Watching pornography involves taking pleasure in observing other people in a state of nakedness, which is the sin of sensuality or lewdness according to the Holy Book, The Bible. The Holy Book makes it clear to us that watching pornography is a sin. In Galatians, Chapter 5, verse 19, we read, “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are immorality, impurity, sensuality.”
Everyday, television, movies, newspapers, magazines and the Internet bombard us with lustful images. And when lustful thoughts become a part of our lifestyle, we feel like prisoners to those controlling desires. But God does not want us to suffer in the prison of lust. He offers us hope and freedom when we turn to Him for help to understand the truth behind the lies of lust.
Glorying in another person’s nakedness is a sinful behaviour. Beginning in the Garden of Eden and continuing throughout the Holy Book, we find that those who take pleasure in another’s nakedness (outside of marriage), are depicted as shameful and due condemnation.
Lust has been with mankind all throughout history. In fact, at the creation of the world, God met Adam and Eve’s basic needs for food, companionship and protection. Yet he put one thing out of their reach to test their love for Him — the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Due to lust, they failed God’s test. Satan tempted Eve by telling her that God was holding back something good. She and Adam through lust ate the forbidden fruit. As a result, they subjected all mankind to God’s curse. The roots of lust run so deep that it is almost instinctive. And once we begin to fulfill our own lusts, a vicious cycle begins. Lust leads to sin. Sin breaks our relationship with God. We become numb to lust’s impact, so we think we can lust even more. Unless our desires are turned over to the Lord, we will never be satisfied.
In Exodus, Chapter 20, verse 17, we read, “You shall not covet your neighbour’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbour’s.” Coveting can include a desire to have people, possessions, or status. Satan uses the lust of the eyes as one avenue of temptation. More importantly, the Lord God sees such conduct as reprehensible. Consider the Lord’s admonishment against Israel when they engaged in lewd and immoral conduct.
In Matthew, Chapter 5, verse 20, we read, “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
Pornographic materials are intended to illicit sexual arousal in our flesh, which is lust. Lust is any arousal of the flesh which occurs in an immoral manner, and the whole purpose of filming other people engaging in sexual acts (often grossly distorted and perverted acts) is to entice lust in the hearts of the audience. The sexual acts on display in pornographic material are acts of fornication, which is the sin of sexual contact outside marriage. When we take part in this enterprise as an observer (i.e., as a customer of pornography), we are condoning and promoting fornication. This promoting behaviour is itself the sin of licentiousness, or giving license to sin.
The act of watching pornography is immoral and sinful. It is wrong because it condones fornication and is licentiousness. It is intended to induce lust in the heart, and it exposes us to the nakedness of strangers.
Lust, like I said earlier is a sin, and anything that brings us to the point of lust is a sinfully corrupting and tempting influence. Jesus Christ said that the commission of lust is equal to the commission of adultery. For those involved in pornography, God alone can and will give you victory.
Jubel D’Cruz
