Author Topic: Watching pornography is sinful  (Read 40157 times)

Man of Steel

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Watching pornography is sinful
« on: March 03, 2016, 08:06:15 AM »
WHY IS WATCHING PORNOGRAPHY SINFUL?

http://www.versebyverseministry.org/bible-answers/why_is_watching_pornography_sinful

Q. Why is watching pornography considered a sin?

 

A. The Bible makes clear watching pornography is sinful. First, the very word pornography comes from a Greek word porneia, which is translated sexual immorality in our English Bibles. Believers are commanded repeatedly in the New Testament to flee from all kinds of sexual immorality and impurity. Consider these uses of the word porneia in the New Testament:

Gal. 5:19  Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,

Eph. 5:3  But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints;

1Th. 4:3  For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality;

1Cor. 6:13  Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body.

 

We could go on with more examples, but as you can see the Bible makes clear that the believer is to abstain from any and all forms of sexual immorality, from which we get the word pornography.

More specifically, watching pornography involves at least three forms of sin:

1. Licentiousness - The sexual acts on display in pornographic material are acts of fornication, which is the sin of sexual contact outside marriage. When we take part in this enterprise as an observer (i.e., as a customer of pornography), we are condoning and promoting fornication. This promoting behavior is itself the sin of licentiousness, or giving license to sin.

2Cor. 12:21  I am afraid that when I come again, my God may humiliate me before you, and I will grieve for many of those who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and licentiousness that they have practiced.
 

2. Lust
- Pornographic materials are intended to illicit sexual arousal in our flesh, which is lust.  Lust is any arousal of the flesh which occurs in an immoral manner, and the whole purpose of filming other people engaging in sexual acts (often grossly distorted and perverted acts) is to entice lust in the hearts of the audience.

Lust is a sin, and anything that brings us to the point of lust is a sinfully corrupting and tempting influence. Jesus says that the commission of lust is equal to the commission of adultery. Consider the Bible's teaching:

Matt. 5:28 but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman  with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
 

James 1:14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
James 1:15 Then  when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when  sin  is accomplished, it brings forth death.

 

3. Sensuality - Watching pornography involves taking pleasure in observing strangers in a state of nakedness, which is the sin of sensuality or lewdness according to Scripture.

Glorying in another person's nakedness is sinful behavior, according to Scripture. Beginning in the Garden of Eden and continuing throughout the Bible, we find those who take pleasure in another's nakedness (outside of marriage) are depicted as shameful and due condemnation. For example, when one of Noah's sons took pleasure in seeing his father lying naked in his tent in Genesis 9, the Bible portrays the son's act as shameful and dishonoring.

More importantly, the Lord sees such conduct as reprehensible. Consider the Lord's admonishment against Israel when they engaged in lewd and immoral conduct:

Hab. 2:15  “Woe to you who make your neighbors drink,
Who mix in your venom even to make them drunk
So as to look on their nakedness!

Hab. 2:16 “You will be filled with disgrace rather than honor.
Now you yourself  drink and  expose your own nakedness.
The  cup in the LORD’S right hand will come around to you,
And  utter disgrace will come upon your glory.

 

In summary, the act of watching pornography is immoral and sinful. It is wrong because it condones fornication and is licentiousness. It is intended to induce lust in the heart, and it exposes us to the nakedness of strangers.

scottt

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #1 on: March 03, 2016, 08:48:42 AM »
It is every where and is a constant temptation sadly I often fail at.

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #2 on: March 03, 2016, 08:59:49 AM »
It is every where and is a constant temptation sadly I often fail at.

I have watched pornography in the past and for a time it became a daily occurrence, but after the Lord changed my heart I was delivered from it and haven't watched a minute of it willingly.  Sometimes images are put before me I wasn't expecting, but I deny that temptation.  

Now, today I work on taking every word and thought captive and denying the temptation of lust.  I seek the Lord in prayer and ask for deliverance from my lust.  Overtime I'm taking captive every word and thought and I find myself not overcome by the temptation to lust.....putting that old carnal man to death!  

I give glory to God for it.

If you feel conviction within yourself for watching pornography I'd say that's a very good thing.....Holy Spirit is leading you from that.  I say seek the Lord in prayer, but at the same time we sometimes have to take up our mats and walk faithfully. 

I'll keep you in my prayers and I ask that you keep me in yours!   

