’Power Over Porno’
Pornography and all other types of sexual temptations are causing men to fall into the devil’s trap of corrupting their minds which is often followed by acts of illicit sex. This is probably the sin most responsible for causing Christian men to fall from fellowship with their Savior!
The availability of pornographic materials is growing as each day goes by including the sexually suggestive advertisements, sit-coms on T.V. and the further we go, and the more we list, the deeper the devil’s web is spun. However, we are not here to discuss the sinful garbage that is out there and available, but we want to emphasize what God’s Word teaches to provide ’Power Over Porno’, victory over sexual temptation for those who are willing to follow the instruction given in the Bible.
The book of Proverbs abounds with powerful principles given by Solomon to his sons, for one of his primary objectives in writing Proverbs was to warn his sons of the sexual temptation the ’strange women’ or prostitute/flesh-for-sale woman would bring into their pathway if they didn’t obey the instruction of their father.
Twenty-two times Solomon used the address ’My son’ in the book of Proverbs, and many of these pleas were followed by warnings and wisdom to give his sons ’Power Over Porno’ or sexual temptation. The great sin of Solomon is described in I Kings 11:1-6 which can be briefly summarized by saying his love for the strange women caused his heart to turn away from God to go after the strange gods of the women he was taken by influencing his sons, the people of Israel, and Solomon himself as he became the one who actually established the abominable idol worship by building the places where the idols were worshipped.
He then recognized his great sin and penned the book of Proverbs to give guidance to his sons that would follow after him. Rehoboam, the son who would succeed Solomon on the throne did not take foreign wives like his father Solomon, but he appeared to obey these many warnings concerning ’strange women’and the ’Power Over Porno’.
But, he too would have a multitude of wives and concubines totaling seventy-eight! However, it could well be that the warnings from his father Solomon found so frequently in the book of Proverbs kept him from the sins of his father in relation to sexual temptations, although the final word on Rehoboam was: ’And he did evil, because he prepared not his heart to seek the Lord.’ (II Chronicles 12:14) Regardless of Rehoboam’s failures or successes in the area of sexual temptations, the book of Proverbs has vital instruction to the Christian man for ’Power Over Porno’!!
And, it begins in Proverb 2:1-9 where Solomon gives instruction on attaining the Wisdom of God then showing Wisdom’s necessity for Delivering the Believer from the Way of the Evil Man (v.10-15); Delivering the Believer from the Strange Woman (v.16-19); Providing the Believer with the Ability to Walk in the Way of Good Men (v.20-22).
This powerful Proverb outlines the necessity of God’s Wisdom for deliverance from the two negative aspects of life and the source of the positive Walk of the Believer! The ’Power Over Porno’ aspect is found in (v.16-19 where the ’strange woman’ ( the prostitute, the harlot, the flesh peddler, the woman who sells her body, soul and spirit for material gain) and her characteristics are briefly discussed.
Keep in mind, that any woman that is willing to put her body on display is putting it up for sale, for if it is on display it is for sale, and if it’s on display those who buy it could be ’committing adultery with her already in his heart.’ (Matthew 5:28) So, the woman who displays the shape of her body putting it on display and therefore putting it up for sale, is in reality the ’strange woman’ of the book of Proverbs!!
What is it that gives deliverance over this ’strange woman’ ? It is the Wisdom of God!! Yes, the Wisdom of God, but not just the knowledge of the Wisdom of God, no, for having the knowledge only will not keep us from falling into this sin or any other sin, we must apply the knowledge and this Proverb gives us the tools for application of knowledge and it is found in (v.1): ’My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee’, there it is, there is the application of God’s Wisdom, it is found in ’receiving and hiding’ the Word of God within the very being of the Believer!
It is this activity that will bring about the ability to ’incline thine ear unto Wisdom’ (v.2) it is this activity that will bring about the ability to ’apply thine heart unto knowledge’ (v.2)! This ’receiving and hiding’ the Words and Commandments of God within your being will bring about the ’understanding and finding the knowledge of God’ (v.5) for it is the effect of the indwelling power of the supernatural Word of God that provides the victory to give ’Power Over Porno’ and any other sin that comes against the child of God (Psalm 119:11).
