Pornography and the Gospel

Pornography. 

Boobs. Naked bodies. Images of sex. 

I have not met one Christian man who gives a thumbs up to porn. I have not men one Christian man who believes porn isn't disgusting, distasteful, damaging and destructive. We detest it. We reject it out right. But yet, the same men desire it. What's going on? 

Sinners in disguise?

Enemies of Christ?

Wife haters? Do they desire a sex-fueled sinners paradise?

No. NO. NOOOOO!! 

#christianshateporn

As a young boy who stumbled upon a pornographic magazine at age 10, I know all about the power of this drug. I used to say to myself (and to God): Can't porn be the same to me as alcohol, cocaine or smokes? If I was locked in a room by myself for one week with a bottle of Jack Daniels, a syringe of heroine, a box of Camel and a Hustler magazine, I wouldn't even bother with anything except the magazine. The other objects would be as desirable to me as bath plug. Nothing in me has ever wanted a drug, a fag or a drink. But porn...that's a different story. The more I looked, the more my body craved. The images that excited me today were boring tomorrow. I wanted...turned into...I needed. I needed more graphic. I needed a higher fix. 

Yes. Pornography is an addiction. #truth

Now listen closely...

For over the past decade, scientists have realized that pornagraphy IS as addictive as heroine. It might not be something a person sniffs, smokes or injects but the brain releases the SAME neuro-chemicals when porn is consumed. When a person experiences a heightened sense of pleasure for the very first time, their brain literally takes a snap shot, a picture if you will, and records this as something good. At the same time, the brain releases a chemical called dopamine. Dopamine is a chemical released in the brain and it's associated with pleasure and highs! The brain is literally rewired so that it will make the body behave so that it can experience that same high or even better fix to that snapshot so that more dopamine is released. This is an addiction folks. 

I get worried when preachers point their boney fingers at the men in their congregations telling them that they are moral failures and that they need to start growing up into real men and stop watching pornography. 

"You must quit!" he demands.

What the preacher doesn't know, is that telling a guy, or a woman addict for that matter, to just stop doesn't help them. Similarly, telling a heroin addict to just stop isn't going to happen either. You are not dealing with weak willed people here. You are dealing with people whose brains have been rewired. No matter how much the heart and the will of a person wants to stop! If the brain is suffering withdrawal and is demanding dopamine to be released, the person literally has no control. None.

Ever wonder why an addict experiences sweaty hands or shaking when they trying to resist their addiction? It's because their brain is screaming at them to get a fix. NOW! The shaking is actually a sign of trauma. Have you ever seen someone whose survived a horrid car accident? They shake like a leave. It's the trauma of the accident on the brain which is being released in the body. An addict shaking is a traumatic sign of their will fighting against their brain. They don't want to consume it. But their brain is demanding otherwise. THEY DON'T WANT IT.

The sweaty palms is a sign of this traumatic experience between brain and will. Unfortunately, the condemning preacher doesn't understand this. What he thinks is weak spiritual power is actually a rewired brain. The guy needs a hug of mercy not a judging finger in his face.

This information should change the way you view a porn addict vs a drug addict. #perspective

Mercy has been shown to the druggie while shame, condemnation and embarrassment has been the porn addict's cross to bear. And it shouldn't be. He has as much control, or lack thereof, as the drug addict. Scientifically proven. It's a brain thing. Not a weak will or a moral failure. 

You are dealing with a man who doesn't want to do this any more. He wants the magazine to be like the drugs, the cigarette and the alcohol. He longs to please God. He longs to walk with his head held high again. He's tired of the shame. He doesn't want to carry the condemnation anymore. He has tried to stop, believe me. He desires it no more. Don't isolate him. Don't hate him. Understand him. And give the boy a hug...

May I offer some advice to my fellow Jesus lovers who are repulsed by this drug:

1. Clean out the house. Limit your access. If you have clips, DVDs or magazines anywhere. Chuck it out. Remove any porn stash you have. And do it today.

2. Tell someone. The biggest lie I believed was that I was alone in this fight. The truth is that you are far from alone. I promise, the man you tell isn't going to judge you. Tell someone who will help you, encourage you and pray with you. Be prepared to get honest with this person. You have make yourself vulnerable here. And let this relationship be a safe one. Share daily if your have too. But share.

3. Believe the gospel. Preach it to yourself. Listen to it. Think about it. Meditate on it. What is the gospel: As a believer, JESUS will never be grossed out at you. He is not angry or disappointed in your porn addiction. You are His. And He is yours. You are eternally secure. You are safe in His care. He has forgiven you of every time you listed and masturbated to pornography. He's forgotten. And He has forgiven you already of every future offense as well. You have been justified in the courtroom of Heaven. He has made you free. Your sinful nature is dead and He has made you new. He has overcome this addiction as you and for you already. You will get through this by grace alone, through faith alone because of CHRIST alone.

