Participants: Jay Rosario & Daniel McGrath (Host), Ariel Roldan
Series Code: E
Program Code: E000018
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00:19 Hello, again. My name is Jay Rosario
00:21 and welcome to Engage. 00:23 A program that deals with relevant issues 00:27 and challenges facing young adults 00:29 in their Christian journey. 00:31 Today we have a very interesting program 00:33 and we wanna encourage those that are of minor age 00:37 or young children that if parents consider it 00:41 unsuitable for them to be present 00:43 because of the nature of our discussion, 00:45 we encourage children to be absent from this segments. 00:49 Joining us today we've my good friend, Dan. 00:52 How is it going, Dan? Good, Jay. 00:53 Thanks for having me. 00:54 So, Dan, what exactly are we gonna be talking about 00:57 that's so sensitive today. 00:58 Well, today we're talking about 00:59 the issue of pornography. 01:01 It's an issue that we as Adventist 01:03 or as Christians have kind of pushed under the rug. 01:05 We haven't really talked about it 01:07 openly which is what we're trying to do today 01:09 because we wanna-- we want the Bible to speak 01:12 for itself and the Bible says so much about it. 01:14 So that's why we've also invited 01:17 our good friend Ariel here. 01:19 Ariel Roldan. Roldan. 01:20 Let's bring Ariel Roldan. 01:21 Thanks for coming backing, Ariel. 01:23 My pleasure. We appreciate that you're here. 01:24 I'm so glad to see you guys again. 01:26 For those of you-- for those that don't know 01:28 who you're, Ariel, 01:29 just may be you can say a few words about yourself. 01:32 I'm currently pastoring in Michigan 01:34 and also finishing my Masters of Divinity at Andrews. 01:38 I've been married for almost five years now 01:40 and I have a beautiful eight month old little girl 01:43 that is learning to give daddy big wet kisses. 01:46 Nice. I'm loving it. 01:47 So soon you're gonna have white hairs. No, no. 01:49 'cause of the wisdom and the experience of a father. 01:51 Uh, I don't know, but I don't know if maybe 01:53 I'll have hair left. 01:55 I wouldn't mind if it's white. 01:57 Yeah, well, we're talking about pornography today. 02:00 This is a sensitive issue for many people. Yes. 02:03 And I think some people are probably tempted to think 02:05 that it's not a big issue. 02:07 And I just want to read a couple of statistics here 02:09 just to start us off because I think they speak more than, 02:14 you know, what we may be have heard. 02:16 12% of all websites on the internet, 02:19 the entire internet, 12% of those 02:20 are dedicated just to pornography. 02:22 Worldwide? Worldwide. 02:23 Worldwide internet. Worldwide internet. 02:25 25% of all internet searches are for porn. 02:28 That's one quarter of all-- everything that's-- 02:30 every time you do a Google search you do four times 02:32 and one of those will be for porn. Wow. Wow. 02:35 35% of all internet downloads, worldwide downloads, 02:39 35% of those are related to porn. Hmm. 02:43 37%--this isn't just an issue for, 02:45 you know, that teens 02:47 or secular people struggle with 37% of all pastors 02:52 said that it was a struggle. Wow. 02:55 And 51% of those pastors said it was a temptation. 02:59 So this is a big thing and it's not just something 03:01 for that men struggle with, 03:02 six out of ten women struggle with it. Wow. 03:05 That was surprising to me, I didn't know that. 03:06 60%. 60% of women. 03:08 Those are--those are pretty disturbing numbers. 03:10 So and the Bible says a lot about this. 03:11 May be you could just open us up, 03:13 maybe recap a little bit of what 03:15 we talked about in the last program and lead into, 03:18 you know, why this is, you know, 03:20 what the Bible says about this. 03:22 Pornography needs to be placed with any context 03:25 and basically pornography is a sexual act 03:29 being portrayed visually via print or video 03:33 nowadays in various forms but the context is sex. 03:37 And in order to discuss something like this 03:39 we need to go back to the Bible 03:40 and allow the Bible to put the context of sex around it. 03:44 And my favorite place to go to as you guys know 03:47 for the last thing is Genesis. 03:48 Genesis. Oh, good memory. 03:50 Chapter 2. Chapter 2 verse 7. 