Overcoming Sexual Sin

I’m guessing that the title of this one alone has caused some click bait. People’s ears perk up whenever the topic of sex is addressed. It’s innate within our makeup. Then you go and add the word “sin” after it, and you might as well start an all-out war, especially in this current social climate. I don’t need to tell you that we live in a world that is increasingly resistant to moral boundaries and restraints of any kind. The once clear and for the most part agreed upon plumb line of morality has swung so far that I’m not even sure it’s present anymore, especially when it comes to matters of sexuality.

And the fingerprints of the Enemy are all over this one.

While I do believe that all sin is equal in God’s eyes (meaning that all sin separates us from God, and all sin required the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross), different sins bear different consequences. Dishonesty and murder are both sins, yet they bear drastically different consequences. Likewise, sexual sin is unique in that it attacks and assaults the individual who is caught up in it. In other words, it’s a sin that we commit against ourselves, against our own bodies.

“Flee sexual immorality! Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the person who is sexually immoral sins against his own body. Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God?” 1 Corinthians 6:18-19

Let’s take a deeper look at the above verses and what they’re actually saying. First of all, it says, “Flee!” Run away! Don’t stay and try to be stronger than this one. Flee! Secondly, when we sin sexually, we sin against ourselves…the very temple of the Holy Spirit. As believers, we house the Holy Spirit. He lives within us. And don’t be mistaken…the Enemy knows full well the overwhelming effects of our sinful choices in this regard. Since our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, whenever we engage in sexual sin, it is the Enemy’s closest attempt on assaulting Christ Himself. Think about that.

The Bible is not silent on issues of sexuality and sexual sin, but with the increase of social change and shifting standards, society as a whole has lost their appetite for Biblical Truth in this regard. We are being inundated with sexually immoral content on every front, and it has caused us to become desensitized to its affect on us. What many of us wouldn’t have been able to stomach 10 years ago, we sit through today without a second thought.

Yet, God’s Word never changes. He never changes. He doesn’t change His mind. (Numbers 23:19; 1 Samuel 15:29) His Word remains firm on this one because He knows the defeat, the shame, the addiction, and the bondage that awaits us when we choose to get caught up in sexual sin of any kind. His Word is clear on the standards of righteousness for our sexuality, and freedom is only found within its boundaries. And freedom will be hard fought for over this stronghold because of the nature of its claws on our souls. Sexual sin is unique in causing us to feel like we are that sin instead of we committed that sin. Freedom from sexual strongholds is possible for each one of us, but we must recognize that the process towards this freedom will require some radical obediences on our part. It’s time to get honest with ourselves before the Lord on this one if we want to be set free. I invite you to ask yourself these questions, and more importantly, be honest with your answers.

1.  Can I pinpoint specific areas of temptation in my life that lead me toward sexual sin? (i.e. certain TV shows, movies, specific environments, a relationship, the internet, friends on social media, etc.)
2. Am I willing to remove myself from or cut off access to the above things, places, or people that are hindering my freedom?
3. Will I choose to come into agreement with God on His standard of purity and on my own failure to live up to His standard?

Friends, my heart is heavy on this one, but it is also desperate for our freedom in this. I all too well know the weight of this stronghold in my own life, but I’ve also tasted the sweetness of victory in Christ over this area of defeat. I know freedom from sexual strongholds is possible, and I’m believing God for that freedom TODAY…FOR YOU AND FOR ME—not only purity in our actions, but purity in our thoughts, emotions, and motives. God is able! Let’s lean into Praying God’s Word with a boldness and an eagerness and an outright audacious faith in the God who lives to set the captives free!

The Scripture prayers below are taken from Beth Moore’s Praying God’s Word from the chapter on Overcoming Sexual Strongholds, and I would once again encourage you to pray these OUT LOUD and REPEATEDLY. The Enemy isn’t going to quit easily on this one, and by the grace of God, neither are we!

You, God, created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful I know that full well. (Psalm 139:13-14) Father, my body is not horrible. I have simply misused it. Please sanctify it and take it over completely.

Lord, I have come to understand that my heart is deceitful above all things. (Jeremiah 17:9) Please help me recognize ways my heart and my feelings are deceiving me.

Lord God, if I claim to be without sin, I deceive myself and the truth is not in me. If I confess my sins, You are faithful and just and will forgive my sins and purify me from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Father, please help me to accept the fact that I have not outsinned Your ability to forgive me! I am still forgivable as I come to You in sincere repentance.