Remember, don't believe the lie that you are the only one who is fighting this battle. That's the devil's biggest lie to porn consumers. He makes you feel alone. Walk in the light guys. Talk about it with other men. Pray about it with other men. Share the struggle with other men of Christ. 

Keep trusting the Lord to HEAL your brain and to rewire it. As you believe the gospel and regularly hear the gospel, repentance comes. It brings a change in mind. Changing of the brain and how it thinks will be transformed. God heals cancer. He heals brains too. Wash it with truth. Trust him to deliver you and bring healing to you.

He loves you.

The Religious Spirit

I visited one of my clients last week at 8:20am. As I walked into his office he said "Just in time." I had stumbled upon their Tuesday prayer meeting. A guest preacher comes week after week to share "truth" and to pray with them. The guest preacher gave me a 'Salvation Pack' (I reckon he assumed I wasn't a believer). He preached for 40 minutes. We prayed for 1 minute. And that was that. Not sure why it's called a prayer meeting :-)

When I got home I decided to read through the pack he gave me and I was astonished at the material I was reading. Much of it was cut and paste stuff from previous gospel tracts I had read in the past. Then some of it was his own stuff. His major emphasis was about the FRUIT believers needed to show once they are Christians. And this fruit manifested in four Christian disciplines. By doing these four things a Christian is built up and becomes strong. If one fails too, then they become malnourished and they will die. The 4 things are...1) Attendance of a Weekly prayer meeting at ones church 2) Weekly Bible study at ones church 3) Weekly communion with fellow believers 4) Weekly Sunday service attendance. If one does these, then they will grow up into a strong Christian. If not, then the following things will happen: a) You will lose your holiness b) You will not be an effective minister of the Lord c) You will lose your salvation and burn in hell. And I'm quoting here...word for word. I was gobsmacked. I wrote to the guy. A really nice email I must say. I just asked some questions regarding this teaching and posed some questioned: How does one exactly become Un-born-again? Does God write a name in the Lambs Book of Life in pencil and then rub it out when a church meeting is missed? Is God's ability to keep someone saved dependent upon that person's church attendance? 

No matter which religion or cult you study, the religious spirit will rear his head with the following proposal: Are you doing enough? Your destiny in the after life is dependent upon your actions here on earth. If you do good, you get in. If you do bad, you don't get in. That is religion. And it's everywhere! 

And that is what makes the Gospel of Jesus Christ totally different from any other religious mantra. The destiny of our after life is not dependent upon what I do. It's dependent upon what JESUS has done. Jesus plus nothing. I contribute zero to my salvation. I do nothing to get it and I can do nothing to lose it. It's a gift. It's bought and paid for by Jesus' effort and performance, not my own. A religion will require you to die to self to be rescued by God. Christianity is all about God dying for us so we can be rescued. It's what makes Christianity different. You made no effort to get it and there is no effort required to keep it. CHRIST rescues us and He keeps us. It's a scandal to religion. It is the gospel.

My hope is that many well intentioned preachers receive the revelation of the gospel as I did. I can never forget that I was once in bondage to religion too. I was well intentioned in my preaching and sharing. But I was wrong. It brings fear, guilt and condemnation. And none of which is the inheritance of the believer. We were set free to live free. 

Peace folks!

The Paranoia with Angels

I find it funny how some Christians become so paranoid when another Christian speaks about Angels. Angels have become taboo within Christian circles even to the point where if one speaks about an experience or a sighting or even asks a question, the first words out of their mouths are "You got to be careful when it comes to Angels." But why say that? What is this fear to acknowledge or to speak about Angels; and God forbid, even to mention that you may have seen one.

The New Testament is riddled with believers seeing and interacting with Angels. It wasn't some voodoo mysterious thing that needed to be feared. It was rather common place in the church. Do a word study on "Angel" in the Book of Acts and you'll see what I mean. Even the testimonies that come out of church history reveal some startling angelic intervention stories where one can clearly see God's hand in protecting and providing for His people. I even have a story of my own. You want to hear it? 

Five years ago, I worked for a company that imported instant noodles. I had planned a "Taste Demo" of these noodles at a Spar store in Mdantsane. My assistant for the day was a Xhosa speaking lady who would translate to the hopeful crowd (If you didn't know, instant noodles was a new concept within lower income black families and so this was the market we were trying to penetrate.). I had no hope in heaven of communicating in Xhosa to the customers on why Instant Noodles made financial sense to their household or on how to prepare them. Hence, my Xhosa speaking lady was a make or break for my "Taste Demo". I transported my portable stove, my table, my electric leads, my pots and my instant noodles to the store. I was half way setting up when I received a call..."Ahh, Ross, hi there. I won't be able to come to your taste demo. I'm stuck in another meeting that won't be done for another three hours." And just like that...BAM! My Xhosa translator was not coming.

