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Topic: Striving for Moral Purity in a Sex-Crazy World
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Bong_Diddely
New Member
Member # 7214
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posted
quote:
God has been merciful to me (although some men in my position would not see it that way). I am not equipped as some others are. It has kept me humble and reserved. It has not altogether kept me out of trouble however. But if it were different, I wonder if I would be able to deny the pleasures that are out there.....
![[cool_shades]](graemlins/cool_shades.gif) ![[pound]](graemlins/pound.gif) ![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
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B'Bong-de-bott'ly-didd'ly-ya-Hee-diddley-ya-hee-diddley-yah-hee-
didd'ley-yah-hee-Bong-hong-m'Bong-m'Bong-Hong-B'BONG!!-mi-bott'ly
-didd'ly-ya...
Posts: 3 | From: Bibletown, Ohio | Registered: Jun 2008
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Michael Harrison
Advanced Member
Member # 6801
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posted
God has been merciful to me (although some men in my position would not see it that way). I am not equipped as some others are. It has kept me humble and reserved. It has not altogether kept me out of trouble however. But if it were different, I wonder if I would be able to deny the pleasures that are out there; for I would be bolder to pursue them. But love for Him goes a long way, now that I know Him. And there is discipline in knowing what can happen if we do not abide under His cover.
Before that however, what kind of miracle causes us to seek Him? I remember how that a guy who worked for the same company that I did, asked how we men (there were two Christians who were there) could give up the girls to be Christians. It is a fair question. He wasn't mocking. It was a serious inquiry. (Well, I was divorced and the other guy was married. But the one asking was playing the field)
At the time I couldn't give him an answer. I well knew what he meant. I didn't know how to explain the fear of God that comes from knowing Him. I didn't know how to tell him in a way that he would accept, that one just has to take that step. God meets the person who does take that step, and wonderfully so. But few will take that step when the other stuff is staring them in the face like a steamy billboard, graphically advertising what they have to give up. (Yet what value is Jesus if you are not willing to give up what you would not.) Yet, after having postponed taking that step, it could well be that they may encounter difficulty which would make them think again, to reconsider. Unfortunately, sometimes something happens so bad, that they don't get that opportunity. So here is why we have the passage, "Now is the accepted time of salvation."
I remember the story that one pastor told. He gave a word of prophecy. He said that there was someone there in the congregation that should 'quit' what he was doing (to state it in short form). He said it more than once. He said it for a few services over a few weeks, or months, in fact.
Well, there was a woman who was married to a man who worked out of town a lot. This particular man, the object of the prophecy, was going over to see her when the husband was out of town. But someone said something to the husband about it, and so he canceled his trip that time. That night he went to his bedroom window, via the roof, I seem to remember. He caught the two in bed. He had a gun. If I remember correctly, he didn't shoot his wife. Imagine the pain and suffering of the moment when the guilty guy's pleasure turned to stark fear of inescapable consequence.
You can't tell someone though. Thankfully God is able to respond to our prayers. In fact, we may be the product of someone's prayer.
There was this ebony girl in my class in seventh or eighth grade. I know that when I get to heaven and ask, I'll find out that she was praying for me. I don't know if we ever exchanged words in school, but don't ask me how I know. I know that I know. I see it just like I was watching "Little House on the Prarie," and seeing it acted out on TV. I see it; feel it; know it.
But what to tell the guy who showed interest the only way he knew how, but couldn't bring himself to forfeit what had its hooks in him with a vengence; well, I would have needed a special word of wisdom. For I have pondered it over the years, and at times have had an answer, however, it is at the present, fleeting. If only there was something I could have said. Because he asked!
We have to trust God to do the impossible.
Posts: 3273 | From: Charlotte N.C. | Registered: Sep 2007
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Carol Swenson
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Member # 6929
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Jude 1:7 (NLT)
And don’t forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God’s judgment.
Posts: 6787 | From: Colorado | Registered: Dec 2007
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Michael Harrison
Advanced Member
Member # 6801
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posted
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So, in the days of Noah, demon possessed-men and women were motivated to commit lewd immoral acts with other men and women, so that the physical offspring were "giants." The word "giant" in Hebrew means "fallen ones." In this case, the offspring of the immoral activity in Noah’s day yielded not physical giants, but spiritually giant sinners.
Exactamunde! That is exactly how I have always believed it.
That is a good article. It shows that the author is aware of the profound implications of not benefitting in the victory that Christ gives. Indeed, it takes profound wisdom to seek Him and to aviod these dangers. It is not at all an easy matter to ignore the pleasures that are making captives of men. The power of it is huge.
