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It’s our favorite night of the year! An Evening With FMU. RSVP here.

Distinguished guests, colleagues, families, friends, and members of this year’s  graduating class, it is now my pleasure to present: TOP10 Things Sex has in Common with Graduation.

#10: It’s a little weird

You’re probably thinking what’s weird about graduation or sex?

The former is prestigious and the latter passionate. And everyone wants both.

At least twice.

But what’s the deal with the kooky cap and gossamer gown? Sure some gospel choirs still wear robes, but nothing comes close to the mortarboard: a flat square attached to a skull cap with a little tassel on top. (Why not make it a propeller?)

This is why academics aren’t allowed to make fashion decisions. They got their one shot and look what they did.

Still, much stranger than the chosen party-wear of intelligentsia everywhere, is the way the human race reproduces.

I know. I get it. All mammals do it, but come on!

Remember when you first found out? “OK, you fooled me with the fat guy in the red suit coming down the chimney, and I even bought into the chocolate-egg-laying bunny, but I’m not about to fall for this. The stork story is far more plausible.”

To quote Claire, one of our three birth children, after her first lesson in human reproduction: “You mean to tell me you and Dad did that THREE TIMES?!?”

I believe her mom answered, “yes,” at the time, but that little girl is graduating from high school herself this Saturday. I think she’s figured out by now it’s been more than three times for her mother and I.

#9: Rite of Passage

Surely our culture has no greater public rite of passage than a student crossing the stage and receiving their diploma after years of study.

Modern society may no longer bestow the same honor on a couple crossing the threshold and giving away their virginity after years of waiting for their wedding day, but know this:


In the eyes of God, two people faithfully saving their bodies for each other until the day they pledge the rest of their lives to one another is a glorious thing.


(Despite what we might have thought when we were first told about it.)

#8: Crisis

Speaking of “rite of passage,” it’s defined by Merriam-Webster as “a ritual associated with a crisis or a change of status for an individual.”

Though always associated with a change of status, graduation is increasingly associated with a crisis of “What’s next?!” A career? A job? An internship? A room back home in the basement? A cardboard sign that reads, “Will work for video games”?

Curiously, in the hookup culture of the college campus, far more people find their first sexual experience brings greater crisis than status change. Besides the risk of STDs or unwanted pregnancy, 41% of college students express “dashed hopes,” when speaking of their last hookup, using words like “awkward, used, dirty, empty, regretful, ashamed, alone, miserable, disgusted, duped or abused.” That’s not 41% of Christians. That’s not 41% of females. That’s 41% of ALL college students.

By God’s grace, let’s pray this crisis becomes a blessing in disguise, proving that sex really is something far more precious than the entertainment option preferred by most mammals.

#7: The Future

Most annual celebrations from Easter, to the 4th of July, to Christmas, to birthdays and anniversaries honor what has past. In contrast, the address delivered at each graduation is called a commencement, because graduation isn’t just about receiving a diploma for what you’ve done, but about stepping forward into the opportunities in your future.


In the heat of the moment, sex seems like it’s all about what you’re feeling right then, but that’s not the truth. It’s also about the future.


And the connection of sex to the future becomes undeniable the moment someone gets pregnant. In fact, the societal impact of over 45% of children being born to unwed mothers is one of the greatest threats to our nation’s future.

#6: Invitations and Gifts

Ah yes, the absolute best part of graduation: the gifts. Indeed, the graduation invite is supposed to generate a gift whether the invitee can attend the ceremony or not. But it’s the least you can do for someone who either has, or is about to rack up tens of thousands of dollars in college debt.

Sex is also a gift, but it most certainly should not be treated like an obligatory response to a date invite. The giving of your body and soul in sexual union is a gift beyond compare. That makes it the perfect gift to save for only one person, the one person willing to commit the rest of their life to you.

We unwrap the rest of this TOP10 in this post, but if you enjoyed this post be sure to check out these in the Things Sex has in Common with Other Things series:


DNA: It’s What’s For Dating

Dug this weekend’s DNA? Be a good friend and share with your friends on the social media platform of choice: Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, or Twitter.

Want to go beyond what a blog post can accomplish? The LoveEd discipleship series, Beyond Sex & Salvation, will empower you to prepare for relational success when it counts: BEFORE YOU FALL IN LOVE!

It’s NOT for couples, but for any wise individual who thinks they might want to get married sometime before they die. And would like to learn how to better build healthy relationships in the meantime.

Check out all three study guides in our store. You can walk through it on your own, but it’s more fun with friends, so consider putting together an FMU LoveEd small group study. Even better?  And ask a married couple you respect to lead it!