I called a brother of mine and explained the situation. He said "Don't stress. Let's pray." I was worried. I was panicking. I didn't pray much. He asked for angelic assistance in his prayer. I took no notice. I was more worried about how I was going to "wing" this.

I had everything set up. I was cooking my noodles. I was preparing my samples in little cups for customers to taste and the crowd was building. I began to give the samples out one by one while trying to explain what they were and how I was cooking them. I might as well have spoken Martian. They had no idea what I was saying. Just then, out the corner of my eye, I saw a elderly black woman come from the side. She looked at me dead in the eyes while smiling and confidently made her way to the front where I was standing. She took my hand while smiling at me and turned to the crowd of customers. She then began to speak in Xhosa and explain to them exactly what I was doing. I stepped back and carried on cooking my noodles and she carried on promoting for me. This carried on for just over half an hour. I didn't get her name. I didn't get to chat with her. I didn't even see where she went. As the crowd became less and less, she stepped down and disappeared. It was only a few minutes later did I realize that God had saved my hide. He had provided me with divine assistance. To this day, I believe this elderly lady who spoke for me was an Angel. Could she have just been a friendly person who saw the panic all over a young white guy and decided to help out? Could have. But I don't think so. 

The funny thing is that 90% of the Christians I tell this story to, don't buy it. But why not? Why are we so paranoid to believe that God would actually answer a prayer and send an Angel to serve one of His sons? Why do most Christians automatically default to unbelief in a divine intervention where Angels are concerned and rather rationalize it with a human answer? Are we scared of being deceived? Has too much New Age nonsense crept into the church that we'd rather side with conservatism when people share weird stories about supernatural beings? Cool. Fine. I understand that. Valid concerns. But let's admit it and understand why. 

The truth is no Christian denies Angels. But there is a tendency to avoid the subject because we just don't know what to believe. I get that. I really do. But let's admit our paranoia and talk. Let's chat about it. Let's openly talk about the reasons. Angels are real. They serve God's purposes. And one of those purposes is for them to assist the heirs of salvation. So they are around. Let's not be afraid of the fruit cakes who are obsessed with them. Let's talk openly, let's ask the questions and let's enjoy the gift - because that's what they are - let's praise God for sending His Angels to help and to protect as God's kids.

Let's quit the paranoia.

Co-Laboring with God 101

For my Christian friends who find it difficult to comprehend and understand the term "co-labouring with God", perhaps this will help...

The other day my tyre went flat. I got the jack, the wrench and other bits and bobs out the boot in order to fix it. I had them next to me as I sat and lay on the ground attempting to do the job of changing the tyre. My youngest son, Michael, came out and stood by me. His first question, "Dad, can I help you?" Now what dad could say no to his four year old trying to help. I figured he didn't have the strength to jack the car up (Duh!!!) so asking him to pass me the different tools would make his day. And it sure did. "Michael, pass me the nut. No boy, the nut. Aahhh, no Michael, THAT one, THAT one on the right....yes...give THAT to me." Did I need him to pass me the nuts? No. They were right beside me. But he was interested in my business and he wanted to help. So I included him. And it was a joy for me to do so! After the tyre was changed we went inside. Michael ran ahead of me and what were the first words out of his mouth? "Mom, Mom, guess what!! I changed Daddy's tyre!!" I smiled and encouraged him in front of her. "Mommy, you should of seen him. Passed me all the right tools. Good job my boy! Dad's so proud of you." Did he change the tyre? No. Did he help me? I helped him to help me. And I loved every moment of it. He co-labored with me in changing my tyre. 

God loves it when we "help" Him "change the tyres". It makes His heart glad when we are on about the same things as Him. It makes him glad when we when we desire the things He does. And loves to include us in what He's doing in changing people's lives. 

Happy tyre changing!!

Saved from Sin

Close your eyes. Create the following scenario in your mind: Imagine you were born into a dark, moist, eerie feeling prison. You are forever confined to a jail cell, 2m x 2m x 2m in size. You have never felt clothes touch your skin, fresh bread (or any other decent food) in your mouth or any drink other dirty water down your throat. You've never known a friendly smile, a ray of sunlight to hit your face or a conversation with any human being. All you know is the feeling of being naked, dirty, smelly, lonely, hungry, thirsty and....alone. Completely helpless. Totally lost. And trapped in this tiny metal cell. 