I remember how that recently a Christian girl was tempted to have sex with a man. It was an opportunity not to miss, to be engaged by a famous person who was attractive, and in demand. He was a race car driver. She had sex with him, the only one she had ever had sex with. Then it came out in the news that he had aids. She also contracted aids, after only one night with this guy. How horrible to have happened. I have not heard if she is still living. I have not heard that she has passed away. I feel so sorry for her. I am human too, and I realize how easy it is to be stupid. But stories like this should be very disciplining. The devil will hit with 'moment of impact' like a race car doing 180 miles an hour hitting a six foot thick concrete abutment if you are given to being foolish. And this girl only messed up once.
There is suffering in God, but there is protection in Him also. So to step out of His protection is riskey business.
Part of that protection comes in how we believe. I know that I had a brother who would always remind me that:
The heart "is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9)
But God will give us a new heart if we desire it of Him. What this means is that we are not condemned to have a desperately wicked heart, because that is the heart of unbelief and sin that can do nothing else but.
Posts: 3273 | From: Charlotte N.C. | Registered: Sep 2007
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KnowHim
Admin
Member # 1
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Striving for Moral Purity in a Sex-Crazy World
By Mike Wingfield
As the summer months begin, our beaches and malls will be filled with people who are sensually and provocatively dressed. Only God knows how many millions of people will look, lust, and sin throughout these summer months! We need to be reminded that Jesus said, "Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." (Matthew 5:28) Sensuality and immorality are the norm for these last days, just as it was when the Lord judged the entire world with a global flood in the days of Noah. When Jesus was asked by His disciples about the signs of His coming, He responded, among many things, "But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (Matthew 24:37) A study of the culture of Noah’s day, as revealed in Genesis 6, demonstrates that global immorality was so common that the Lord "saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." (Genesis 6:5) This verse is a commentary on the previous verses. In Genesis 6:1-4 we are told that during the time of a global population explosion men were looking upon the women and saw that they were "fair" (the Hebrew word means they saw them as being "beautiful."). The Bible tells us that "the sons of God" were having sex with the "daughters of men" and that result was an offspring that were "giants." (Genesis 6:1-4) The surface reading and consideration of these verses does not reveal the real story behind the days of Noah. The term "sons of God" is sometimes a reference in the Bible to angels. (Job 1:6) In this case, because of the wickedness associated with their activity, we are forced to conclude that this is a reference to fallen angels – demons. So, in the days of Noah, demon possessed-men and women were motivated to commit lewd immoral acts with other men and women, so that the physical offspring were "giants." The word "giant" in Hebrew means "fallen ones." In this case, the offspring of the immoral activity in Noah’s day yielded not physical giants, but spiritually giant sinners. Therefore, this context demands that we conclude that these sinful, immoral parents, who were being influenced by demons, were giving birth to children who were controlled by the same demons, and, like their parents, were grossly immoral.
Luke also reminds the Bible reader that the last days will be like the days of Lot in Sodom when "it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all." (Luke 17:28-30) A study of Genesis 18-19 reveals that God patiently waited until the sin of homosexuality had a firm grip upon the entire city of Sodom. When the two angels from heaven entered Lot’s house that fateful night before its destruction, all of the men "compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter." (Genesis 19:4) This militant homosexual crowd demanded that Lot deliver the two men to them so they could sexually abuse them throughout the night. In Genesis 18:20 the Lord revealed the grief of His heart when he declared that "the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and … their sin is very grievous." Even after the angels supernaturally struck these men with blindness, "they wearied themselves to find the door." (Genesis 19:11) Apparently, even after divine judgment they were still determined to enter Lot’s house to carry out their lustful desires. In a similar way, after three and one-half years of the harsh judgments of God during the Tribulation Period, in which at least one-half of the world’s population will be killed (Revelation 6:8; 9:15), those who survive will not want to give up their sexual immorality. (Revelation 9:21) Note that the immorality of those living in the Tribulation will be directly connected to demon worship, violence, the occult (which includes mind-altering drugs), and theft. (Revelation 9:20-21) Therefore, we must conclude that our world today is globally running toward its appointment with the judgment of God during the Tribulation!
In many ways the U.S. is leading and influencing the world with its immorality as we export our rock music, movies, and pornography to the nations of the world. As you travel to other nations you can hear this godless music and see the sensual fashions that are now permeating the world!
