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Christ has risen - neither death nor hell nor sin could defeat our conquering hero. The resurrection means we have sure and certain proof that every promise God makes about your sin, guilt, forgiveness and relationship with him is not just a dream - they are your reality.
How does this affect your struggle with lust? How does resurrection change your perspective on the pornographic industry? These are the questions you've been set free to wrestle with, and we at CtC would like to join you in this month's newsletter. We all need the message of Christ's victory to permeate every aspect of our lives, and Conquerors through Christ is here to help.
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In one of the greatest Christian works of the 19th century, Dr. C. F. W. Walther said this:
"The Word of God is not rightly divided when sinners who have been struck down and terrified by the law are directed, not to the Word and the Sacraments, but to their own prayers and wrestlings with God in order that they may win their way into a state of grace; in other words, when they are told to keep on praying and struggling until they feel that God has received them into grace."
"Fourteenth Evening Lecture. (January 16, 1885)" lutherantheology.com
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Read it again. Work through the archaic language and run-on sentence to get to the incredible, relevant point.
His point?
You don't have to feel like God has removed your guilt for it to be gone. You don't have to depend on the prayers you pray or the words you say or whether or not you'll ever have another lustful thought to be sure that Jesus forgives you right now.
Do you see the way lust and porn damage you, your relationships, and the lives of those involved in the industry? Do you realize that porn undermines the best kind of sex, the sex God wants for people? Do you understand that the devil and his lies have led you into darkness, surrounded you with danger, and left you for dead?
Good. Now also realize that
Jesus has come for you, he's leading you into the light, he's conquered the devil, and he's bringing you the fullest kind of life you could have ever imagined. You can be sure of this because God promised it, and that's good enough.
by Kent Reeder, pastor of Illumine Church in Rock Hill, SC
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Internet porn is an industry.
It isn't passion or reality.
It isn't art or creativity.
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It is industry, and it is money. Money which does not go primarily to the "actors" or "actresses," but instead goes to the gatekeepers - the producers and (mostly) the distributors.
To prove this, just consider the top pornographic site in the world. It has been in business for 16 years, boasts 25 million page views per day (to put that in perspective, cnn.com has been around for 21 years but only receives 16 million page views per day,) and is worth a whopping $54.8 million (cnn.com is worth $36 million.) This site does not pay royalties for the videos that get played, so the revenue goes to site maintenance and to those who work on it.
When you watch porn online, you aren't just helping the less-than-admirable version of yourself. You're helping the digital pimps.
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The digital pimps need help, though. They're being less-than-admirable versions of themselves, too.
And just like the only thing that's going to relieve your conscience after you realize what you've done by using the porn is
Jesus, who loves you still despite your secrets, Jesus is the only thing that will help them.
If you're looking for something to fill the time you would have spent helping the digital pimps financially, maybe you should think about the ways you can help the digital pimps spiritually. Somebody's got to do it. Maybe you and Jesus are the team for the job.
by Kent Reeder, pastor of Illumine Church in Rock Hill, SC
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This PDF shares the CTC steps to conquering porn addiction and related scripture worth memorizing. We encourage you to print this out and post it anywhere & everywhere as a reminder or to share with others - bathroom mirrors, bulletin boards, refrigerators, etc. would all work!
Passages worth memorizing - PDF
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If you are caught in the sin of lust, we want to help restore you.
If you are in need of accountability, we want to help keep you from temptation.
If you are helping bear another's burden, we want to hold you up and encourage you.
No matter who you are, we want you to know the love of Christ - the only thing that will bring you lasting peace.
Sincerely,
Your brothers and sisters at Conquerors through Christ
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