Then one day, someone you've never seen before, kicks down the entrance to the prison and yanks open your prison cell, and rescues you. He takes you to his glorious mansion. His servants clean you, wash you, give you brand new clothes to wear (with countless wardrobes full of more), give you a massive bedroom over looking the ocean with a king sized bed, your own 60-inch plasma connected to a PS4, your own fully stocked fridge and open access to all parts of the mansion; including the kitchen. The kitchen has every food that you can imagine with world class chefs waiting for you to place your order! There's an indoor pool, a movie theatre and mega games room. The mansion is filled with others. Friendly guys and gals who are available for friendship and company.This is your new home. This is your new forever. 

From chapters 5 to 8 in the book of Romans, Paul mentions the word "sin" 41 times. 40 times it's written as a noun. Noun = name, place or thing. Interesting. Think about that for a minute. Sin described as a PLACE. Not a doing word. But a PLACE. Thinking of sin the majority of the time as something we DO isn't theologically correct. That thinking will bring a lot of confusion to the understanding of sin in the Bible.

Christians are prisoners who were rescued from the prison cell of SIN. They have been placed into the mansion of their rescuer. They've been cleaned and bathed. They have been given all the toys, all the food and they have access to everything that belongs to their rescuer. He saved them through no effort of their own. It was all Him. They didn't impress Him. They didn't behave or perform any better than any other prisoners. But He rescued them. No matter if they were good or well behaved prisoners, they were still stinky, smelly, lonely and lost prisoners. Stuck in the cell of SIN. Now...they have been rescued, transferred and placed into the King's domain where no matter how much they eat, how much they mess or how much they spill beer on the carpets, they are still His. They are in Him. Forever.

Best Weight Loss Program EVER...2 simple steps

1. Eat less

2. Move more

Off you go...

What's the one thing He's asking?

I have spectacular news for you! It will bring a grin to your face, probably because it'll catch you off guard. But it is the truth. And it's good news. Many guys I speak to are very circumspect when they hear my answer to their probing question "If God was real, what's the one thing He'd say or ask me?" Haha! What a question? The answer have caught many okes off guard and are like "No way man, God would have a lot more sterner things to talk to ME about!!". Their whole concept of who God is has been so dramatically altered by the false propoganda that's been 'preached' by churches, media and Hollywood, that the truth is actually "too good to be true" to these guys. 

If God had to rock up at your door tonight, knock and wait for you to answer, He'd have one question for you...with a smile on His face and an open hand, He'd invite you to His table and ask "You wanna eat with me?" And this ain't a table of '20-Questions' or an invite to an interrogation. On the contrary, the invite is to literally sit down at His supper table, eat whatever's on it and share each other's stories, tell one another jokes and laugh together. Shame, guilt and condemnation aren't served at this table. 

What you probably don't know is that this invitation to eat with God at His table holds some significance to the way He feels about you. Let me explain (this is where it really gets exciting!): 

According to the Hebrew language, the word for table is "shulchan". "Shulchan" also means reconcile. And this was common practice within Jewish customs. If someone you knew had a grievance with you and they invited you for a meal, they were taking it upon themselves to make the first step towards reconciliation. By you accepting the invite and sitting down at their table, the symbolism was whatever it was you were carrying i.e. Offense, hurt, etc. was then laid down on the table so you didn't have to carry it any more. You were laying it down. The initiator would then feed you, sit with you, enjoy the meal with you as a symbol that the past is the past and we're now reconciling with one another. And it was done with much joy! 

You find this throughout the Bible. The reconciliatory meal is all over the place; Old Testament and the New. But let me highlight two of them for you: 

1. Peter had denied Jesus three times. It broke Peter. He was confident that He was a tough bloke who wouldn't fear a thing. Well, until that night. The cock crowed and he broke. Three days later, he returned to his old life of fishing when Jesus came to the river looking for Him. And what did Jesus do? He cooked him a fish breakfast, shouted to Peter on the boat and invited him to come and eat with Him. Jesus didn't scold him. Jesus invited him back to a place of reconciliation and forgiveness. Shulchan. 

2. Jesus hung out with many non-chalant sort of folks. You know, the drug dealers, the hookers, the fraudsters, the drunkards, the foul-mouthed...and they in fact enjoyed hanging with Him. He didn't just hand out some gospel tracts to them either. He sat with them, He ate and drank with them. He shared meals with them. He attended their dinner parties and weddings. The religious asked his church-going deacons about this, and over hearing Jesus made it quite clear "I haven't come for the healthy, but the sick." Jesus had come to eat with those whom the "God-people" wouldn't. Those who were supposed to be representing the heart of God were far away. They wouldn't be caught dead having a Beer with a hooker, let alone a three course meal. But this was Jesus' mission the whole time. He came to show people that the God of the universe wants to eat with them, laugh with them, He wants fellowship with them! Shulchan.

And the next time you wondering what God would say to you. And you wondering how much He's going to nail you for the bad stuff you've done in your life, remember the table. Remember his invitation. It's for me and it's certainly for you. He's asking one question, "You wanna come eat with me?".

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. - Revelation 3:20