The rapid moral disintegration of America is frightening. In March two reports were released that give us a window into the gross depravity of America. World magazine reported that 26 percent of American girls, ages 14-19, "have at least one sexually transmitted disease." (World, March 22/29, 2008, p.18) That means that one out of every four American teen girls you see in public, on average, has a sexually transmitted disease! A more shocking survey indicates "that well over half of American teens now engage in oral sex." (U.S. News & World Report, March 10, 2008, p. 60) Many global surveys indicate that there is a shocking rise in sexually transmitted diseases in the mouth, and oral cancer, due to the increased risks people (ages 16-40) are taking by engaging in oral sex. "The frequency of oral sex among those engaging in casual hookups is a virtual epidemic in the making." (U.S. News & World Report, March 10, 2008, p. 60) Apart from the moral and spiritual implications of these reports, it is plain to see that a heath-care crisis is in the making that will dwarf the Aids epidemic. One can only begin to imagine the impact this will have on health care costs and availability. America is about to discover what God means when He warns: "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption." (Galatians 6:7-8) Notice that in the previous chapter the Apostle Paul lists the first four works of the flesh as "adultery [extra marital sexual activity], fornication [all forms of premarital sex], uncleanness [moral impurity], [and] lasciviousness [morally filthy]." (Galatians 5:19)
Where is the church in all of this mess? Where are the voices of the men of God who need to sound the warning to their spouses and children? Where are all of the Sunday school teachers, youth workers, and pastors that should be faithfully proclaiming what the Bible has to say about sex? The church is to be salt and light in the midst of the spiritual darkness of a nation. However, statistics indicate that many pastors and church members are morally no different than the world. Tragically, the church has become a part of the problem rather than a part of the solution to bring about a spiritual turning back to God! More than ever before we need men of God who will proclaim and model moral purity in our homes, churches, communities, and nation!
Let us turn to the eternal moral values of our Creator and examine what He has to say. Some people think that since the Bible is an old book with old-fashioned standards it is no longer relevant for living in the 21st century. However, God’s moral standard has not and will not change. All of God’s standards of morality are founded upon His holy character. God is holy. This means that God is morally pure. He cannot sin. He hates all sin. His holiness has not changed, and will not change because He is perfectly and infinitely holy! God has declared, "For I am the LORD, I change not." (Malachi 3:6) Therefore, God’s standard for sexual conduct is the same for all people, cultures, and times. Remember that He is holy and He created us. Therefore, if we violate His laws we will pay the consequences, someday, somewhere, and somehow!
God’s standard is set forth in Hebrews 13:4, "Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." This simply means that God has ordained that sex in marriage is precious in His sight. God brought together the first man and woman and commanded them to multiply. (Genesis 1:26-28; 2:21-25) It is His ordained plan and pattern for sex between the husband and wife in marriage to reproduce (Genesis 1:28), to bring pleasure (Proverbs 5:15-20), and to fulfill the sexual appetite of their spouse. (1 Corinthians 7:1-5)
Let us examine nine biblical imperatives to promote sexual purity:
We must fear God!
This is where everything in our lives must begin and end. Psalm 111:10 says, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom." Proverbs 3:7 adds, "Be not wise in thine own eyes; fear the LORD, and depart from evil." Proverbs 16:6 declares that it is the fear of God that causes men to "depart from evil." The word fear communicates that we should be in awe of God and that we are also respectfully afraid of Him. Do you fear God? If not, why not? Is it because you do not know and believe what the Bible teaches about the One who made you, watches you, and controls your next heartbeat and breath? The Bible states that "the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings." (Proverbs 5:21) Are you aware that God sees everything you do, knows everything you think, and knows what makes you tick? None of us can hide anything from God! The Lord has declared, "Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD." (Jeremiah 23:24) Your spouse may not see you while you are flirting with another person at work or looking at pictures on the Internet. Your parents may not know you are engaging in sexual immorality with your friends or date, but God does!
When Joseph was tempted by Potiphar’s wife to have sex with her, he responded, "How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" (Genesis 39:9) When the moment of sexual temptation came to this godly man, he was not focusing upon the beauty of the woman or the opportunity for him to enjoy some forbidden physical pleasure. Instead, he was able to run away from this temptation because he loved and feared God! Pleasing God was more important to him than satisfying and gratifying his body for a fleeting moment.
