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Episode #5 - The Journey to Purity
Freedom from sexual impurity - victory over the 3-headed dragon of lust, porn, and masturbation sometimes feels like a mountain too high to climb and a wall too wide to go around and too solid to punch through.
This journey to purity can be difficult and even a bit challenging at times. You find yourself doing things you’re not used to doing. You are trying to give up things that don’t want to be abandoned. There are moments where you may be tempted to just quit altogether. You find yourself wanting to give up and give in once-and-for-all to the overwhelming and relentless temptations that have been hounding you for months – maybe even years. I know, I’ve been there.
Oh, my friend, God is speaking to you right now. Are you hearing Him? Yes, this may seem like a monumental task you are facing. A journey too hard to make. I know I sure felt that way. But God is saying to you, “don’t let that overwhelm you! Don’t be anxious about this.” Why? Because God will not just give you the strength you need to get through this, He will help you overcome it. And He will not just help you, He will hold you up when you feel like you just can’t go any further. You’re not alone. Your Creator, your Savior, your Heavenly Father and best friend – the Almighty, all-powerful, Most Holy God of the Universe is on your side. In fact, He’s right by your side even now!
Transcript
(Opening Sound Track)(Opening Sound Track)
As you well know from your own personal experience, this journey to purity can be difficult and even a bit challenging at times. You find yourself doing things you’re not used to doing. You are trying to give up things that don’t want to be abandoned. There are moments where you may be tempted to just quit altogether. You find yourself wanting to give up and give in once-and-for-all to the overwhelming and relentless temptations that have been hounding you for months – maybe even years. I know, I’ve been there.
I’m your host, Steve Etner and Welcome to episode #5 of The Point of Purity Podcast. A weekly study filled to the brim with the all the tools from Scripture you will ever need to build a lasting life of Biblical purity.
So let’s dive right in to today’s episode as we discover how to take the Journey to Purity.
(01:00) Welcome to the Journey
Hard to believe we are into our 5th episode already! What’s so exciting to me is how this podcast is already growing in popularity. So, if this is your 1st time listening, Welcome to what promises to be the launch of a powerful change in your life. I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am that you are here. And if this is your 2nd or 3rd or even 5th time listening, I am equally as thrilled to have you here today.
I also want to acknowledge the fact that this is no small step for any of you! Freedom from sexual impurity - victory over the 3-headed dragon of lust, porn, and masturbation sometimes feels like a mountain too high to climb and a wall too wide to go around and too solid to punch through. I assure you that neither is the case.
More than likely you’re listening to this podcast right now because at some level you recognize the immense enormity of the battle you’ve been fighting for purity and you are tired ... oh-so-very-tired of the struggle. This habit (dare we call it an addiction?), like a cancer has spread its nasty, filthy tendrils into all areas of your life. Work, marriage, family, church, and probably much more than even you care to admit.
Well, together we are going to let the Word of God dig deep into your soul, penetrating your mind and your will; showing you the problem as God sees it – and the solution as God gives it.
(02:57) Don’t fear the beast!
If you haven’t listened to my testimony yet, please be sure to listen to Episode 1. You see, when I was forced to confront my sin head-on, I was terrified. To be honest, I was truly frightened of the unknown. I worried about what was going to happen when I was no longer able to relieve my stress, frustration, and boredom through porn and masturbation. I was apprehensive over what God was going to do (or not do) to help and it literally gripped me in fear. Can you relate?
Let me take a moment to encourage you with these words from Isaiah 41:10. “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Oh, my friend, God is speaking to you right now. Are you hearing Him? Yes, this may seem like a monumental task you are facing. An obstacle too hard to overcome. I know I sure felt that way. But God is saying to you, “don’t let that overwhelm you! Don’t be anxious about this.” Why? Because God will not just give you the strength you need to get through this, He will help you overcome it. And He will not just help you, He will hold you up when you feel like you just can’t go any further. You’re not alone. Your Creator, your Savior, your Heavenly Father and best friend – the Almighty, all-powerful, Most Holy God of the Universe is on your side. In fact, He’s right by your side even now!
In Joshua 1:9 God says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Yes, this journey is a bit frightening. And it can be exhausting.
In Galatians 6:9 God is telling you to “not grow weary of doing good, for in due season (you) will reap, if (you) do not give up.” I’m here to tell you this is not fiction. This is not some fantasy; this is Gospel truth! You will reap a life of purity if you do not give up!
Did you hear God’s promise in Galatians 6:9? You will reap. You will be successful. You will be pure if you stick with the program and not give up. Why? Because – as Jesus says in Mark 10:27 “All things are possible with God.”
2 Chronicles 15:7 challenges you to “Take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”
Right now, you may find those promises hard to believe. Maybe you feel abandoned, isolated, and vulnerable. You may be coming to this podcast as a last-ditch-effort, possibly even doubting that anyone can truly help you. You are not alone in this battle. I was there. That is why I am personally walking with you through this process via these podcasts. That’s why I established ThePurityCoach.com, that’s why I have my free App “My Purity Coach,” that’s why I created ChristianGrowthAcademy.com, and that’s why The Pure Man Ministry exists. I am here to stand in the trenches with you and show you how to draw near to God, how to raise your sword high, stand your ground, and firmly resist the enemy watching him flee from you like a whipped pup.
(07:44 ) Don’t just hear, DO!
