Randy Alcorn is an amazing Christian writer. I have included an excerpt from his book, The Purity Principle, below. Randy says, "Purity comes only to those who truly want it." I know this to be true due to my own life and walk toward purity. It only became possible once I truly wanted it, no matter the cost. Just wanted to share what I read this weekend. God bless!
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Jesus, The Radical
Consider Christ's words:
"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell." Matthew 5:27-30
Why does Jesus paint this shocking picture? I believe He wants us to take radical steps, to do whater is necessary to deal with sexual temptation.
Now, the hand and eye are not the causes of sin. A blind man can still lust and a man without a hand can still steal. But the eye is a means of access for both godly and ungodly input. And the hand is a means of performing righteous or sinful acts. We must therefore govern what the eye looks at and the hand does.
If we take Jesus seriously, we need to think far more radically about sexual purity.
Doing What It Takes
The battle is too intense, and the stakes are too high to approach purity casually or gradually.
So...if you can't keep your eyes away from those explicit images, don't ever go to a video rental store.
Come on. Everybody goes into those stores.
No. If it causes you to sin, you shouldn't. Period.
Do your thoughts trip you up when you're with a certain person? Stop hanging out with them. Does a certain kind of music charge you up erotically? Stop listening to it. Do you make phone calls you shouldn't? Block 900 phone sex numbers so you can't call them from your home.
If these things seem like crutches, fine. Use whatever crutches you need to help you walk.
Some men fall into mental adultery through lingerie ads, billboards, women joggers in tight pants, women with low cut blouses or short skirts, cheerleaders or dancers, movies, TV shows, and commercials of the beer-and-bikini variety. Some men's weakness is the Sunday newspaper's ad inserts or nearly any magazine.
So, STOP LOOKING. And then STOP PUTTING YOURSELF IN THE POSITION TO LOOK!
If you have to get rid of your TV to guard your purity, do it.
If it means you can't go to games because of how dancers or cheerleaders dress and perform, so be it. If it means you have to lower your head and close your eyse, so be it. If you're embarrassed to do that, stay home.
Tell your wife about your struggles. Or if you're single, tell a godly friend. If you need to drop the newspaper because of those ads, fine. If you need your wife to go through it first and pull out the offending inserts, ask her....Romans 13:14 instructs us to "make no provision for the flesh" (NASB). It's a sin to deliberately put ourselves in a position where we'll commit sin. Whether it's the lingerie department, the swimming pool, or the workout room at an athletic club, if it trips you up, stay away from it.
Proverbs describes the loose woman meeting up with the foolish man after dark (see Proverbs 7:8-9). We must say away from people, places, and contexts that make sin more likely.
If it's certain bookstores, hangouts, or old friends from high school, STAY AWAY FROM THEM. If cable and satellite TV or network TV, the Internet, or computers are your problem, GET RID OF THEM.
Just say NO to whatever is pulling you away from Jesus. Remember, if you want a different outcome, you must make different choices...Sound drastic? Compare it to gouging out an eye or cutting of a hand!...If you're falling, get rid of what's tripping you up.
-Randy Alcorn, taken from The Purity Principle, pp. 63-67