Look at Proverb 5:1,2: ’My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding; That thou may regard discretion and that thy lips may keep knowledge.’ (v. 3-6) give additional characteristics of the ’strange woman’ (the prostitute, the harlot, the flesh peddler, the woman that sells her body for material gain). (v. 7,8) provide additional instruction for ’Power Over Porno’: ’Hear me now therefore, O ye children (male offspring) and depart not from the words of my mouth. Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house.’
Here, long before the New Testament teaching of ’Flee fornication (all types of sex sins)’ (I Corinthians 6:18), and ’Flee youthful lusts’ (I Timothy 2:22). Solomon pens this primary teaching concerning victory over sexual temptation!! Remove, flee, run away from it and ’don’t even think about going near it again’ to put it in the vernacular. This is the second principle for ’Power Over Porno’!
The first one is positive: ’Memorize and meditate on the Living Word of God’ Hebrews 4:12 tells us ’For the Word of God is quick (living Spiritually/alive Spiritually) and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.’ Jesus made this statement about His Words: ’The Words that I speak unto you they are Spirit and they are Life’ !
What more do we need? What else must be proven? It is the Word of God that supernaturally gives victory over the sexual temptations we face, it is the Word of God within the believer that provides ’Power Over Porno’! Jesus Himself utilized the already written Word of God when he battled the devil being tempted three times in Luke 4:1:13 even though anything He said would have been the Word of God, He used already existing Scripture from the book of Deuteronomy to give us the perfect example of how to win over temptation! If the first seven proverbs are studied, you will find that Solomon commanded his son to memorize/meditate on the Word in each one!
Let us continue our study in the book of Proverbs by looking at Proverb 6:20-25: ’My son, keep thy father’s commandment and forsake not the law of they mother: Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. When thou go, it shall lead thee; when thou sleep it shall keep thee; and when thou awake, it shall talk with thee. For the commandment is a lamp and the law is light and reproofs of instruction are the way of life; To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. Lust not after her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids...’
Here again the two principles that will provide ’Power Over Porno’ are given by Solomon to his son:
1. Keep thy father’s commandment...bind them continually upon thine heart...
2. Lust not after her...neither let her take thee...
The positive practice of keeping the Word of God in your heart and the negative practice of not lusting and not letting yourself be taken are here again underlined for victory over sexual temptation!
Turn now to Proverb 7:1-27 for this entire Proverb is given over to this same subject! In (v.1-5) the positive commands are given as in the previous passages: ’My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. Keep my commandments and live and my law as the apple of thine eye. Bind them upon of thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart. Say unto wisdom, thou art my sister, and call understanding thy kinswoman. That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flatters with her words.’
Once again the ’Power Over Porno’ instruction is repeated supplying the Believer with layer upon layer of consistent truth from the Word of God for complete victory over sexual temptation. Verses 6-27 contain the most complete description of the ’strange woman’ and her tactics in seducing a young man. The book of Proverbs contains at least eighteen specific characteristics of the ’strange woman’:
1. Flatterer (2:16, 6:24, 7:5, 7:21)
2. Sweet Talker (5:3)
3. Smooth Talker (5:3)
4. Movable/Unstable (5:6)
5. Uses Outward Looks to Seduce (6:25)
6. Flirts/Initiates Contact (6:25)
7. On the Hunt/Looking for Victim (6:26, 7:13)
8. Subtle (6:26)
9. Sleazy Dress (7:10)
10. Stubborn (7:11)
11. Loud Talker (7:11)
12. Roams Streets (7:11,12)
13. Agressive (7:12,13)
14. Seductive (6:25, 7:12ff)
15. Adultress (6:32)
16. Evil (6:24)
17. She Leads to Physical Destruction (7:26)
18. She Leads to Spiritual Destruction(7:27)
Victory over sexual temptation, ’Power Over Porno’ can only be accomplished by obeying the instructions Solomon gave to his sons, the positive: Memory and meditation on the Word of God and the negative: Fleeing, removing yourself from the very presence of sexual temptation!
If you have been caught in the devils trap of pornography you can have victory by utilizing this three-fold formula:
1. FULL Confession to God (I John 1:9)
2. FLEE from the presence of porno/sexual temptation (Proverb 5,6,7; I Corinthians 6:18; I Timothy 2:22)
3. FILL your mind, soul and spirit with
and memorize/meditate on the Word of God
(Proverb 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
