirituous liquors.
Sexual abstinence before marriage has been mocked as outdated, unrealistic, or even harmful by modern sexual ethics — a stark rejection of the biblical vision of the body as a temple and sexuality as covenantal. More broadly, the idea of voluntary self-denial is foreign to consumer culture, which treats every desire as a right to be satisfied. Meanwhile, some religious traditions have swung to the opposite extreme — mandatory abstinence from good things (marriage, certain foods) that Paul calls a "doctrine of demons" (1 Tim 4:1–3). Biblical abstinence is neither ascetic rejection of creation nor libertine indulgence — it is wisdom-governed self-mastery in service of love for God and neighbor.
1 Thessalonians 4:3 — "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality."
1 Peter 2:11 — "Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul."
1 Thessalonians 5:22 — "Abstain from every form of evil."
Romans 14:21 — "It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble."
Galatians 5:23 — "…self-control; against such things there is no law." — enkrateia as fruit of the Spirit.
G567 — apechomai (ἀπέχομαι): to abstain, hold oneself away from
G1466 — enkrateia (ἐγκράτεια): self-control, abstinence, mastery of desires
G1467 — enkrateuomai (ἐγκρατεύομαι): to exercise self-control
"Sexual abstinence before marriage is not repression — it is preparation. The body trained in self-control becomes a gift, not a demand."
"Paul's abstinence from meat offered to idols was an act of love, not legalism — he laid down his freedom to protect a weaker brother's conscience."
"Fasting is bodily abstinence as a spiritual act — when the stomach is empty, the soul learns to hunger for God."