03:55 For me all of these discussions 03:57 regarding sexuality we need to go back to the original. 04:01 And in Genesis Chapter 2:7 we've a loaded passage, 04:05 very powerful passage in verse 7. 04:07 Jay, could you read it for us please? 04:09 Genesis 2:7 says "The Lord God formed the man 04:11 from the dust of the ground 04:13 and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, 04:15 and the man became a living being." 04:18 The creation of a man was not something that was, 04:23 here's this part about man 04:24 and here's this part about man 04:25 and here's this part about man. 04:27 Man as a whole was sexual, 04:30 because He created male and female. 04:33 And as a male or as a female 04:36 we have components to ourselves 04:38 that all are inter-matching, you cannot separate. 04:41 And you have our mental aspects or intellectual, 04:45 we have our emotional. 04:47 We have our physical, which includes the sexual. 04:51 That sexual act itself is the most 04:52 simplified way of saying it. 04:54 And then of course we have the spiritual component 04:56 to who we are as a whole. 04:58 And though we may separate the components 05:01 the reality is that all of me 05:02 is all of those components at the same time. 05:04 You cannot separate one from the other 05:06 and pornography does exactly that. 05:09 It tries to rip out the physical aspect 05:13 and isolate it and present it as the whole. 05:17 Like this is the entire sex act. 05:21 Where in reality it's a rip-off, 05:22 it's a knock off because it's actually 25% 05:25 of what a human can experience sexual-- 05:26 It's almost incomplete. 05:28 Extremely incomplete and extremely false. 05:31 As we get more into the program 05:33 I had to do some research to this and be careful. 05:36 I mean we talk about pastors and things like that. 05:39 Paul says, "If you think you're standing, 05:41 watch-out you might fall in." 05:43 This is a trap that I think 05:44 many pastors need to tread lightly. 05:46 So when I did research I prayed a lot. 05:48 I didn't want to, you know, 05:49 be going to places where I shouldn't, 05:51 but some of the side effects that I would see-- 05:55 this one particular documentary done by the BBC. 05:59 Then I focused on the industry itself, 06:02 but focused on male actors. 06:04 And one of the things that baffles me 06:05 was most of these men in their early 20's are experiencing 06:10 difficulties experiencing arousal 06:14 and so they take things like Viagra 06:16 at the ages of 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 even though it will harm 06:21 their hearts in the long run. 06:23 The money obviously is a driver for them 06:25 but during the interview they spoke 06:26 about how it is no longer pleasurable. 06:29 The drive for it is money not the sexual act. 06:34 So for me it just convinced me further 06:37 that what the Bible was saying is true 06:38 and that it is not only just an incomplete act, 06:41 it is an act that will get impoverished 06:43 and less and less pleasurable as it continues on. 06:47 Just like we read in Psalm 16:11, 06:49 "The pleasures that God 06:50 provides for us are everlasting." 06:53 But in Hebrews 11:24 and 25 we learn that 06:56 "The pleasures of sin are temporary." 06:59 Now, Ariel, what if-- what if a viewer says, 07:01 "well, that's fine, Ariel," 07:04 but, you know, may be somebody 07:06 who just simply watches it or may be they say, 07:08 well, after all sex is something 07:10 that is that God has created 07:13 and it doesn't hurt the observe the mere act 07:18 or is there a danger to observing and is it-- 07:22 do people generally just observe? 07:24 I mean what's the problem with this? 07:26 The problem is that speaking pharmacology, 07:32 my background as a nurse, these are big words, 07:34 this means speaking about drugs. 07:35 Okay, thank you, I don't have-- 07:36 I have no idea what you're talking about. 07:38 Speaking about drugs, you have heroin, 07:40 cocaine and all these big guns 07:43 and then you have nicotine and marijuana. 07:46 These are the gateway drugs. 07:47 They are the bridges that will get you to those. 07:50 And so pornography is a gateway entity 07:54 into--leading us into practice things like self-abuse 07:59 or self-pleasuring which is also known as masturbation. 