Posted on 02/03/2022 9:38:04 AM PST by SeekAndFind
The Reality Is…
There are threats that face the Christian Church, and the cause of those threats is sin. Sin affects every member of the Christian faith, no matter the status. Sin causes us to stumble and sets us back in our cause for Christ. Ultimately, it should remind us how desperate we need the forgiveness and guidance of God.
But which sin seems to set us back the most? What are we glossing over, pushing under the rug, and pretending isn’t there? That, my friends, is sexual sin. In 2016, Josh McDowell told CBN News, “pornography is probably the greatest threat to the cause of Christ in the history of the world.” Wow. That’s a strong statement to make.
Churches should be pushing the alarm button…not the snooze button! The sad reality is we are not hearing the alarm because most Christian men are in the clutches of this sin. Barna Research Group and Josh McDowell Ministries commissioned a studyfound that the number of Christian men who view pornography nearly mirrors that of non-Christian men. How can this be?
Factors
How has the Church suddenly become a fruitless and passive representation of God in this area? There should be alarms ringing left and right about this topic. Yes, there are certainly pastors and leaders out there addressing it and hundreds of books have been written on it. However, instead of winning against this sin, we’re backsliding.
A recent Lifeway Research poll found that 81 percent of Americans said they were concerned with the declining moral behavior of America. If God calls and equips the Church to be set apart from this world and its lusts, why are most Christian men living sexually immoral lifestyles?
There are a couple of primary factors that contribute to this decline in morals and moral behavior. First, the world is constantly advancing the availability, accessibility, and acceptance of sexual immorality. Over half of men aged 18-49 label pornography as morally acceptable. What’s even more disturbing is that 50% of those who claimed their religion was important to them, also said porn was morally acceptable.
The second factor contributing to this moral decline is that Christians frequently underscore God’s Word and the role that He plays in the battle between the flesh and the spirit. Most of the sermons and books today focus on what you need to do to become free — not how God has a role and provision for us in this battle.
For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. (2 Corinthians 10:4-6)
It’s time to fight
As the Body of Christ, we cannot allow this moral decline to continue. We must sound the alarm.
Did you know that sexual sin is different than all other sins? The Bible tells us, “Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he commits sexual immorality sins against his own body” (1 Corinthians 6:18). Sexual sin incapacitates us both spiritually and physically. Satan knows this and has been using this sin against man from the very beginning. He knows we were created as sexual beings (Genesis 2:24) and our sexual immorality incapacitates us. He also knows sin causes us to hide from God (Genesis 3:10) and he specifically targets Christians.
The Church has been putting forth unbiblical tactics far too long and it’s time for the Church to stand up and fight the war of sexual immorality.
Adapted from J.S. Shelton’s book “Unmuzzled: Escaping sexual sin, Satan’s grip on men.” For more information about J.S. Shelton and “Unmuzzled” please visit: https://unmuzzledmen.com/
Author of the book UNMUZZLED, Jeremy is a man on a mission to directly confront sexual sin in the church today. He does so with the belief God is using him to grab hold of those heading toward a slaughter. He and his wife of eighteen years have five children and live in Texas.
I suspect your friend has four legs and eats kibble
When I was young a kid older than myself told me I needed to get “saved” then later on he proceeded to want me to pull my pants down.
Things are probably worse now in my estimation.
The Christians drink the porn in and live in the popular culture try to look good on the outside with their insides sick as ever.
When I was in religious broadcasting the Playboy Channel was regular viewing on the satellite dish some 40 years ago.
Its “Jesus” on the outside and “Geeza**” on the inside.
Oh don’t get me going on this!
Ecause the draw of ,I ing a carnal life is so,strong and hard to resist, especially for people in their sexual prime with raging hormones. Folks feel,invulnerable, and feel that the Bible’s warnings are “more for the really wicked folks” than they are for them, and think,they can get away with it because nothing bad happens right away, but little do they realize, or will admit to themselves, that God is very serious about sexual immorality, and there will be consequences, sometimes very bad consequences. That the person must live with for the rest of their lives.
At best, folks think that the tradeoff will be worth it, ie: they know there will be consequences, but they choose to,enjoy the lower lusts of life (rather than seeking the higher fulfillment of a Christian life), and race themselves for,the consequences later. Only problem is that those consequences can be very severe in some cases.
It’s “more fun And enjoyable (physical sensory-wise) to give in ot the lies of the evil one than it is to seek to be close to God spiritually. To seek to be close to God spirituslly, one must trust that God has their best interests in mind, even while their natural man’s lusts for pleasure and instant gratification are denied.
