The Cost of Porn
- Tyler Edge
- Nov 4, 2022
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 22, 2023
We serve a God who designed intimacy to be sacred, and we live in a culture that promotes the opposite.
Pornography is arguably the most difficult form of sin most men will ever struggle with. Not only does it go against God’s design for sexuality. It also rewires the way our brain works; it teaches us to trivialize relationships to nothing more than sexual experiences and has many other dire consequences.
Up to 65% of young adult men and 18% of young women report watching pornography at least once a week, though the actual amount is believed to be higher.
Why Must this be addressed?
We live in a culture that is hyper sexualized. As men and as women it is close to impossible to avoid all pornographic images unless perhaps, we devote ourselves to the lifestyle of a monk, free of all electronics and far away from modern advertisement. The simple fact is that” Sex Sells” and businesses know this. The first recorded use of this tactic in the Western world was in 1871 when Pearl Tobacco used an image of a nude woman to sell their product, however, this is a tactic that is as old as time. Satan understands that one of man's strongest urges, if not the strongest urge, is sexual drive. Nothing is innately wrong with this, and it is even a blessing if it is directed into creating and leading a family as the Lord commanded us to do. However, like most blessings, sin has made a way for this to be a curse. We as believers must be aware of the ways in which this perversion of something great creates barriers between not only us and our loved ones, but between us and our Creator.
Section 3: How Can I Prepare?
Why Must We Take Porn Seriously?
The first and most simple of reasons to take porn seriously is because it is a sin.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We as believers understand there is a price to be paid for our sins, and we also understand that as believers we are to strive to live in a way that does not grieve the Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 4:30) As believers we are called to something greater, we are called to a lifestyle that mirrors that of our Saviour. All sin has its consequences, and porn is no exception. These consequences are physical, and if not dealt with run the risk of being eternally damning. Some of the ways in which we are affected is that pleasure is not as pleasing, for those of us married, our relationships lose intimacy, and for those of us single, marriage loses its value. In this article linked here we see some of the ways in which porn perverts and destroys us. In Ephesians 6 Paul calls us to put on our armor for battle daily. If we as believers neglect ourselves in preparation for this battle, we will lose.
What does the Bible say?
As I am sure you are aware, pornography in the way we deal with it now a days was not something that always existed. The only tablet that had access to a cloud back then was Moses’. (Yeah, I know that was bad). The good news, however, is that sexual immorality and depravity was just as prevalent back then as it is now! Kinda feels weird calling that good news… What I mean is simply that the guidance that was given back then to deal with sexual immorality is just as applicable now as it was the very day it was written. (As is all of Scripture!!)
Let us take a look at an example of sexual immorality and how it was dealt with.
In Genesis 39 we see the story of Joseph and Potiphar’s…. Shady…. Wife. Potiphar’s wife quite literally tore the clothes off of Joseph and he kept running. There is something that I think should be taken note of here. I would feel pretty confident in asserting that Potiphar’s wife was probably quite beautiful. This was not something that would not have been easy to Joseph, perhaps something that he even would’ve succumbed to had he stayed around and attempted to fight it. It is okay for us as believers to admit that we are weak, and that we alone cannot stand up to the “Wiles of the Devil”. In fact, it’s better than “okay” it is an essential part of Christianity!
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you, but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.
This verse tends to be misquoted more than it is used correctly. This does not mean that there will not be temptations that are more than we can handle. Quite the opposite! Temptations are impossible to resist without turning to the Lord. We see in the last portion of this scripture that He will make us away to” escape” these things! This clearly states that we will be in the process of fighting when a way is made for us. Our God is a loving and kind God, He is also a God who allows temptation! James tells us that persevering in times of temptation is an important aspect of sanctification. This does not mean that we seek temptation, this simply means that we prepare for it before we are in it. We as believers must be intentional when in our fight for purity. If we attempt to fight the fight without preparation after we have already clicked on a video or searched up that website… we have lost. If you have not already done it, ADMIT! Admit that you are not strong enough to stand up to this issue alone. Admit this and acknowledge that you need Christ. This first step is crucial, we as believers rely on Christ’s strength during these times.
Confess your shortcomings, admit you need Him, and prepare!!
How can I be prepared?
Our goal as believers is to glorify our King. 1 John 2:16 states….
1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
The” lust of the flesh” and “lust of the eyes” are exactly what porn was created to fulfil. As believers we should be disgusted and grieved when we turn to pornography to fulfill the desires that we are supposed to be destroying! In his letter to the Church at Colossae Paul tells the believers to...
Colossians 3:5–7 Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. 6 For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, 7 and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.
He is acknowledging that these are things that were part of us, but now as new creations in Christ we put them to death. Putting them to death is simply not enough! Not only do we put off the old desires, but we also push forward to that which is good and holy!
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
The motivation of what we will not do is not as powerful as the motivation of what we can do. If we set out to simply not watch pornography, we will be more likely to struggle. However, if my goal is to not watch pornography and instead seek after the heart of the Savior, I will actively be working towards something good as opposed to just side stepping that which is not. As the old adage goes, "Idle hands are the devil's workshop" if you struggle with porn, you know just how true this is. We as believers must understand that every single sin which we commit did indeed pin our Savior to that cross. The sins we commit do grieve that Spirit which lives within us, and every time we indulge in these sins, we are putting a wedge between ourselves and our King.
In Conclusion
We avoid evil, we flee from temptation, and we pursue the good things of God. The forces of Satan know in which ways we are weakest, but so too does our Father. The further we stray from Him, the more easily we will fall to temptation. Cling to your Father Christian, cling to Him knowing that that any and all things outside of Him only offer death. Cling to Him knowing that time spent away from Him leads us down paths that only produce shame and guilt. Cling to Him knowing that He is good enough.
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