What Does the Bible Say About Pornography?

Oh, I’ve struggled with how to address this, because, brothers and sisters, we know. It’s not like there needs to be a case built that this is sinful, and yet statistics estimate half of men in the church keep running back to it or addicted to it in some way. So I don’t presume that anything I say in my own words tonight is going to change that in your life, but I have prayed for this just next couple of moments and just simply reading some different scriptures and applying the gospel to pornography, that God might deliver people tonight and free people and cause people to flee.

What Does the Bible Say About Pornography?

So what I’ve done is I’ve taken the five elements of the gospel that we started with tonight, and just for each one of those five, just put in two words of encouragement, gospel exhortations based on that element of the gospel, that if polygamy is a… Or if pornography is something that you’re involved in, engrossed in, pulled toward, that you would meditate on these things in the days to come, and you would just receive them tonight. I’ll just read some scripture. I’m going to make very little commentary in between here.

1 Peter 2:11: “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh which war against your soul. Take every thought captive to obey Christ.”

10 gospel exhortations. Character of God. Brothers and sisters, cultivate unshakeable zeal for the glory of God’s name. Whatever you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God. Desire His glory more than you desire pictures and images. Acknowledge your sexual drive as a good gift from a gracious God. It is good to have desires. God made you that way, so enjoy them in the context of a wife. Proverbs 5.

In First Corinthians 7. Married brothers. So some single men think, “Well, when I get married, this won’t be a problem.” Married men struggle with this all over the place. Married brothers, guard against sexual sin with good sex. Enjoy your wife in sex.

First Corinthians 7:3: “A husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise his wife to his husband.” One of the best ways to fight pornography on the internet is through sex with your spouse in the bedroom. Acknowledge your sexual drive is a good gift from a gracious God. We’re sexual beings and this is good.

Run From Sin

Sinfulness of man, exhortation number three. Run, run, run from every temptation, knowing that one sin is enough to warrant infinite damnation. It was one sin in Genesis 3. They ate a piece of fruit, and from that one sin came condemnation for all men. All world wars, Holocaust, murder, violence, rape, natural disasters, tsunamis, earthquakes, tornadoes, they all came from one sin. So minimize the effect of one sin. Run from it.

Guard yourself with godly friendships and gospel accountability. We are sinful and we need each other. Exhort one another every day that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. Let us consider how to spur one another to love and good works. Surround yourself with brothers and sisters who will spur you on toward Christ, and by the grace of God and the Word of God, help guard you from yourself. You and I need to be guarded from ourselves. Character of Christ, which is where we need to push one another to. 5. Contemplate the price Christ paid for your purity. See Him writhing on a cross in agony. Fight tempting images with that image. See Him, not them.

First Peter 1:13 through 19: “Prepare your minds for action. Set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Know that you are ransom not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.”

Fix Your Eyes On Him

Contemplate the price Christ paid for your purity and fix your eyes on Him, not them. Then consider the compassion Christ has for the souls of men and women. Love and pray for them. Don’t exploit and abuse them. Women or men in pictures are people. They are not objects, they are souls. Love and pray for them. Do not exploit and abuse them. They need you to point them to Christ, not fuel their exploitation. Their eternity is at stake. Consider the price Christ prayed for your purity. Consider the compassion Christ has for their souls.

God Is For You

Fourth component of the gospel, the necessity of faith. Believe that God is for you. He’s for you, He’s for you, He’s for you, and He knows what is best for you in calling you away from pornography. He’s calling you away for your good. He knows what is best for you. Believe that, that He is good and He will give us everything we need, everything our souls truly desire. Believe that God is for you.

So how do you grow in your trust for Him? Memorize and meditate on scripture. How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your Word. I’ve stored up Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You. Fight the fight of faith with the weapon of the Word. Memorize these scriptures or others like them. Lodge them deep within your heart.

Take up the shield of faith and the sword of the spirit and fight the flaming arrows of the evil one. Don’t give up. Persevere, persevere, persevere. Press on in light of the urgency of eternity. The stakes in this battle are high, brothers and sisters. Ponder the eternal danger and destruction associated with sexual sin. That’s just… It’s all of them, just read through those. Don’t be counted among the dogs in hell. This is not a game. This is not a game. Ponder the eternal danger and destruction associated with sexual sin. It damns. It damns. Run from it.

Ponder Eternal Delight

Last exhortation, best exhortation. In light of the urgency of eternity, ponder the eternal delight and joy associated with future salvation. You have been saved to delight in God and one day that delight will be full. So look forward to that day. Long for that day, knowing that its presence there will be fullness of joy. We want to be counted among on that day, on that day. The gospel and pornography.