Purge_WTF

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #3 on: March 03, 2016, 07:58:18 PM »
 MoS, with all due respect, Jesus's words concerning lust were less about sexual repression than they were about preventing covetousness and/or self-righteousness. DeepStrength sums it up well here:

 https://deepstrength.wordpress.com/2015/08/19/male-and-female-sexual-desire-is-not-sinful/

 Pornography is exploitative and misrepresents human sexuality, but interpreting or teaching the Sermon on the Mount in a way that it causes unmarried Christians to associate guilt and shame with every sexual thought, urge, dream, etc. is very dangerous.

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #4 on: March 03, 2016, 08:29:07 PM »
MoS, with all due respect, Jesus's words concerning lust were less about sexual repression than they were about preventing covetousness and/or self-righteousness. DeepStrength sums it up well here:

 https://deepstrength.wordpress.com/2015/08/19/male-and-female-sexual-desire-is-not-sinful/

 Pornography is exploitative and misrepresents human sexuality, but interpreting or teaching the Sermon on the Mount in a way that it causes unmarried Christians to associate guilt and shame with every sexual thought, urge, dream, etc. is very dangerous.

Not sure what you're suggesting here.  Help me out a bit more.


Purge_WTF

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #5 on: March 04, 2016, 06:21:41 AM »
Not sure what you're suggesting here.  Help me out a bit more.



 I guess DS and I were trying to make the crucial distinction between healthy and unhealthy sexual desire. Far too many Evangelicals have done that.

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #6 on: March 04, 2016, 06:48:43 AM »
I guess DS and I were trying to make the crucial distinction between healthy and unhealthy sexual desire. Far too many Evangelicals have done that.

I think it comes to down willfully engaging in sin as stated in Hebrews.  Can you help your unconscious thoughts?  Can you help being tempted?  Can you help being attracted to others?  I would say no to all three. 

Still, as believers, we are to take every word and thought captive.  This is something I work at consistently.....it isn't easy.  I pray about it.

Although, when it comes down to pornography (or any behavior) I ask myself a simple question: 

If I were in the presence of Jesus Christ would I feel completely at ease engaging in that particular behavior?   

Would I watch pornographic materials with Jesus Christ at my side?   

We may enter some situations with the best of intentions and yet we're blindsided with something sinful.  How we respond in those moments is crucial.  I've been in those moments and I've quietly excused myself.

tbombz

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #7 on: March 04, 2016, 11:38:31 PM »
for me its a few things

1) i know logically based on God's word that it is sinful, and therefore I do not engage in it.

2) i think that watching porn makes me look at women as objects to be used instead of people to be loved

3) i become impatient, temperamental, hot-headed, and lose self control when i start giving in to my fleshly desire for instant gratification

4) it cheapens my intimacy with my wife


and in the end, i just want to love Jesus. anything that gets in the way of that love is just not for me.

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #8 on: March 05, 2016, 06:37:34 AM »
for me its a few things

1) i know logically based on God's word that it is sinful, and therefore I do not engage in it.

2) i think that watching porn makes me look at women as objects to be used instead of people to be loved

3) i become impatient, temperamental, hot-headed, and lose self control when i start giving in to my fleshly desire for instant gratification

4) it cheapens my intimacy with my wife


and in the end, i just want to love Jesus. anything that gets in the way of that love is just not for me.

Exactly.

Purge_WTF

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #9 on: March 05, 2016, 07:31:08 AM »
 To say nothing of the fact that it's a blatant misrepresentation. A naive, horny young man who tries the sorts of things he sees in those kinds of movies on a young lady will be in for an unpleasant surprise.

bigmc

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #10 on: March 05, 2016, 10:32:15 AM »
judge ye not the deeds of others lest you be judged yourself
T

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #11 on: March 05, 2016, 10:15:31 PM »
judge ye not the deeds of others lest you be judged yourself

Three threads down for this exact reason:

http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=605683.0

See, I'm well aware of Matthew 7:1, but I also know Matthew 7:2-6 which completely changes the entire scope of an isolated 7:1.

Well technically most don't actually read that verse...they just learned it from someone else who never went beyond 7:1.

 ;)

avxo

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #12 on: March 31, 2016, 11:18:40 PM »
1) i know logically based on God's word that it is sinful, and therefore I do not engage in it.

2) i think that watching porn makes me look at women as objects to be used instead of people to be loved

3) i become impatient, temperamental, hot-headed, and lose self control when i start giving in to my fleshly desire for instant gratification

4) it cheapens my intimacy with my wife

This is some rich stuff...

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #13 on: April 01, 2016, 06:21:16 AM »
This is some rich stuff...

Is that because of the man he once was and is no longer? 

avxo

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #14 on: April 01, 2016, 09:48:17 AM »
Is that because of the man he once was and is no longer? 

His past makes the statements funnier, no doubt. But they'd be just as rich even if someone else gave those reasons.

