Tony Reinke:
According to a study by Covenant Eyes, roughly half of all professing Christian men and one-fifth of all professing Christian women admit to being porn addicts. Other reports indicate the problem could be even more extensive. Whatever the exact numbers, porn is a problem, a growing problem, and an increasingly accessible problem.
“The Internet is the crack cocaine of pornography,” says Heath Lambert, author of the forthcoming book,
Finally Free: Fighting for Purity with the Power of Grace. Lambert is assistant professor of biblical counseling at Boyce College and teaches at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky. We asked him about the growing epidemic of pornography in the lives of Christians, and about the roots behind the sin.
The Deep Root of Porn
The sin of pornography is directly linked to the sin of pride, he says.
“At the root of viewing pornography is an arrogant heart that says: ‘I will have whatever I want. And if I want pictures of naked women, I am going to have it. And I don’t care if God doesn’t want it, and I don’t care if my wife doesn’t like it, and I don’t care if I might lose my ministry over it — I am going to look at it.’ And in the moment of temptation, in the moment of the sin, when you dive in, that’s the statement of your heart.
“The problem with pornography is not that men are married to women that aren’t pretty enough. The problem with pornography is not that men are too lonely. The problem with pornography is that men are arrogant and they need the gospel of Jesus Christ to shatter their pride and cultivate humility in their hearts.”
Overcoming the Porn Trap
Overcoming the porn trap is ultimately tied to gospel-humility and worship.
“Men who want to overcome the problem of pornography,” says Lambert, “have to learn to worship at the feet of Jesus and have to, by grace, learn how to be fascinated and captivated by the beauty and the glory of who Jesus is, and what he has done for sinners.”
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