If you are not in awe of the Almighty God who has all power, knows everything, is always present everywhere, and yet cares about you, then you are in deep trouble! You can learn to fear God by reading the Bible and constantly asking yourself as you read every verse, "What does this teach me about God?" Unfortunately, most people who call themselves Christians want to use the Bible to manipulate God, or play "Lets Make a Deal," so He will bless them. We should read the Bible to get to know God so we can live for Him and please Him. This is how real Christians live! For example, this was the highest ambition of the Apostle Paul, who exhorted all believers to follow his example. (Philippians 3:7-17)
2. We must realize we are wicked and
vulnerable to immorality!
Jesus taught that all sexual immorality comes out of the heart of man. (Matthew 15:19) We cannot blame God, our parents, society, or anyone else. The Bible exposes the one who is at fault with these words, "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed." (James 1:13-14) The truth that we might like to escape or avoid is that the tendency toward sexual immorality is a part of everyone’s sin nature. Please consider this, "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man." (1 Corinthians 10:12-13) Even godly King David fell into this sin and tried to cover it up with another sin. (2 Samuel 11:1-27)
Therefore, no matter how godly you might think you are, you are very foolish if you think that you are not vulnerable to any particular sin, including sexual immorality. If you think that you are above committing any particular sin, you are denying the truth of the Word of God and are vulnerable to that sin by letting your guard down. Every true believer is wise to agree with God that his own heart "is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9) This was the testimony and experience of the Apostle Paul. Read Romans 7:15-25.
3. We must feed our conscience the Bible and heed its warning concerning purity!
Our Creator has made every one of us with a built-in warning system for our soul – the conscience. This conscience either accuses us when we sin or excuses us when we are pleasing God. (Romans 2:15) "The conscience, however, is not infallible. Nor is it a source of revelation about right or wrong. Its role is not to teach us moral and ethical ideals, but to hold us accountable to the highest standards of right and wrong we know. The conscience is informed by tradition as well as by truth, so the standards it holds us to are not necessarily biblical ones (1 Corin. 8:6-9)." (John F. MacArthur, Jr., The Vanishing Conscience, p. 38)
Therefore, in order for our conscience to function in such a way as to promote godliness and purity, it must be informed by the written revelation from God. We must feed our conscience the Word of God so that it will shame us, convict us, and bring guilt when we sin against God. This is what makes Psalm 119:11 work: "Thy word have I hid in mine heart [conscience], that I might not sin against thee." The Bible trains the conscience toward godliness and moral purity. While we feed the conscience the standard of God, we must at the same time guard our conscience from being exposed to immorality that would defile or contaminate it. (Titus 1:15) We live in a society where most people foolishly think they can expose their minds to all kinds of violence and immorality with no affect upon them. They think they can entertain themselves with sin and not be affected with it. We shall not know until we get on the other side of eternity the damning role that television and the entertainment industry in Hollywood has upon our society. Please read Proverbs 4:23-27. Here God warns us to guard what goes into our minds through the gates of our ears, eyes, and other senses. We need to daily practice Psalm 101:3, "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes."
The reason that the statistics indicate that the members of our churches are living just like the world is because they have very weak consciences. They are not hiding God’s Word in their hearts, and they are not refraining from exposure to the moral filth of the world. How can we expect anything else?
4. We must understand where the road
of sexual immorality begins.
A person does not just wake up one morning and decide that he will commit an act of immorality. It always starts with lust, a sinful desire in his heart. James 1:15 tells it all: "Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." (James 1:15) The root of every immoral act can be traced back to a gaze that turned into a lustful desire, accompanied by an immoral meditation, which eventually leads to an action to carry out that lustful desire. The Bible repeatedly warns us to not underestimate the controlling power of sexual lust. Proverbs 6:27-29 illustrates that it’s like playing with fire. No one has been physically created so that they can carry fire around in their pocket. Likewise, we have not been spiritually created to play around with mental immorality!
The Bible repeatedly sounds the alarm that looking at nudity or a sensually dressed woman is dangerous. (Leviticus 18:6-18; 20:17-21; Proverbs 6:25-26) All sin is addictive, and pornography is not an exception! Don’t look and lust. Like all other sin, sexual immorality will take you further than you want to go. It will keep you longer than you want to stay. It will cost you more than you want to pay. Sin is a cruel master that enslaves its subjects. It controls. It destroys. It kills. Sexual lust and immorality bind their victim "with the cords of his sins." (Proverbs 5:22) Jesus said, "Whosoever commits sin [keeps on practicing a sin] is the servant [slave] of sin. … If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." (John 8:34, 36)
