Comments on: Are We Powerless Over Sexual Sin? http://www.pureheartpuremind.com/2008/04/23/are-we-powerless-over-sexual-sin/ create in me a pure heart, oh God ~ Psalms 51:10 Tue, 12 May 2009 21:09:28 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: J.M. http://www.pureheartpuremind.com/2008/04/23/are-we-powerless-over-sexual-sin/comment-page-1/#comment-83 J.M. Tue, 11 Nov 2008 00:39:35 +0000 http://www.pureheartpuremind.com/?p=8#comment-83 First of all, thank you for taking the time to write this article. That it changed my life? Well' no but it gave me something diffrent to think about. "Could it be that the part which drives me to fall into sin be the same thing that God himself is using to somehow draw me near to him? That is a statement that has come by my mind but not one that I have allowed myself to pay attention to. How can God use sin to draw me near to him. Well my friend I believe you are on to something whith that statement. Just a little about myself I was born in a Christian home that saw its end with in the late years of the eighties. My parents divorced and as consecuense of that and my father not being near all the time. A man took advantage of me. How he did it is irrelevent but lets just say that the incident marked my life in a manner that was not noticeable to me. Ever since that time I found myself always the victim of some maggazine being passed arround or a tv commercial arrousing me to masturbate. Masturbation has been something that has in horrible ways wanted to destroy my life. Before marrying my wife in 2004 I fell in a sexual sin that somehow was covered by a male friend wanting to help me out with the sexual tension I was getting by kissing my girlfriend who is now my wife. Lets just say that I found myself in a situation where I almost lost the woman I knew would be my wife. She felt cheated on and ugly and well just those words should somehow explain the terrible situation. No married I still live with this issue. I believe that I opened the door to it again by masturbating when my wife was upset with me or had somekind of vaginal desease. I just finished filling my eyes with more pictures but it all started Sunday morning here on this same computer. I found my self in You Tube despretly looking for some woman that would incite me. My friend' all my life I have struggled with this but you say that I cannot controll it and that I need to use the power of the ressurection? That sounds pretty and all but I have gone to God in prayer but the pictures I have seen in the past still litter this mind. I tell myself I have the mind of Christ but at the trying moment I end up in the same situation. Write me back please I will eagerly wait for your response. Also I am a minister in a worship team or group and the Lord uses me mightely for his Glory but sometimes this problem makes me feel worthless to God. Even though he still speaks words of reconciliation and advice against this my problem. I dont see my self as a pervert but there is a terrible sexual hunger that is fed by visions of pictures I have seen. Well I will stop writing now Be blessed and once more thank you for taking the time to write the article. Sincerely J.M. P.S My wife doesent know this. If she finds out it will probably mean a very horrible time for me and possible the loss of my marriage. First of all, thank you for taking the time to write this article. That it changed my life? Well’ no but it gave me something diffrent to think about. “Could it be that the part which drives me to fall into sin be the same thing that God himself is using to somehow draw me near to him? That is a statement that has come by my mind but not one that I have allowed myself to pay attention to. How can God use sin to draw me near to him. Well my friend I believe you are on to something whith that statement.

Just a little about myself
I was born in a Christian home that saw its end with in the late years of the eighties. My parents divorced and as consecuense of that and my father not being near all the time. A man took advantage of me. How he did it is irrelevent but lets just say that the incident marked my life in a manner that was not noticeable to me. Ever since that time I found myself always the victim of some maggazine being passed arround or a tv commercial arrousing me to masturbate. Masturbation has been something that has in horrible ways wanted to destroy my life. Before marrying my wife in 2004 I fell in a sexual sin that somehow was covered by a male friend wanting to help me out with the sexual tension I was getting by kissing my girlfriend who is now my wife. Lets just say that I found myself in a situation where I almost lost the woman I knew would be my wife. She felt cheated on and ugly and well just those words should somehow explain the terrible situation. No married I still live with this issue. I believe that I opened the door to it again by masturbating when my wife was upset with me or had somekind of vaginal desease. I just finished filling my eyes with more pictures but it all started Sunday morning here on this same computer. I found my self in You Tube despretly looking for some woman that would incite me. My friend’ all my life I have struggled with this but you say that I cannot controll it and that I need to use the power of the ressurection? That sounds pretty and all but I have gone to God in prayer but the pictures I have seen in the past still litter this mind. I tell myself I have the mind of Christ but at the trying moment I end up in the same situation. Write me back please I will eagerly wait for your response. Also I am a minister in a worship team or group and the Lord uses me mightely for his Glory but sometimes this problem makes me feel worthless to God. Even though he still speaks words of reconciliation and advice against this my problem. I dont see my self as a pervert but there is a terrible sexual hunger that is fed by visions of pictures I have seen. Well I will stop writing now
Be blessed and once more thank you for taking the time to write the article.
Sincerely J.M.

P.S
My wife doesent know
this. If she finds out
it will probably mean a
very horrible time for me
and possible the loss of
my marriage.

]]> By: Joshua Hottenstein http://www.pureheartpuremind.com/2008/04/23/are-we-powerless-over-sexual-sin/comment-page-1/#comment-74 Joshua Hottenstein Sat, 23 Aug 2008 15:20:30 +0000 http://www.pureheartpuremind.com/?p=8#comment-74 Doctor, very courageous writing. I was particularly interested in the paragraph describing how people in bondage pray for deliverance without results. I can't imagine how discouraging and frustrating it must be to struggle with a bondage for years with no results from prayer. This is no surprise. Even Paul in Romans 7:14-16 describes his struggle with the flesh--"I do not understand what I do". He goes on in Romans 8:9 to say "You, however are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you." How do we reconcile this tension? I believe you are correct, the root problem is not the amount of our effort or sincerity. The root problem is our self-centered thoughts and identity. As you said, we are DEAD to sin. Dead to everything in this fleshly life. My prime identity is no longer a father, husband, worker, or student. My prime identity is a child of God, by the grace of Christ through his resurrection. I am a child of God, who also happens to be a father and a husband. The most important lesson to learn is that "it's not about me, it's about Christ", that is it's not about my glory, my identity, my success, but it's all about Christ's glory. Have those struggling ever thought that the remaining bondage to sin is present because there is an area of their life that has not yet died to Christ? Have those struggling ever thought that the area of bondage is left there by God purposely to force us to "kill" that area of our life, and depend even more closely on him? Just a layman's 2 cents. Doctor, very courageous writing. I was particularly interested in the paragraph describing how people in bondage pray for deliverance without results. I can’t imagine how discouraging and frustrating it must be to struggle with a bondage for years with no results from prayer.
This is no surprise. Even Paul in Romans 7:14-16 describes his struggle with the flesh–”I do not understand what I do”. He goes on in Romans 8:9 to say “You, however are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.” How do we reconcile this tension?
I believe you are correct, the root problem is not the amount of our effort or sincerity. The root problem is our self-centered thoughts and identity. As you said, we are DEAD to sin. Dead to everything in this fleshly life. My prime identity is no longer a father, husband, worker, or student. My prime identity is a child of God, by the grace of Christ through his resurrection. I am a child of God, who also happens to be a father and a husband. The most important lesson to learn is that “it’s not about me, it’s about Christ”, that is it’s not about my glory, my identity, my success, but it’s all about Christ’s glory.
Have those struggling ever thought that the remaining bondage to sin is present because there is an area of their life that has not yet died to Christ? Have those struggling ever thought that the area of bondage is left there by God purposely to force us to “kill” that area of our life, and depend even more closely on him?
Just a layman’s 2 cents.

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