According to the website TOP10 Reviews internet pornography is a multi-billion dollar business, which affects not only men and women in our secular culture, but also many families in our churches:
The statistics are truly staggering. According to compiled numbers from respected news and research organizations, every second $3,075.64 is being spent on pornography. Every second 28,258 internet users are viewing pornography. In that same second 372 internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines. Every 39 minutes a new pornographic video is being created in the U.S. It’s big business. The pornography industry has larger revenues than Microsoft, Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo, Apple and Netflix combined. 2006 Worldwide Pornography Revenues ballooned to $97.06 billion.
My guess is that if you're a married woman who has a family, both your husband and your teenage sons are battling with a growing porn problem in their lives. I'm convinced that one of the biggest reasons that today's modern churchman lacks the ability to truly lead in his household and his church is that so many of them are either exploring or are addicted to porn.....which leaves them morally bankrupt and living a double-life. It's a different world today, and the temptations are harder to overcome. One no longer needs to go to a seedy motel (where you might get caught) for an expensive rendezvous; today all it takes is just a couple of clicks on the ole computah and, PRESTO, instant sexual gratification, often for free.
So how did our world get to the point where the most searched for item on the internet each day is porn? The answer can be found in Romans 1:
"They do know the truth about God, because He has made it obvious to them. Through everything He made they can clearly see His invisible qualities....but they wouldn't worship Him as God or even give Him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God is like. As a resut, their minds became dark and confused." (Rom 1:19-21)
North America, indeed most of the world, has turned its back on God over the past 100 years. In response, God sent prophets like Billy Graham to call people to repentance and faith, but in spite of moderate success through the 20th century, more and more people began to "think up foolish ideas of what God is like", thus clouding their minds with confusion.
"And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols..." (1:23) [read "sex goddesses" for our context]
"So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other's bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie and began to worship and serve the things God created instead of the Creator Himself, Who is worthy of our eternal praise! Amen." (2:24,25)
This accounts for the growing porn problem in our culture. But even that no longer satisfies us anymore. As Howard Hughes once said when asked what it takes to make a man happy: "Just a little more!" he said. More and more people are wading into the gay sex/porn culture -- it's a growing market, not just on the internet, but now on TV too.
"God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against their natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved." (1:26,27)
Now watch what happens when God abandons a culture and men and women grow increasingly licentious:
"Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, He abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their ives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip." (1: 28,29) Sounds like the evening news!
"They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and constantly disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God's justice requires that those who do these things deserve death, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too." [read "Hollywood"]
It almost looks hopeless, but this is definitely where we're at today. The only hope to change this is not to force Obama and Congress to legislate moral values, but to repent as a nation and individuals, and ask Christ to be more than just our Savior.....He needs also to rule our hearts as LORD! (see Jeremiah 32:40 and 2 Corinthians 7:1)
Labels: faith, pornography, repentance |
