S. Michael Houdmann Supporter Got Questions Ministries

First, it is good to recognize that lust is sin (Matthew 5:28; 1 John 2:16). However, is it also important to be honest with ourselves. Porn and erotica are meant to incite lust in the heart. The o...

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July 31 2013 • 1 response • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jack Gutknecht Supporter ABC/DTS graduate, guitar music ministry Baptist church

Pornography is addictive—I should know; I was addicted. Others may deny that it isn’t an addiction, but I know better. It’s hard to stop. It truly is a hard habit to kick as any addiction is. Only by being saved by Jesus does anyone get the power to overcome porn. He gives us His Holy Spirit to us, at that time, to gain the victory over porn. 

Porn creates isolation--
“One who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound wisdom.” (Proverbs 18:1) I know this, too, for a fact, because I didn’t really know how to treat girls. I was tongue-tied around them. I hated myself for this, but, at the time, did not know the solution (the Savior, Jesus! Whom I now know!)

I now cling to the verse, “No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation, he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to bear it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13) (to help me overcome pornography).

Pastor Warren Wiersbe tells this story about Titus 1:15, "All things are pure to the man with a pure heart. But to sinful people nothing is pure. Both their minds and their hearts are bad.

“Titus 1:15 is one of those verses that some ignorant people try to use to defend their ungodly practices. ‘To the pure, all things are pure’ is used to excuse all sorts of sin. I recall warning a teenager about the kind of literature he was reading, and his defense was, ‘Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Your heart must be filthy if you see sin in what I’m reading. After all, “To the pure, all things are pure.”’

“To begin with, Paul was refuting the false teaching of these legalists with reference to foods. They were teaching that Jewish dietary laws still applied to Christian believers (see 1 Tim. 4:3–5). If you ate forbidden food, you defiled yourself, but if you refused that food, you became holier.

“‘It is just the opposite,’ Paul argued. ‘These teachers have defiled minds and consciences. Therefore, when they look at these innocent foods, they see sin, because sin has defiled their vision. But those of us who have pure minds and consciences know that all foods are clean. It is not the foods that are defiling the teachers; it is the teachers who are defiling the foods!’ But this principle must not be applied to things that we know are evil. The difference, for example, between great art and pornography is more than ‘in the eye of the beholder.

“A great artist does not exploit the human body for base gain. For a believer to indulge in sinful, erotic experiences and claim that they were pure because his heart was pure, is to use the Word of God to excuse sin. The application Paul made was to food, and we must be careful to keep it there.”—Warren Wiersbe

September 27 2021 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Justin Hale Supporter

'Pornography' is a word that actually comes directly from the New Testament Bible. The word often translated 'fornication,' or 'sexual immorality' is actually the Greek word, 'porneia' which comes from the Greek word for 'prostitute' (Greek: 'porne').

The word 'graphō' also appears frequently and means, 'written or expressed.' So 'pornography' is the worldview, beliefs, and expressions of a 'prostitute.' The worldview, beliefs and expressions of any group of people is called an 'ethos.' 

"Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” (1 Corinthians 15:33). 

The word translated 'morals' there is the word 'ethos.' 

So just being around the bad worldview, beliefs and expressions of a prostitute 'corrupts' our own worldview, beliefs and expressions.

Usually when we see the phrase 'Do not be deceived...' in scripture, it is because many people already are. It is easy to convince ourselves that we will somehow be the one person who won't get 'corrupted' just by the experiences. We will walk away unaffected. 

The important thing to remember is that Satan always 'steals' something good in order to attract us to whatever 'fortress of corruption' he erects around it. He used to do this on a grand scale before the Holy Church began to dismantle them and replace them. In fact, 'pagan Church' (if you will), was an assembly where people would meet to basically worship a demon with the assistance of prostitutes by physically engaging in activities similar to what is now being depicted 'online.' 

GOD did not command His Church to 'destroy' that good thing being exploited to attract people to the illicit worship, only the 'fortress' itself, (that is, the pagan system of worship). We 'capture and reinterpret' it to glorify Christ, (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

In effect, the 'thoughts' that seem so attractive to us become like 'prisoners of war' we take captive and 'alter' until they no longer blaspheme GOD or mock Christ. 

Christians have actually been working on this 'project' for generations, and the end result is our 'ethos,' (that is, an expression of our own worldview, beliefs and art).

So as a Christian, the idea is not to merely 'abstain' from pornography, (which is, of course, the first step), but to 'identify, capture and liberate' the good thing trapped there. 

If successful, there will be a 'Christian' alternative that destroys pornography itself, competing on every level and attracting more people, all WITHOUT requiring that they become 'corrupted' by it.

One rather humorous example of past Christian victories is the story of 'organ' music. Today, it is revered as obvious 'Church music,' even considered ethereal and sublime. Yet, have you ever considered why it is called 'organ' music? The 'pipe organ' was actually invented by Medieval 'pimps' who shaped the pipes like human phalluses and used them to simulate the sounds of lust and human breathing, making them loud enough to reverberate throughout the whole community and draw men down into the 'red light' district to the prostitutes. That's why it is called 'organ' music.

The Holy Church met with the 'pimps,' purchased the item for a hefty sum and outlawed its use except for 'official Church purposes.' Then they started playing it and men followed the music right into Church! Imagine their surprise the first time this happened! 

At the time, this was an extremely bold foray into the 'secular' world that convinced many men to abandon their 'red light' district activities and seek fulfillment in the Church, especially using art, music and other stimulating entertainment.

The problem is that 'Church' has fallen far behind in this work and 'prostitute culture' is the 'default' that always fills in when it is absent. 

Our own 'version' would be called 'kyriography' from the Greek word 'kyria' meaning 'lady,' (the female equivalent of 'kyrios' meaning, 'lord'). 

Imagine 'pornography' fully filtered by Philippians 4:8. That is our 'ethos.'

February 08 2023 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report