Jesus said in John 13:17 “If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”
As you learn to dig deep into God’s Word you will begin to discover what those “things” are that God wants you to know. His promise here is that if you do the things He reveals to you in Scripture – if you choose to live in obedience, you will be blessed – you will experience happiness, peace, freedom and victory in ways you can only imagine right now as you choose to walk in obedience to your Heavenly Father.
Luke 11:28 says “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
Please understand that the key to lasting victory in your life is not just hearing God’s word but daily choosing to DO God’s word whether you feel like it or not. The blessing comes not in the knowing but in the doing.
James 1:22, 25 commands us to “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ... (you see) The one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.”
(09:14) The Perfect Peacekeeper
When you choose to be a doer of the word and not a hearer only; when you choose to do what is right, not only will you be happy and blessed, but God promises you will have peace. Isaiah 26:3 promises that God will keep you in perfect peace as your mind is focused upon Him, trusting completely in Him.
Do you long for peace? Not a surface, smile-because-you’re-happy kind of peace. Rather, a deep-down-in -your-heart contentment-no-matter-what, full of joy kind of peace.
Think about that. The reason you have struggled finding and experiencing that “perfect peace” in the past is because your mind has not rested fully upon God. You have not chosen to focus and fix your mind and heart upon God.
Throughout this journey you will often hear me say, “What you think becomes what you do.” The mind that is fixed on God, the mind that doesn’t wander off the path of godliness into the snares of temptation, the mind that is fully surrendered to God will be the mind that is at perfect peace. So, again I ask: do you long for that kind of peace? Yes? Then FIX your mind on God. Not just when facing your temptation, but all throughout the day – every day.
One of the reasons that you’re listening to this podcast may be because deep in your heart you are missing the “peace of God.” There is a conflict between what your flesh wants (namely sexual gratification) and what God wants (namely sexual purity) – and it’s messing with your life. Believe me, I know – I experienced that conflict for over 30 years, and I was miserable.
The apostle Paul describes it this way in Galatians 5:17: “For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”
Every born-again believer who is struggling with sexual purity is experiencing a definite conflict of interests going on inside of him. King Me wants one thing; God wants something totally different. The struggle is real. Some days are better than others, but the battle rages on.
The Biblical principle I want you to grasp here is this: when you choose to do what is right, when you daily make the conscious choice to dethrone King Me and allow God to be Lord of your life – all of your life, that is when you will have peace.
In fact, in John 16:33we read, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace.”
Peace, true godly peace, will never be found in lust, porn, or masturbation. I’m not telling you anything new here, you already know this because you’ve been living it. Sexual impurity will never give you genuine peace. Instead, it produces guilt, shame, conflict – anything but peace. The peace you are seeking can only be found in Christ.
When you choose to allow the Word of God to fill your heart and your mind, AND you also choose to walk in daily obedience to your Heavenly Father, a tremendous by-product of that choice is a deep, unshakeable peace. But not just any peace – God’s peace.
Philippians 4:7 guarantees that “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Do you want that kind of peace? Do you want your heart and mind protected from the lure of lust, the pull of porn and the magnet of masturbation? Daily, moment-by-moment, choose to make the hard choice to do what is right. Focus fully on daily surrendering to the Lordship and leadership of Christ in your life.
Yes, that will be hard at first. Yes, you will face great opposition from the enemy. Yes, you will feel like giving up – many times over. Just understand this: Philippians 4:9 says, “What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me – practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
Not only will the God of peace be with you, but He also promises in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” Did you catch that? Not just any ol’ peace will He give you. His peace. Perfect peace.
(15:28) Rest in Peace? Great!
Psalm 119:165 says, “Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.” Let me repeat the last part of that verse. When you choose to not just read God’s word but live by God’s word – NOTHING CAN MAKE YOU STUMBLE.
Don’t miss this. Fill your mind with God’s Word, choose to walk in obedience to God’s principles of purity and not only will you have a “great peace” but you will not stumble – you will not sin, you will not give in to your sexual temptations. Isn’t that what you want?
Enjoying that perfect peace totally depends on the daily choices you make. Choices that include – as Colossians 3:15 says - letting “the peace of Christ rule in your heart.”
Now watch this! When you choose to do what is right, not only will you be blessed, happy, and have peace - you will also have rest.
In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus promises, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Lust, porn, masturbation, sexually acting out, living for King Me leaves your soul in spiritual unrest. This is why you keep returning to the beast. This is why you keep giving in to your sexual temptations. You’re not at peace. You’re not at rest. You are searching for something to fill a great void in your life. You are looking for something to satisfy that deep longing in your soul. You are seeking after that which only God can give.
In Exodus 33:14 God says, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
As you are walking this journey to purity, listen to what the Lord says in Jer. 6:16 “Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls’.”
Next week’s episode is entitled Sinful, Sad, and Sorrowful. In that episode we are going to discover that when you choose to do wrong; when you choose to do what you shouldn’t and choose not to do what you should, when you choose to allow King Me to reign large and in charge – certain things are guaranteed to happen.
Psalm 16:4 says “The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply.” And Psalm 32:10 says “Many are the sorrows of the wicked.”
You’ve experienced the sorrows David is speaking about, haven’t you? I know you have because I know I have. Choose to lust, look at porn, masturbate; choose to worship King Me, run after another god instead of the true God and you will experience the absence of genuine joy and perfect peace.
(Closing Sound Track)
You will know nothing but sorrow and sadness. That’s a fact of Scripture, and a painful reality of life.
So be sure to join us for next week’s episode of The Point of Purity Podcast. Until then, remember the promise of Phil. 4:13 that you CAN do ALL THINGS through Christ who gives you the strength!