08:03 This self pleasuring act in itself is actually 08:06 and even more impoverished a practice 08:08 that leaves the person feeling less fulfilled than 08:14 if we do not practicing it. 08:16 Many people-- there is controversies 08:18 obviously because science does research and does studies 08:21 and as I looked at articles on different medical journals 08:26 there is no clear definitive answer 08:29 saying its harmful or its not harmful, 08:32 self-pleasuring is something harmful or not. 08:34 But I began to look at the word of God for answers. 08:38 Some day the medical world may agree 08:40 or disagree but it's relevant. 08:42 I think the word of God so far to me 08:44 has proven to be pretty accurate. 08:46 So the track record of the word 08:47 I think gives me confidence that some of the principles 08:50 what we find here will give us 08:52 some definite-- definitive answers. 08:55 I'll like for us to turn to the Bible again 08:57 to Genesis Chapter 2. Genesis again. 09:00 Genesis is loaded with information. 09:02 And I'm going to kind of share a little bit of my journey. 09:07 I did not just decide one day to decide, 09:09 oh, I like to have seminars on sex. 09:11 I was a young man with questions 09:14 and coming from a Hispanic culture, 09:16 my culture--like we discuss in our previous program 09:20 it's been highly taboo 09:21 and there was no clear answers for questions. 09:24 And one of the questions that I had that with verse 23. 09:29 Genesis Chapter 2, verse 23, 09:30 Dan, could you read it for us? Sure. 09:33 "And Adam said, this is now bone of my bone, 09:35 and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called Woman, 09:38 because she was taken out of Man." Okay. 09:41 You've a--the actual place where man and woman 09:46 become their own sexual entity a man and a woman. 09:50 And, Jay, could you read verse 24 for us? 09:52 Sure. This is the clincher. 09:53 Verse 24 says "Therefore a man shall leave his father 09:56 and mother and be joined to his wife, 09:57 and they shall become one flesh." 10:00 In that last part I went to my dad and I said, 10:02 dad what is one flesh? 10:04 And my dad began to stutter 10:06 and sweat and sweat and Maria, called my mom. 10:11 Your son has something to say to you. 10:13 Leave. It's very uncomfortable. 10:15 Sure. And so it haunted me. 10:18 I began to ask what is one flesh, what is one flesh. 10:21 And this journey led me to 2nd-- 10:24 1st Corinthians, Chapter 6. 10:25 We can keep our finger in Genesis, 10:27 Chapter 2 and turn real quick to 1st Corinthians, Chapter 6. 10:35 I think that our viewers can hopefully also see 10:38 that when you have questions about the Bible, 10:40 if you don't have all the answers in one section, 10:42 you'll probably find it in another section. 10:43 Right, that's right. So the Bible answers itself. 10:48 In 1st Corinthians, Chapter 6 verses 15 and 16. I'll read. 10:55 "Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? 10:59 Shall I then take the members of Christ, 11:01 and make them the members of a harlot? 11:04 Certainly not. Or do you not know 11:07 that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? 11:12 For the two, He says, shall become one flesh." 11:17 Now Paul here is quoting what passage from the Bible? 11:19 Genesis. Genesis 24. 11:21 In the context often God makes the declaration 11:24 and the two shall become one flesh. 11:25 What was that context in Genesis Chapter 2? 11:29 The relationship that Adam and Eve 11:30 are gonna have to with each other. 11:32 What was that context? 11:33 Marriage. Husband and wife. Marriage, husband and wife. 11:36 What is this context 11:37 in which Paul is quoting the same passage? 11:41 Adultery. Yeah, exactly. 11:43 Yet the same results. Interesting. 11:46 So most people think, you know, 11:48 now when pastors would speak about this passage 11:50 of that two shall become one flesh and, you know, 11:52 in weddings we talk about this. 11:54 We always put into context that this can only happen 11:56 when you get married, but Paul quotes 12:00 this in a relation in a context 12:02 that there is no love, 12:04 there is no emotional attachment, 12:06 there is no emotional commitment. 12:07 There is no commitment at all except financial. 12:10 Yet he says the two shall become one flesh. 