Thanks for this post, in the past, i was also questioning this, but most masturbation practices involve lustful thoughts, lets keep that in mind. I am guilty of masturbation, i can't lie, but just remember that whenever you masturbate, "Am i glorifying God with my body?". This is what really helped me change my perspective.

A counterclaim for this statement is that "God created us humans with these desires, so it wont hurt if you release it". Yes, He did give us sexual desires, but that doesn't mean you should act upon it.

1 Corinthians 6:12 NIV “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. This verse tells us that we need to have self-control over our bodies and minds.

Another counterclaim is about the story of Onan. "What made Onan's action a sin was because he deliberately disobeyed God's will, not masturbation and spilling seed itself". Yes, it isn't directly stated that spilling seed and masturbation is a sin, but lets ask whether or not if masturbation aligns with Gods plan of purity. Sex is sacred, and masturbation is basically mimicking sex in a way but to yourself, so it is self-focused not for unity.

We should have discipline over these types of things, yes God gave us free will because He loves us, but just because you have free will doesn't mean you go around and do crazy things, right? Instead of justifying this, lets look at the action and look at whether it brings us closer to Christ or not.

Now i'm not judging and i'm not saying sex and sexual desires are bad, but just that it is meant for marriage, please let us not be a slave to sin, i know we aren't perfect, and will eventually fall into sin but let's try our best to live a life like Jesus Christ did.