5. We must remind ourselves where the road of immorality ends!
All sin is deceptive. It always looks good and inviting. It promises pleasure but never reminds you where it always leads. God’s warning about the results of sexual immorality reverberates throughout the Holy Scriptures. Proverbs 6:32 sounds God’s trumpet alarm, "But whoso commiteth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroys his own soul." God attempts to write this message of warning upon our hearts by giving us many colorful and graphic pictures of the tragic result of immorality. When a person involves himself in sexual immorality, he becomes a "shipwreck" (1 Timothy 1:19); is like an ox being led to the slaughter (Proverbs 7:22); is compared to a fool who is being led "to the correction of the stocks" (Proverbs 7:22); is like a bird that is hurrying into a trap that will take its life (Proverbs 7:23); and has entered into the door of the house of death that leads to hell! (Proverbs 7:24-27) The deceptiveness of sin focuses our attention only upon the pleasure offered by sin. All sin brings pleasure "for a season." (Hebrews 11:25) However, the sinful road that advertises pleasure on its many billboards ultimately leads its victims around a blind curve and plunges them into the valley of death. Sexual immorality leads to painful and deadly diseases, broken homes and broken lives, a desensitized conscience, abusive behavior, unfulfilling, selfish lifestyles, and most tragically, it disrupts fellowship with a holy God. Like all other sin, it never delivers what it promises.
6. We must remind ourselves that we are to be different from this sensual world!
We live in a world where sensuality has become the model and desire of many around us. Millions of men and women want to look sexy. They have bought into the mindset and lifestyle that is being promoted in all of the entertainment and advertisement industries in our sensual culture. Some women dress in public and church like the prostitutes dressed 60 years ago! Statistics report that men of all ages are committing mental adultery every day, and many times a day. We are living in a culture that is wallowing in a selfish and sensual lifestyle, living for a few brief moments of self-gratification. The truth detailed about the last days in 2 Timothy 3:1-7 is a commentary on our age. This text reports that the last days will be dangerous because of the self-centeredness of the age that will culminate in various forms of hatred, violence, deception, lawlessness, and immorality. These people are "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." (2 Timothy 3:7)
As believers in Jesus Christ we must daily remind ourselves that God has called us to be holy. God commands, "Be ye holy; for I am holy." (1 Peter 1:16) Our ultimate aim is to be like Christ. Therefore, there is no room for sensuality or immorality in the mind or body of the believer!
In the Apostle Paul’s day the Corinthian believers were living in one of the most aggressively sensual cultures in the ancient Roman world. The city of Corinth was one of the most important and influential cities of its time. It was located in a strategic position to attract commercial traffic from all over the ancient world. It was at the base of a mountain on which was located the temple of Venus, the Greek goddess of love. This temple was known all over the ancient world for its 1,000 beautiful temple prostitutes, dedicated to leading the worship of Venus by providing their immoral services in honor of this goddess of love. All of these factors ultimately played a part in Corinth becoming one of the most prolific sensual and immoral playgrounds of the ancient world. Consequently, Corinth became a magnet for homosexuality and all other forms of deviant sexual behavior. The Lord called the Apostle Paul to graciously establish a church in this wicked city. During his ministry Paul wrote several letters to the believers at Corinth, exhorting them concerning moral purity. In one of these letters he reminded them that they had been purchased by Jesus Christ and belonged physically and spiritually to Him. As believers in Jesus Christ, we are to view our bodies as the temple of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, our bodies should not have any part in sexual immorality which would defile this temple and bring shame upon our Holy Lord Jesus. (1 Corinthians 6:15-20)
7. We must not forget the role of Satan and his demons in immorality!
An examination of several Biblical texts reveals that Satan and his demons have a long history of involvement with immorality! They played a major role in the sexual immorality that manifested itself in the days preceding the global flood in Noah’s day. According to the context of Genesis 6:1-13, demons contributed to the moral corruption, wickedness, and violence in the global rebellion against their Creator. The Apostle Peter (2 Peter 2:4-5) and Jude (Jude 6-7) confirm this observation. Demons promote nudity and the lack of moral shame. Note that the demon-possessed man that was living in the tombs in Luke 8 was naked (verse 27) and was not ashamed as he appeared before others. According to 1 Timothy 4:1-2, demonic influence plays some part in the numbing of people’s consciences, so that nudity and immorality do not bring guilt, shame, or remorse. In light of this, it is most revealing to note that after Jesus cast the demons out of the man in Luke 8 it brought about a dramatic change in his life. When the people of his community looked at him after the demons were cast out, they observed that He was "sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind." (Luke 8:35) When the demons were gone, his spiritual eyes were opened and his conscience was restored so that his shame caused him to clothe himself.