12:14 So you're saying that there is a certain kind of bond 12:17 that the physical act of intimacy 12:21 brings about whether you're married or not. 12:22 That's right. 12:24 There--there is laws that are placed 12:26 within our bodies that I think sometimes 12:28 we do disservice to ourselves by not knowing these things. 12:32 And this journey again like I told you 12:33 it wasn't just me looking for answers regarding sexuality. 12:37 I was a massage therapist as well for many years 12:38 and when we were in Loma Linda 12:40 Dr. Hershey who teaches neuroanatomy at university 12:44 He gave us a brief, very brief 12:46 short lecture on the nervous system 12:49 but some of the things he said they were beginning 12:51 to put the pieces together for me 12:52 and then I read some more books 12:53 and then I went into nursing school 12:55 the whole picture just came together for me. 12:58 We have five channels through 13:00 which our brain gets feedback 13:03 or information from the outside world. Wow. 13:05 We have our sight, our smell, our taste, 13:08 our touch, and our hearing. Right. 13:11 I'm gonna ask you guys and the viewers at home, 13:13 they can also, you know, 13:14 have their wheel spinning with this question. 13:17 Think of an activity 13:19 in which you're gonna use all five of those channel, 13:23 all five of those highways into our brain, 13:27 at full blast, full strength, full throttle. 13:33 Can you guys think of one activity 13:36 that a human being could experience 13:38 that would engage all five at the same time full power? 13:44 Skydiving. That's the only one I go through. 13:47 How is that? How-- 13:49 I guess you tasting the air. 13:50 Tasting the air. Yeah. Yeah. 13:53 And what are you touching there? 13:55 Touching the wind. No. 13:57 Skydiving, it will stimulate some, 13:59 you know, rollercoaster, 14:00 you know-- but I'm asking all five. 14:03 All five. There's only one. 14:06 Intimacy. Sexual intimacy. 14:08 What is the largest organ in the body? 14:12 It's the skin. 14:14 And when a couple experience sexual intimacy 14:17 they are using the largest organ that they have, 14:20 the God has given us, 14:21 because there is no clothing obviously. 14:24 And you have touch, 14:27 we have our own hormonal sense, you know. 14:29 If they take your socks and my socks 14:31 and they make a bloodhound smell it 14:33 and we go running into the woods. 14:34 Well, if it take only your socks 14:36 and smell your socks, the dog will find you 14:38 because you have your own scent. 14:40 Actually I think the dog will die. 14:45 But the point is this, we all have our scent. Right. 14:48 In our society, in our western society we bathe, 14:50 we have deodorant, so we mask it. Sure. 14:52 But we can pick it up when we're into intimate act. 14:55 Our pheromones are kicking in our own special scent. Wow. 14:58 Our bodies pick it up. We see each other naked. 15:02 We hear things during, you know, 15:04 the act that we don't typically hear 15:05 on a everyday basis. 15:07 And obviously the five senses like you said, 15:11 Dan, are full engaged 15:12 and it creates a mark in the brain. 15:17 Our brains are not static. 15:18 back years ago, medicine you see think 15:20 that our brain was static. 15:21 Now they know better. 15:22 They know that our brains even right now 15:24 on a day to day basic structurally physically 15:27 the structure of the brain is continually changing, 15:30 is continually developing. 15:32 Not just from experiences but even thought processes. 15:34 Our thoughts can physically change 15:37 the structure of our brain. 15:39 And so if I partake of an activity 15:41 with an individual that will engage 15:45 all five senses at the same time full throttle, 15:49 will that leave a mark in my mind? 15:52 So for me personally that is how I reconcile 15:55 the passage of that the two shall become one flesh. 15:58 Because I'm married, my wife is in Barium Springs 16:01 but we are one flesh here. 16:03 Everything that she is and like I said 16:06 this is looking at it holistically 16:08 not just only physical. 16:09 The way God wants this one flesh 16:11 to take place is complete that though 16:14 we're a part we're still one. 16:17 When a person would engage in the act or sexual-- 16:21 sexual act with a prostitute, 16:23 everything about the prostitute will become here 16:26 and for the person as well. 16:28 I don't know if you guys are following. Just like fusion. 