Q: Hello, Yesterday I was talking about the word with some atheists. Basically I was defending the bible. They were promoting that porn was healthy, and satisfies needs. I told them it didn`t and tried to provide biblical passages why. I was also saying how they need to be saved. The problem is even though I am saved I am in my early twenties who does not really date at all yet I have strong sexual desires in which sometimes I watch porn, its not something I want to do. I know its wrong and I know I will be punished for my sins. But I just want to know should I be preaching when I am having my own struggles with sin. Its very frustrating because even when I pray I feel these desires and they are really distracting and frustrating.
A: Let me be the first to say that the struggles you are having as a young man are not unique to you alone. All men struggle with the same physical desires. And if you waited until you stopped having struggles with sin in your life, you would never preach the Gospel. One thing you need to understand before you will feel comfortable being a witness for Jesus Christ is that right now, at the very moment you are reading this, God sees you as perfect, holy, blameless and sinless because of your faith in Christ. As evidence of this is what God said through the apostle Paul to the Church in Corinth. Although many within that community were trapped in sexual immorality, they were still children of God because of their faith in Jesus Christ. And Paul reminded them, their behavior was not consistent with who they were in God's eyes. "And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God (1 Corinthians 6:11)." The words of Paul don't excuse sinful behavior, but it shows that you are nonetheless seen a certain way by the Lord in the midst of your sins. The more you realize all you have been given through faith in Jesus, the less you will seek what you already have from the world.
When anybody is engaged in sexual sin it is evidence that they are not resting in the sufficiency provided by Christ. If we are not getting our deepest needs for love and acceptance fulfilled in our relationship with the Lord, we will abandon Him and seek it from the world. And all the world can offer is a pale substitute which can only be achieved through some form of sin. But, keep in mind that what we struggle with is not something that is lost on God. "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin (Hebrews 4:15)." Sex is a gift from God, but it is to be "opened" within the context of a marriage relationship. As long as we are alive our flesh and the Holy Spirit, who indwells us, will battle for control of our lives. When you begin to realize all that God has given you in His love the more you will see that reflected in your ability to avoid sin. And you will begin to have the confidence to proclaim the Gospel to those you encounter. I guarantee that as you begin to discover all that you have inherited because of Christ dying for your sins, the appeal of porn and sexual sin will begin to diminish. That temptation will always be there, but you will know that what it claims to offer doesn't compare to what you have in Christ.
Atheists will assert that there is no God. The Bible says that the "fool says in his heart, "There is no God."(Psalm 14:1)" A fool, by definition, is someone who lacks judgment or sense. Ironically, the foolishness of the atheist is that they claim that there is no God. However, in order for them to make that claim they would have to possess total knowledge of everything. In other words, they would have to be god's themselves. But, we know they don't know everything and so their argument is mute. Furthermore, I will suggest that atheists actually do believe in a god. It is just that they haven't found a god of their liking. They want a god that justifies their own view of the world and who condones whatever beliefs or behaviors they exercise. There is enough evidence in the world for anybody to acknowledge the existence of God. As the Bible says, atheists, and unbelievers in general, "suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them (Romans 1:18-19)." In other words, atheists know there is a God, they just don't accept who He is and what He says about them and their need for a savior.
The reason atheists try and trip you up through arguments about sin satisfying their desires is because they don't know any better. At best, the appeal of sin is temporal and the appetite of the flesh is insatiable. Once you begin down that path of trying to gratify your flesh the only end is destruction. All mankind is born into sin apart from the living God indwelling us. Therefore, we endlessly seek to fill that void in our spirit through any means necessary until we find what we need in Christ. The fruit of our spiritual death is evident by the various levels of sin we sink into. Therefore, when a Christian comes with the message of forgiveness and eternal life, provided by the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, an unbeliever will rebuke it. They don't see themselves as sinners, much less spiritually dead. "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Corinthians 1:18)."
I understand what it is like when you take a moment to pray and the filthiest thoughts you can imagine enter into your mind. Don't fret, that is just Satan trying to interrupt your prayers and make you feel guilty because of you aren't having "pure" thoughts when trying to approach God. Just tell Satan to bother somebody else because you aren't in the mood. Remember when Jesus went out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan? With every temptation Jesus responded with "it is written". He was basically saying, "Satan, you say one thing, but God says something else." And that is what we learn to do whenever Satan tries to attack us. He will always try and use your sins against you to try and get you believing you're not a Christian, or that God doesn't love you or hasn't forgiven you. But you'll know better. You will know that you are washed, sanctified and justified. You will also know that in Christ you are forgiven of all your sins (Ephesians 1:7), that nothing can separate you from the love of God (Romans 8:39) and that you have assurance of your salvation (1 John 5:13). Take heart that God knows what you are going through and is not unaware of your struggles. As you grow in your knowledge of Him and all you have received through faith in Christ you begin to find the power and confidence to live above your circumstances and shine the Light of Christ you have within you on the dark world around you.
I pray that God will continue to reveal to you all that you already have been given through your faith in Jesus Christ.
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