It is very important that all servants of God take note that Satan has many weapons to tempt God’s people to fall into sin, bringing disgrace to our Lord. (Ephesians 6:10-18) The Lord reminded the Apostle Peter. "Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat." (Luke 22:31) The Bible pulls back the curtain of the spirit world to reveal that Satan loves to sexually tempt the person whose spouse is not meeting their sexual needs. (1 Corinthians 7:2-5)
The prevalence of sexual immorality among pastors and professing believers is all too common in these last days. We would do well to note that the promotion of sensuality, pornography, and immorality are all on the demons’ daily "to do" list in this world system where Satan is the prince. (John 12:31) We would be wise to note that those who have given themselves over to promote or participate in sensuality, pornography, and immorality are in some way influenced by demons. Behind all of the beautiful, and luring temptation to mentally and physically enjoy illicit sexual pleasure is the laughing, deceptive, cunning, damning, and deadly trickery of demons who, like their master, love to destroy personal lives, marriages, testimonies, churches, and the spiritual light that exposes these workers of darkness.
The power of Satan and our own sin nature can only be resisted with a greater power – the power of God. We must fight this spiritual warfare with God’s armor, not ours! "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." (Ephesians 6:12-13)
Please recognize that in this analogy of putting on the armor to defend ourselves against the darts of Satan, we are exhorted to put on "the breastplate of righteousness." (Ephesians 6:14) The Roman soldier knew how important the breastplate was. It protected the vital organs in his chest. It was the primary target of his enemy! Likewise, when Satan tempts us with sensuality, pornography, and immorality, he is aiming for our spiritual heart! Think about that! Putting on the breastplate of righteousness means that we must know and practice God’s righteous standards of morality! We should long for holiness and moral purity in our lives, families, and churches. This will be reflected in how we dress, what we read, what television programs we watch, what kind of music we listen to, what places we visit on the Internet, and what we desire in our hearts!
8. We must practice the Biblical imperative to RUN from sexual temptation!
Sexual temptation is powerful. Proverbs 6:27, 28 asks, "Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned? Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?" When you touch something that is too hot, you must drop it immediately. Our body is not made to withstand high temperatures. Likewise, we are not spiritually made to focus upon something that arouses our sexual desires. Remember that Jesus said, "Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." (Matthew 5:28)
When you see something that is sexually tempting, do not keep looking or it will be too late. Like touching something that is too hot, it only takes a moment to be seriously injured. The Bible exhorts us to "flee fornication" (1 Corinthians 6:18) and "youthful lusts." (2 Timothy 2:22) To flee is to run! Mentally and physically we must remove ourselves from the presence of sexual temptation. A few seconds of lusting can lead to a lifetime of tragedy and disappointment.
9. We must not forget that in a moment we could be standing before our Holy Judge!
Those who claim that they are saved and are not living a holy and pure moral life, both mentally and physically, are not watching for the coming of the Lord Jesus! The potential for our rapture into the presence of our holy Lord Jesus at any moment will have a purifying effect upon us. "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is, And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure." (1 John 3:2-3) The apostle Paul concluded his life with these words, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them that love his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8) Please note that Paul connected personal, righteous living with those who were looking for Jesus’ coming.
It is obvious that the world and many in the church do not believe that "the judge standeth before the door." (James 5:9) If they did, our world and churches would not be tainted with sensuality, pornography, and immorality!
What can you do if you have already fallen into the trap of immorality? First, cry out to God for forgiveness. (1 John 1:8-10) Begin to live a life of repentance. Turn from sin and to Christ. "Walk in the Spirit." (Galatians 5:16-21) Seek God’s face, and daily look for the coming of the Lord. Begin to saturate your conscience with the biblical admonitions and warnings that are mentioned in this newsletter. Recognize your weakness toward this sin, and understand that this is spiritual warfare for your soul! Demons are using sexually tempting things to lure you into their damning trap! Remember that the person who yields to sexual temptation "destroyeth his own soul." (Proverbs 6:32) This is why Jesus said that sexual temptation requires a serious response. (Read Matthew 5:28-30.)
As proclaimed by Biblical history and prophecy, a nation that descends into the pits of immorality has departed from the Rock of life and salvation and has built their life and nation upon the sands of sin that will destroy them all!
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