16:29 Yes, that's a good word. Emotional fusion. 16:32 Emotional, physical, spiritual-- 16:34 See we can't separate, 16:37 we can't separate the physical from the other ones. 16:39 Once we engage this one we'll engage them all 16:41 because all are part of who we are. 16:43 So this is true then it gets a little bit complex 16:47 if one has more-- several partners. Correct. 16:52 That they're engaging in sexual intimacy 16:54 because they be-- is it possible to become 16:56 one flesh with more than one person? 16:58 What this is a law that God put in us. 17:02 And it was a blessing of a law, 17:04 physiological law that when a man would marry a woman 17:08 that bond would take place and would last how long. 17:11 In Genesis Chapter 2 there was no death. 17:13 It was supposed to last for eternity. 17:16 Sin entered the world but that law stayed with us. 17:20 So for me to partake of multiple partners, 17:24 I like to use this illustration of Scotch tape 17:26 and I've done it in churches and other venues 17:29 where I'll ask for one young man 17:31 and five young ladies. 17:32 Because usually the guys are the ones that, 17:34 you know, the stereotype is the guys 17:35 the more promiscuous ones. 17:37 And I will use the tape as the guy's brain, 17:40 it's a form of parable 17:41 and I would stick it to the ladies sweaters 17:43 and I will say they become one flesh and peel it off. 17:46 And then go to the next lady 17:48 and they become one flesh and peel it off 17:50 and I will go through all five 17:51 and then I would ask the people 17:52 what has happened to the Scotch tape? 17:55 What has happened to its ability to stick? 18:00 You have something interesting, 18:01 you've the sexual revolution in this country 18:03 during the 60's and 70's 18:04 and then you have divorce sky rocketing. 18:08 Promiscuity leads to an inability to commit. Wow. 18:13 So for me just opening up a world of cause an affect 18:16 and I'm not saying that this is the all and all. 18:18 But I'm searching that this plays 18:20 a factor into what we've seen as a society 18:22 that not more than half marriages are failing. 18:25 And how many of those marriages are entering into it, 18:27 in that relationship with a clean piece of tape. 18:30 Now, you know, you kind of ensured ourselves 18:35 that what that does for someone 18:36 who has multiple sexual partners. 18:39 But what about somebody who isn't, 18:42 you know, active with other people but, 18:43 you know, may be-- 18:45 They're self-pleasuring? Self-pleasuring, 18:46 yeah, that we talked about. 18:47 Well this is where I think 18:49 we were talking about early the medical data, 18:53 the studies done are not gonna congruent, 18:55 you know, some does show something others that don't, 18:58 but the Bible-- if we take these concepts 19:00 that we've already looked at 19:02 and they are physiologically real, it has happen. 19:07 If you apply it to the act of self-pleasuring 19:10 I would look at it like-- 19:11 are you guys familiar with Pavlov? No. 19:15 Pavlov was a Russian physiologist and also-- 19:20 he wanted to study psychology as well. 19:24 And by accident he was studying 19:27 the salivary glands of dogs. 19:29 And he noticed that his assistance would come in 19:32 and in the routine would rattle the cage 19:34 obviously to bring the food to the dogs. 19:38 But there were times that they'll not bring food 19:39 they'll simply come observe the dog. 19:42 But in the reputation of bringing, 19:43 opening the gate bringing food, 19:45 opening the gate bringing food, 19:47 the dogs associated the rattling 19:48 of the cage with the food. 19:50 So when they-- the assistants 19:51 who come just rattling the cage 19:53 the dogs would salivate. 19:54 And that became Pavlov's classical condition 19:57 where you're responding to a stimulus 20:00 that is not related to food as if it was food. 20:05 Self pleasuring, Dr. Jorge Meyers 20:08 and his wife Nibia did a seminar on marriage. 