The primary purpose of sex between a husband and wife is summed up by Christ(interesting he did not mention children in this context) Mark10:But from the beginning of creation, God MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE. 7”FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER, 8AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH; so they are no longer two, but one flesh.…”
In this context he was speaking of divorce but he in turn was also quoting Genesis 2:23-24:…23The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” 24For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
In this context the Bible was speaking of the creation of a woman out of man via the rib of Adam and that both man a woman find a completeness thru one another. Children were not spoken of in this context.
God did command that we be fruitful and multiply but the primary purpose of sex is to strengthen and reinforce the soul and spiritual ties between husband and wife.(to become one flesh...which is why God really hates divorce for it injures the souls of 2 people and children if present) That a couple however, should hope to continually remain childless may indicate a darker spiritual issue as you have stated but not for those couples who desire to have children yet God has chosen NOT to bless them as parents of such!
This same thing --- call it "love-making life" or "life-making love" --- really conveys respect for God's design.
This is not negated if the couple are naturally infertile. Natural sexual relations between a husband and wife always have the significance of "this is the life-giving act" even if the act naturally does not or can not produce a baby.
That's why husband and wife past the age of childbearing can certainly still enjoy sexual union. But they shouldn't do perversions which are not the life-giving act (e.g. ejaculation into the anus or other acts of sodomy which I very much don't want to describe.)
They should also not do any perversion which, while it is procreative, is clearly not a love-union, such as intentionally fantasizing you're with somebody else, e.g. having relations with your wife while viewing porn; or, for that matter, marital relations deteriorating into rape.
It is part of the privilege of being human that we are cooperators with God in this way: love and life blossom together, they are not intentionally split-off from each other.
Anyone --- even a seemingly unbelieving scientist --- who looks more and more into how sexual love "works" becomes more and more impressed with God's design, which is exquisite.
....”the primary purpose of sex is to strengthen and reinforce the soul and spiritual ties between husband and wife.(to become one flesh...which is why God really hates divorce for it injures the souls of 2 people and children if present)”....
Exactly...thank you.
There’s a couple I know who do not have children...by choice. There ares serious mental health issues in his family and the risk would be great children would also have these. They opted out of having children...nevertheless they are celebrating their 50th wedding Anniversary this year and a wonderful example of their love relationship and the ties which have kept them all these years...and they’re still in love.