On December 26, 2004, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.1 struck off the coast of Indonesia. The immediate impact wasn’t felt because it struck deep under the ocean’s surface.
Just before 8 a.m., the ocean floor thrust upward more than sixty feet because of the collision of the earth’s plates along a 600-mile fault line. All the water displaced by this violent quake had to go somewhere.
It pushed rapidly through the ocean, moving toward the shore at more than 500 miles per hour.
The sheer volume of water was barely noticeable until it reached the shoreline, where it grew into a huge wall, a wave reported to be over 100 feet high in some areas. There was little warning of the coming devastation.
The people in coastal towns were caught entirely off guard. The resulting tsunami was the deadliest in history, killing over 227,000 people in fourteen countries.
And much like the tsunami that crushed so many communities in Southeast Asia, the wave of porn addiction is increasing at an alarming rate.
But Christians Are Different, Right?
Today, we only partially see the impact of porn in culture, but there is a wave of devastation coming when today’s youth who have been raised on porn grow up.
It might come as no surprise that there is virtually no difference in monthly porn use among non-Christian men (65%) versus Christian men (64%). It might even be worse than the published statistics indicate. The Freedom Fight surveyed over 750 Christian college men from over thirty different campuses across the country. Many of them were leaders in their ministries.
What we found was alarming—89% of the growing number of Christian men we surveyed watch porn at least occasionally—more than six in ten view it at least weekly. More than half of these practicing Christian men say they are addicted to pornography.
With two out of three Christian men watching porn regularly, many feel bad about it, but few have an urgency and commitment to break free. In fact, less than one in ten of these men seek meaningful help.
Quitting Porn Begins by Being Honest with Yourself.
How can so many Christians seem content to live in sin? The answer is shame and self-deception.
Shame leads believers to hide their porn problem, and self-deception keeps many Christians stuck in their porn habits.
Some people think they can quit anytime they want. Others justify their behavior, claiming it’s no big deal. The porn addict might say, “I’m not that bad,” or “Everyone struggles with this,” or “I’m not addicted—I just mess up once in a while.”
These rationalizations might help the believer live with the hypocrisy of regular porn use, but this self-deception keeps them stuck. An addict must be honest with themselves about a problem before they can find freedom.
Most Christians stuck in a porn habit have no idea how pornography “wages war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11), but the impact is measurable.
Dr. Samuel Perry, a sociology professor at the University of Oklahoma, has extensively researched the effects of pornography on a person’s religious commitments. He summarizes his conclusions: “Any porn use…is associated with declines in religious commitment and behavior (i.e., attending services, prayer, etc.) and an increase in religious doubts.”
His research also found that a person’s service in their congregation was impacted by the frequency of their porn use. More porn = less spiritual service.
In addition to stunting spiritual growth and service, porn consumption is negatively associated with the time parents spend talking or reading about religion with their children.
The more porn a parent watches, the less religious instruction they give their children.
If either the husband or wife watches porn, that couple is 2-3 times more likely to divorce than the porn-free couple. That is staggering when you consider the destructive impact of divorce on families and churches.
The Problem Pastors Don’t Want to Talk About.
Over half of pastors say porn addiction is the most damaging issue in their congregation, and 69% say porn has adversely impacted the church.
But, only 7% of pastors provide solutions to help their people break free from porn.
Many pastors who see porn as a significant problem are stuck in it themselves and cannot address it. Pastors who could address it, but don’t often don’t see it as a significant enough issue to prioritize. It is easy to hide and the devastation is years in the making.
Addressing porn in the church is not easy, and solutions are not simple. Pastors can view addressing porn as a distraction from the real mission of the Church instead of the opportunity for deep discipleship that it is.
As author Josh McDowell said, “Right at this moment, there’s never been anything in history that is destroying more churches, more pastors, more marriages, more young people than pornography.” This is quite a statement if you think about the ramifications.
Tsunamis are most destructive when people are unaware. And there is a tsunami coming! We see the destructive impact of porn now, but the worst is yet to come. When the current generation, raised on internet porn like no other generation in history, comes of age, the impact on their spiritual growth, marriages, kingdom service, and parenting will be impacted like we have never seen. Remember God’s promise.
