What Does The Truth Matter? The truth will set you free.
- John 8:31-32.
- These verses are often quoted in a poetic way – and they are beautiful words. But they also speak to an essential spiritual idea. That idea is that the truth will set you free. It will set you free from sin.
- I want to share these five key spiritual truths this morning in an attempt to point toward freedom. Porn, like other sins, leaves us worse. Do we want to be free from it?
- If you don’t want to be free from the sin, then what I have to say this morning is not going to be of much value. If you do want to overcome the sin of porn in your life, hopefully these truths will shine a light on the road to freedom.
- [Throughout this sermon, put verses on screen to move through them quickly.]
Five Key Spiritual Truths For Battling Porn:
1. Key Spiritual Truth: The mind is a spiritual battleground.
- Matthew 5:27-30; Mark 12:28-31; Romans 8:6; Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 10:5; Philippians 4:8; Colossians 3:2; Hebrews 3:1.
- Mark 12:30 – Love the Lord with all your mind.
- Philippians 4:8 – Think on things that are true, excellent, praiseworthy.
- Colossians 3:2 – Set your minds on things above.
- 2 Corinthians 10:5 – Take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
- Hebrews 3:1 – Fix your thought on Jesus.
- Romans 12:2 – Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
- Romans 8:6 – The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.
Why it matters: Porn gets excused because it’s “only looking.”
- Matthew 5:28 – Looking lustfully is sin.
- Porn gets minimized because it’s a “no-harm, no-foul” situation. We deny the truth of the verses we just looked at that teach us that thoughts can be sinful.
- Specifically, Jesus is unequivocal in the Sermon on the Mount that looking lustfully is sinful. As Christians, we know that it’s wrong.
2. Key Spiritual Truth: As a Christian, I have two natures.
- Romans 6:11-14; Romans 8:6; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:17-24; Colossians 3:9-10.
- Romans 6:11-14 – Count yourselves as dead to sin but alive to Christ.
- Romans 8:6 – The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.
- Ephesians 4:17-24 – Giving over to sensuality versus putting on the new self.
Why it matters: The one you feed is the one who wins.
- There is an old Native American story about a young man asking an elder about the two wolves within him. One wants to do what’s right; one pushes toward what’s wrong. The man asked the elder which will win within him. The elder answered, “The one you feed.”
- We live in between. We have a choice each day whether to “put on the new self” or live as the old creation.
- This is a key truth as to why we are Christians but still drawn by the things of the flesh.
- It’s essential to know who you are at the core. Many Christians erroneously say, “I’m just a sinner saved by grace.” That’s not true. As a Christian, you WERE a sinner save by grace. Now, after salvation, you are a new creation in Christ. That’s the core of who you are. Yes, you still have the old nature to contend with, but that doesn’t change the heart of who you are. We can’t coast on that, though. We have to choose each day to put on the new self and live in the victory that we possess.
3. Key Spiritual Truth: What God offers is better.
- John 10:10; Romans 6:15-18.
- We are offered abundant life (John 10:10).
- We often don’t believe that sin is shackles (Romans 6:15-18). Too many live happily with the constraints and consequences of their sin, presuming that there is nothing better. Christ offers freedom from sin.
Why it matters: Spiritual victory requires more than just something to be against.
- We need to have something to live for. Christianity is so much more than “don’t do this, don’t look at that.” God is offering us something so much better.
- We need to catch a vision of this greater thing that God has for us. This is crucially important to seeing victory in our lives. It creates hope and vision within us. It encourages us as we move forward. God is offering us freedom from sin. He is offering us guidance and direction. He is offering us joy, peace, and love.
- This goes back to a point I made in last week’s sermon. I talked at length about the ways that sex as God intended is so much better than the façade that porn offers. Just to reiterate one of the points, sex as God intended leaves you feeling loved while porn leaves you feeling lonelier.
4. Key Spiritual Truth: Temptation is always defeatable.
- 1 Corinthians 10:13.
- 1 Corinthians 10:13 – There is always a route out.
Why it matters: Porn is a strong enemy.
- Sexual sins already have a strong hook, but porn has become more difficult in recent years because of the advent of smartphone technology. This makes the temptation ever available, ever portable, ever away from public exposure, ever new.
- There is a reason why porn has become the endlessly-profitable industry that it is. It’s a strong temptation.
- Many feel hopeless to escape its hold.
- That’s one reason why we need to hold tightly to 1 Corinthians 10:13. As a Christian, we have the assurance that we are never stuck in a sin. God has always made provision for victory.
5. Key Spiritual Truth: Sin always brings consequences.
- Numbers 32:23; Romans 2:16; James 1:14-15.
- Numbers 32:23 has a memorable line: “your sin will find you out.”
- Romans 2:16 – God judges people’s secrets.
- James 1:14-15 – Sin leads to death.
Why it matters: Porn thrives in part because “no one will ever know.”
- This secrecy leads a person to believe that they’re getting away with it. Still, even if no one catches them watching porn on a given day, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t consequences.
- Just to name three:
- There are spiritual consequences. You’ve sinned and gotten further from God.
- There are mental consequences. It impacts your thoughts toward women, relationships, and what behavior is acceptable.
- There are judgment consequences. God knows about the sin and it will be included at Final Judgment. Even if no other person knows, it’s still known by God and Google.
- This is one reason why it’s a battle that needs to be won, not excused.
