The Problem of Pornography, Part 2

Pornography is a slander against the goodness of God’s creation and a corruption of this good gift God has given His creatures out of His own self-giving love. To abuse this gift is to weaken, not only the institution of marriage, but the fabric of civilization itself. To choose lust over love is to debase humanity and to worship the false god Priapus in the most brazen form of idolatry. The deliberate use of pornography is nothing less than the willful invitation of illicit lovers and objectified sex objects. . . The damage to a man’s heart is beyond measure, and the cost in human misery will only be made clear on the Day of Judgment. For marriage is not merely the lawful arena of sexual activity, it is presented in Scripture as the divinely-designed arena for the display of God’s glory on earth as a man and a wife come together in a one-flesh relationship within the marriage covenant. marriage is a picture of God’s covenant faithfulness. Marriage is to display God’s glory, reveal God’s good gifts to His creatures, and protect human beings from the inevitable disaster that follows when sexual passions are divorced from their rightful place. Internet porn plays a part in an increasing number of divorce cases.” Illicit sex is an extremely potent idol because it touches the areas of man’s unity, therefore it is a most convincing pseudo integration point. It appears to deliver unity – the emotional, spiritual and physical are all engaged during an encounter. Illicit sex is more powerful and addictive than a drug because its offer of integration is such a compelling counterfeit. (Scripture makes reference to sexual sins as the “lusts of deceit” – Ephesians 4:22.) God’s gift of sexuality is designed to pull us out of ourselves” and our self-occupied concerns and desires and “toward our spouse.”