20:11 They dealt with this topic in Columbus, 20:12 Ohio several years ago. 20:15 And they spoke about-- not entirely 20:16 what I'm talking about 20:18 but they gave me the foundation to understand 20:20 how when you're going to self pleasure yourself, 20:24 you condition yourself to respond 20:26 sexually to something that is not sex. 20:30 Self stimulation, pornography-- 20:34 four months ago, five months ago, 20:35 I stumbled upon a article from the Saturday evening 20:39 post out of all places. 20:40 I know it's not a medical authority to article 20:43 but we had a gentleman that was just secular individual. 20:47 The article was I no longer crave my girlfriend sexually. 20:53 And the guy spoke about how he spooked himself 20:55 because he began as he called it self 20:57 overdosing with pornography to the point 21:00 where he no longer desired the real. Wow. 21:03 He was more responsive to the fake, to the false. 21:08 That's like me saying I'm so hungry 21:11 but I want these that are made of rubber and wax, 21:14 sorry viewers, they thought it's for real. 21:18 I'm craving these types of apples, you know, 21:20 that have no nutritional value for me. Right. 21:24 That'll be crazy for me to say that. 21:26 Well, it's just as crazy for me to say 21:28 I desire more something in print 21:31 or something on a screen than the real thing. Wow. 21:35 And that is a conditioning that takes places. 21:36 Obviously the dogs did not salivate 21:38 the first time around but they got to that point. 21:41 Now Ariel, is-- is the result of-- 21:46 as this article you read the overdosing 21:48 of pornography is it-- does it 21:51 only have sexual negative consequences 21:56 or is it because you said that, you know, 21:58 as a whole we're spiritual, we're emotional, 22:00 you know, it's a whole being. 22:02 Does pornography affect not only the sexual 22:05 but does it affect the other areas in our life? 22:07 You cannot touch one without touching the others. 22:09 You remember the Bible says 22:10 we're created in whose image? God's image. 22:13 And when God created us He said let us in our. 22:17 God is social and because he has made us in His image 22:20 we're all so social. 22:21 We craved human contact. Right. 22:24 Especially at the level of intimate relation. 22:27 And for me in my own personal conditions pornography 22:30 and self pleasuring leads you, 22:33 conditions you to withdraw from something 22:36 that will reflect God's character 22:37 but you experiencing something 22:40 that is extremely intimate with your self. 22:43 And you prefer this isolating, self pleasuring activity 22:48 rather than the social interaction 22:50 that God designed us to have, 22:52 so for me it's a direct attack on destroying 22:56 the restoration of God's image 22:57 in human being's heart and mind 22:59 So it doesn't just affect your sexual life, 23:02 it affects your social life-- Spiritual life. 23:04 Your mental life and your spiritual life. 23:05 There is-- I don't think-- 23:07 speaking it from a Christian world view 23:08 I don't think that there is any doubt 23:10 that for someone that is practicing 23:13 the act of watching pornography 23:16 and self pleasuring that they will find 23:18 there spiritual life thriving simultaneously, 23:22 it cannot happen. 23:23 Now let's get practical. 23:24 There is a maybe a viewer watching this program 23:27 recognizing that they need help-- 23:30 in the last few minutes that we have-- 23:33 what as a pastor, what counsel, 23:36 what encouraging word can you give them for number one, 23:40 to inspire them with the fact that victory is possible. 23:44 And number two maybe what are one 23:46 or two or three steps 23:47 that they can undergo to actually experience 23:50 transformation final and total victory. 23:52 If someone feels convicted 23:54 and they realize is there a reasonable intelligent 23:56 reason why I should not be participating in this, 23:59 they can recognize that as evidence 24:00 that the deceptions of Satan 24:03 are being lifted from their eyes. 24:04 They need to thank God that they are seeing us. 24:07 Number two is they need to seek accountability. 24:09 Pornography isolates, isolates their spouse, 24:13 it isolates the pastoring in that context. 24:14 It isolates the wife or the girlfriend with secrecy. 24:18 So you need to confront that by the opposite end 24:20 and you need to find someone that is trust worthy, 24:23 that is spiritual and open up to them 24:25 and say listen this is something 24:27 that I'm struggling with. 24:28 I don't want it in my life anymore. 