That’s not an easy thing to do, so lots of folks opt for the easy way out, and settle for the lower gratification of a separated life from God (not that they lose their salvation, but they sacrifice a c,one relationship when they choose the lower gratification of life over obeying God)
The price of precocious sexuality is that it makes kids addicts earlier and earlier and the addict needs more to get the same stimulation. It should be no surprise that 25% of men sitting in church pews are porn addicts and woman have viewed themselves (and let others) as disposable. With easy access of the internet, social media, and cable tv, getting exposed to more and more was no challenge.
No one should be surprised that Bill Clinton was on the roster of men who flew to Epstein's pedophile island. Who knows what he was exposed to and what age. But many of our social problems today are directing due to the influence of an amoral lowlife who received only praise and adulation from a gullible public.
We don’t participate in adultry...
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Jesus defined adultery is simply lusting after a woman not your wife.
So under even Christ’s definition, find me a Christian man who says he’s never committed adultery and you’ve got yourself a liar.
Only by acknowledging it and repenting from it every time it happens will a man be likely to do less of it.
BS premise from the jump. Nuff said.
One quick comment.
Lots of gnashing of teeth over homosexuals.
I say we have only ourselves to blame. Look at the obsession with sex since the ‘50s. Yes we can blame pills and more condoms for making it easier but the fact remains that hippies and so on said you can have free love. The obsession with sex began and was shown more on movies and tv etc.
Placing such super importance on sex and do what feels good, atueally led into letting homos feel better about doing THEIR work thing. Note it did not really come to ahead until the Gay ‘90s.
This is all a natural progression.
I’d like to see the complementary article on the women living their current immoral, materialistic, ever complaining, lifestyle.
The church ( in my case the Catholic Church) began going bland somewhere during the 20th century. They don’t inveigh. They don’t thunder. They drivel mildly about generic sin but they don’t point to specific sin and the destruction it may bring about. Abortion. Sexual deviance. Premarital sex. Someone from Mars sitting in on services for say ninety days might be hard pressed at the end to identify what are sins.
Most women are too unattainable and undesirable. My grandsons don’t watch porn. They play video games and virtual reality. It’s the opposite of what is said here. They aren’t too sexed up. They are sexless. It’s very sad.
Porn has destroyed the male brain.
Solomon was a sex-addict. David, "a man after God's own heart," committed adultry, murder, and was a polygamist. Even Abraham, the father of faith, sinned sexually.
It's really a religious spirit that focuses on outward compliance instead of matters of the heart, like courage and faith.
It certainly did that to mine.
But God …
and it’s a product of human nature.
xxxxxx
Of a human nature not using its intellect and will.
I’m pretty old
I’ve kinda gleaned there are several camps on sex in the western world
Those who don’t care as much about it period or sadly are precluded for whatever reason
Those who have religious psychological restraints about it...Often in the form of guilt for women
Those who have the same restraint but non religious
And those who love sex for the satisfaction
And finally those who love it for the intimacy
Which gender falls into which type is debatable
On porn
I know men and women....either widowed or lesbian spinsters ....both groups for whom porn is an outlet
Either that or an escort
Or nothing
Men and women love porn at times
Many women love erotic westerns
It’s their business
The porn industry is seedy and debasing I’ll give you that for sure
I don’t all this so silly.....male sex drive between my generation and the gamer generation has collapsed .....
Blacks seem less affected
I don’t think many folks are addicted to porn
Many women today get fat or lose interest and blame porn
That’s easier than looking at themselves
It’s a much larger issue that frankly I don’t understand.....
Why so many horny young women grow asexual as they age and their men often don’t
Only cure I’ve ever seen world magic is the much maligned quaalude....a drug fembots in the early 80s detested because it made women like sex like men
The irony that today fembots applaud women acting like men sexually
Whilst they clamor for higher and higher legal ages of consent for girls
Tell to not a damn mess and porn is just an easy foil that suits the religious right and feminists
“It’s been a problem for both men and women since Genesis.”
Yup.
What, they took a poll?
Were the guys bragging or complaining?
It is not a sin to look at a woman with admiration for her beauty, nor even to have a desire, but is becomes a sin if it becomes something that is meticulously cultivated in the mind to the point that the person lusts to be with her.
“EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(28) To lust after her.—The intent is more strongly marked in the Greek than in the English. It is not the passing glance, not even the momentary impulse of desire, but the continued gaze by which the impulse is deliberately cherished till it becomes a passion. “
I dare say there are a good number of men who love their wives and their wives only, and who do not practice lusting after other men’s wives. Is it a problem with even Christian men? Sure, but not every man is given to lusting after someone who isn’t their spouse. They may have done so,as teens before marriage, but there are men who,have repented and do not do,so after marriage. While the temptation to do so,is still there, they manage to fight it off because they take their vows seriously and they take obeying God seriously as well. It is possible to be content with what God has allowed, and not to lust after what he hasn’t. It’s not It easy, but it is possible.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.