Dos Equis

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #15 on: April 19, 2016, 10:41:48 AM »
Utah Governor Gary Herbert to Declare Pornography a Public Health Hazard
by CORKY SIEMASZKO

In Utah, porn will soon be just like smoking — a "public health crisis."

Gov. Gary Herbert is set to sign a resolution passed by the state legislature last month that calls for increased "education, prevention, research, and policy change at the community and societal level" to combat pornography.


Utah Gov. Gary Herbert speaks during an interview on March 10, 2016, in Salt Lake City. Rick Bowmer / AP file

"Pornography perpetuates a sexually toxic environment," the resolution states. "Efforts to prevent pornography exposure and addiction, to educate individuals and families concerning its harms, and to develop recovery programs must be addressed systemically in ways that hold broader influences accountable."

Once the ink is dry, few groups will be more delighted than the Mormon church-backed Utah Coalition Against Pornography.

"If this moral plague could catch our imagination the way a medical epidemic does, we would be calling out every available member of the health care industry," wrote Elder Jeffrey Holland on the group's website last month.

The resolution is the brainchild of another Republican politician in Utah, State Sen. Todd Weiler. He had told NBC News that he was not trying to ban pornography.

"What I am saying is we have taken steps to protect people from tobacco, but we haven't done that for pornography," said Weiler, who introduced the resolution on behalf of his constituents in January 2015.

Ultimately, Weiler said, he would like to see default settings on the internet changed to make access to pornography more difficult.

"I do believe pornography is addictive," he said.

Herbert also intends to sign legislation that requires computer technicians to report child pornography — and makes it a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in prison if they don't.

Utah is the home base for the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints and one of the most conservative states in the country. But a Harvard study back in 2009 found that Utah's religious residents were the nation's top consumers of online porn.

Subsequent researchers have questioned the methodology and findings of the Harvard study, which was titled "Red Light States: Who Buys Online Adult Entertainment?"

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-ugliest-piece-of-barack-obamas-legacy/2016/04/17/f83182d8-026d-11e6-9203-7b8670959b88_story.html

Man of Steel

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #16 on: April 20, 2016, 03:06:33 PM »
being righteous about other peoples behaviour might also be pornographic

Feel free to clarify this because I don't understand what you're suggesting.

Purge_WTF

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #17 on: April 28, 2016, 06:20:58 AM »
 That whole Utah thing wasn't much of a surprise to me. From what I've read, the Mormon denomination is one of the most sex-negative of the faith, and the more the God-given gift of human sexuality is maligned and misunderstood, the more likely it will be expressed in unhealthy ways.

calfzilla

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #18 on: May 01, 2016, 12:15:02 AM »
Feel free to clarify this because I don't understand what you're suggesting.

 ::) yes yo do

IrishMuscle84

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #19 on: May 10, 2016, 09:34:01 AM »
Good post Man of steel.

Agnostic007

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #20 on: March 14, 2019, 06:51:26 PM »
If you made a list of sinful things, it would be a mile long. Fortunately God KNEW you would fail, just as Adam failed in the garden, and sent his only begotten son to die on the cross for your sins, past, present and future. So don't sweat the small stuff

avxo

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #21 on: March 17, 2019, 12:39:01 AM »
If you made a list of sinful things, it would be a mile long. Fortunately God KNEW you would fail, just as Adam failed in the garden, and sent his only begotten son to die on the cross for your sins, past, present and future. So don't sweat the small stuff

But why even send anyone—especially his Son-aka himself? Why not just say: “shit, i was tripping when I made that bullshit up about sin and death. Imma gonna take it all back, yo. Ain’t nobody gonna say nothing. I’m God!”

Agnostic007

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #22 on: March 17, 2019, 01:12:08 AM »
But why even send anyone—especially his Son-aka himself? Why not just say: “shit, i was tripping when I made that bullshit up about sin and death. Imma gonna take it all back, yo. Ain’t nobody gonna say nothing. I’m God!”


excellent question

IroNat

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #23 on: March 17, 2019, 03:52:19 AM »
But why even send anyone—especially his Son-aka himself? Why not just say: “shit, i was tripping when I made that bullshit up about sin and death. Imma gonna take it all back, yo. Ain’t nobody gonna say nothing. I’m God!”

Of course it doesn't make sense.

It's all made up BS.

The Scott

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Re: Watching pornography is sinful
« Reply #24 on: March 26, 2019, 06:34:06 PM »
judge ye not the deeds of others lest you be judged yourself


By the belly of the buddha, STFU.  Yes...Even though your words are several years old, STFU.  How pedestrian of you and your kind.  FTN.