24:29 I need someone to be accountable to. 24:32 I need you to ask me the hard questions 24:34 on a day to day basis. 24:35 You need to find someone that will hold you 24:37 accountable to your decision to walk away from this. 24:40 Something that-- that I think helps as well. 24:43 I learned this from alcoholic Anonymous. 24:46 I as a nursing student had to attend 24:48 and observe and write a people. 24:50 They would say this phrase. 24:52 I stay sober by keeping other's sober. 24:54 The moment I stop helping other alcoholics 24:57 stay sober I'll drink. 24:59 So as someone that is struggling with sin 25:01 you can help other individuals 25:03 it doesn't have to be the same struggle 25:05 but you can just lead in people to Christ. 25:08 When you are working for the salvation of others 25:10 guess whose salvation you are working for by default. 25:13 Your own. Right. 25:14 So if--because of lack of time, 25:16 thus will be the briefest answers 25:18 that I could provide for you to answer those questions. 25:20 Are there any materials maybe that you recommend viewers 25:24 that this maybe interested in exploring 25:26 this a little bit more. 25:27 Any particular place in scripture, 25:29 maybe particular resource 25:32 that you recommend that would benefit-- 25:33 It's not one verse but one verse 25:35 I think will provide a tool. Okay. 25:38 Psalm 119, I think provides the tool 25:43 but it's not the all in all. Sure. 25:45 Psalm 119, verse 11 says, 25:47 "Your word I have hidden in my heart, 25:50 that I might not sin against you." 25:52 So the discipline of memorizing scripture 25:55 I think can be a powerful counter acting intentional act 25:59 that can help purify my thought process 26:01 because you expose yourself to these things. 26:03 You've engrained it through the practice. 26:06 There's an opposite act that you can do 26:07 which is intentionally place Gods word 26:10 into your mind, but it's not magic. 26:12 There is faith involved 26:14 and I think there is also the accountability 26:15 that also needs to be coupled with this. 26:17 And it seems from text 26:18 that really the root is the mind. Yes. 26:21 Sometimes I think we are tempted 26:23 to just cut the fruits 26:25 but the root is really the issue. That's right. 26:27 And the mind and of course 26:28 we told the thoughts mixed with feelings, 26:32 cultivate habits, and finally habits 26:34 make up your moral characters, 26:35 so I think it's a lot about what you put into your minds. 26:39 And I think if young people 26:40 are struggling with this maybe they need to examine 26:45 what kind of material you're putting into the mind, 26:47 what kind of content you're putting into mind 26:49 because that may be a little bit more 26:51 detrimental to the word of God. 26:53 Ariel, in the last few seconds 26:55 that we have is there a final word 26:57 or final message that you'd like to give to a young person 26:59 who is struggling with this. 27:00 I would actually like to appeal 27:01 to the parents of the young person. 27:03 I think parents need to take ownership 27:05 and stop asking, expecting pastor or churches 27:08 or schools to do the work 27:09 that they should be doing in protecting. 27:12 We did speak about, you know, ignorance versus innocence, 27:14 but there is also proactive measures 27:16 that parents need to be aware 27:17 that technology in two buttons 27:20 any kid can be connected with these things. 27:22 So parents need to educated themselves 27:24 and be intentional in their homes 27:26 to provide a sanctuary of purity for their children. 27:28 Wow, fascinating. 27:29 Ariel, I cannot tell you 27:31 how insightful this Bible study has been. 27:33 For me as well, and this is just tip of just the iceberg, 27:36 this is just scratching the surface. 27:37 There is a lot more. Awesome. 27:38 For those of you that have been joining us 27:40 in our program today 27:41 we want to thank you for tuning in. 27:42 We've been really blessed 27:44 to have this subject matter discussed 27:47 and we just want to let everybody know 27:49 that there is hope, there is healing, 27:52 there is restoration and there are answers. 27:55 We want to encourage you to continue 27:56 in the word of God. 27:58 God bless you till next time. |
Revised 2014-12-17