Expert: Thurman C. Petty, Jr. - 2/13/2009

Question
Hello sir, I'm addicted to pornography, is pornography is sin? i need to avoid pornography but I'm not able to. and I'm a believer of god.

Answer
Dear Naveen,

Your's is a difficult problem for the Christian, and many of God's people suffer with this addiction--and Christian women who wear less than modest clothing to church do not help either.

Your question is so similar to one I received not long ago, I'm pasting that one in to answer yours. It's lengthy, and some of it may not apply to you. But I know your question will be answered here.

Thurman C. Petty, Jr.

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Q: Is Masturbation and watching porn okay according to the Bible or is it a sinful activities?

Dear ____,

Thank you for your question about masturbation and porn. Many people have difficulty understanding the relationship of these things with the Bible. There are several things that we have to keep in mind here.

First: Our bodies do not belong to us. God created us in the beginning, and Jesus bought us when He died for us on Calvary. So we belong to God twice over.

1 Cor. 6:19 (NIV) Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;
1 Cor. 6:20  you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

So the first thing you need to ask in regards to masturbation is this: Does this act bring honor to God? You see, you may be alone in your bedroom—or wherever you are—but God can see you and knows every thing you do and what you are thinking. It may seem scary at first, but it can be one of the biggest blessings God has given us.

Second: God has given us an order in the 10 commandments that takes in all sexual activity:

Ex. 20:14 (NIV) "You shall not commit adultery.

But, you say, I’m not married, or I’m not having sex with another person. That may be true. But the word “adultery” as it appears in the 10 commandments includes all forms of illicit sexual behavior. The only sexual behavior that God allows is intercourse between husband and wife.

Third: Masturbation is classified as self-abuse, and the Bible includes this along with homosexuality.

1 Cor 6:9 (KJV) Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor ABUSERS OF THEMSELVES with mankind,
1 Cor 6:10  Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

Adding “abusers of themselves” to “with mankind” causes other versions to render this as “homosexuals” But it includes two specific aspects: abuse of self, and the illicit behavior in connection of man to man.

Other texts that deal with this:

Rom 1:26  Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.
Rom 1:27  In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

Lev 18:22  "'Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable.

I think you can see the picture here.

PORN

The Bible word from which pornography come is “pornos” often translated “fornication.”

In modern times it has been used primarily to describe writings, photographs, magazines, movies, etc. which portray nudity, sexual relations of one kind or another, or arousing stories that depict these things. The whole industry is based upon the sexual arousal of men and women through the sight of, and the imagination of others in illicit situations. Jesus spoke about this in the Sermon on the Mount, and I believe His words say it all:

Mat 5:27  "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.'
Mat 5:28  But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Jesus points out that character is determined, not so much by the outward act, as by the inward attitude that motivates the act. The outward act merely reflects and activates the inward attitude. He who would commit a wrong act if he thought he could escape detection, and who is restrained only by that fear, is, in the sight of God, guilty.

So you see that both masturbation and porn are condemned as sins in the Bible.

But don’t allow fear to grip your heart into thinking that you are lost. There is not a sin or habit or passion for which Christ has not made a way of escape.

1 Cor 10:13  No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

Three promises:
1. Your sin is common to man—but of course, it is of the world, not of God.
2. God will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. No overwhelming temptation that you cannot overcome—not by your own strength, of course, but through the power of Christ.
3. God will provide a way out so that you can escape.

And Jesus said:

John 14:6  . . . "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Seek the power of Jesus for victory over these temptation. Every man knows the power of these things, but Jesus alone can give the victory.

Jude 1:24  To him who is able to KEEP YOU FROM FALLING and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy.

Jesus can keep you from falling, but you must cooperate with Him. Verbally pray to Jesus and tell Him that you are giving Him the problem of masturbation and the problem with porn. Tell Jesus that you can’t control them, but you know that He can. In doing this, you place Him in the position of fighting the battle for you. When you are tempted, remind yourself that this is Jesus’ battle, and change your thoughts to something else that you can concentrate upon. Then don’t think about it anymore.

There are other things that you can do to cooperate with Jesus. You can trash all the porn or near-porn in the house. Get it out of the house! Burn it, bury it, see that it gets on the garbage truck—any way to get it completely away from you! This is vital, for you don’t want temptation to linger in your flat.

If you see a woman clothed in a less than modest manner, avert your gaze and remind yourself that Jesus is fighting that battle for you. If you are at home and thoughts arise in your heart that stimulate the old feelings, remember that it’s Jesus’ battle and go take a really cold shower. There are many other ways you can cooperate with Jesus. Explore them with Jesus.

Spend time in reading the Bible and praying to Jesus. Concentrate on the gospels, or the Psalms. Don’t read books that contain explicit material, like Joshua, or Judges. Keep away from them for a while and you can get to them later. Then spend time in prayer—even if it’s only a few sentences. Tell God that you want Him to give you victory through Jesus, that you want to be like Jesus in everything you think or say or do. That means you’re going to have to spend time reading about Jesus and what He did and said in order to become like Him.

If this continues to be a problem with you, I’d suggest you contact your pastor or some other person of spiritual experience that you can trust, and seek his aid. He can become a “buddy” who can help you with this, one who can, in Christ, call you into account. There is nothing like having someone else travel the road with you—it’s the principle upon which AA was founded.

I will put you on my prayer list, and ask God to give you victory over this. I want you to be my neighbor in the New Jerusalem, and in the Name of Jesus, you can be there. Will you make the choice to surrender this obsession to Him? It’s just that: a choice to let Jesus give you the victory. And He will, if you choose to let Him.

In invite you to visit my web site www.PettyPress.com. There are two articles I want you to read that may help you to understand the Way out better:

Click on “Writings,” then on “Special Assignment,” then on “The Seventh-day Adventist Church and Homosexuals”. The other article is also under “Writings.” Click on “Articles” and then on “Confessions of a Pornoholic.” I wrote the first one as one of the assignments in connection with earning my MA degree at Andrews University, a Seventh-day Adventist Seminary. The second article is included for people who have this problem, so that you may know that there is hope through Jesus Christ our Lord.

If you have other questions, feel free to write me at my e-mail address.

Always be ready for Jesus to come.
Thurman C. Petty, Jr.
Thurman@PettyPress.com