By Michaela Gordoni
Author E.Z. Zwayne is determined to tackle a taboo topic — porn and purity within the church.
“It is massively, massively prevalent,” Zwayne told CBN News. “And I don’t mean prevalent in a positive sense. This issue of pornography that has been taking the world by storm [and] is wreaking havoc.”
Zwayne is the bold author of Fight Like a Man: A Bold, Biblical Battle Plan for Personal Purity – Practical Strategies to Defeat Sexual Temptations and Restore Your Life and president of Ray Comfort’s organization, Living Waters.
“I was burdened to come out with something that filled in the gaps,” he said. “There’s a lot of books on this subject, but the tragedy is that they don’t hit certain sweet spots that need to be hit.”
“We tend to forget that sex was God’s idea,” Zwayne said. “This thing didn’t just kind of pop up on its own, but what we’ve seen happen is that the world has tainted it. Satan has twisted it. Our fallen flesh, our sinful nature, has perverted it.”
Sex can be a destructive and problematic sin, but it can be turned into something beautiful when used within God’s design.
“We live in a world system that is contrary to God,” the author said. “We have an enemy who’s real, who is the destroyer of our souls. We have our fallen sinful nature. So all of these elements compound, and there’s like this confluence that comes together to wreak havoc in this way.”
Zwayne cited 1 Corinthians 6:18: “Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.”
Zwayne said it’s not acceptable for the church not to talk about porn, because 75% of men who attend church admit they look at it, and 40% of women and 18% of pastors also do.
Baptist News Global reported porn increases the marital infidelity rate by over 300%. About 94% of children will see porn by the age of 14. Of Christian adults 18-24, 76% actively search for porn.
Despite the glaring pandemic, only 7% of churches have a program in place to help those who struggle.
The church’s absence in the porn pandemic dates back decades.
Movieguide® founder Dr. Ted Baehr wrote in his book, “The Culture-Wise Family:”
During the period of the Motion Picture Code, there was no explicit sex, violence, profanity or blasphemy in movies. For the most part, movies and television programs communicated the true, the good and the beautiful. Then in 1966, the churches voluntarily withdrew from the entertainment industry. Many of the media elite bemoaned the retreat of the churches. One prophesied, “If the salt is removed from the meat, then the meat will rot.”
For those who struggle with porn, Zwayne said it’s important they admit they have a problem and get accountability.
“[Christ] sympathizes with your weaknesses,” Zwayne said. “He paid the highest price for anything ever paid in the history of the universe to redeem our souls. And, so, through Him, there’s hope. We can be forgiven, cleansed, empowered, and we can have victory over this.”
“Men don’t fight anymore,” Zwayne said. “We have this peacetime mentality when we are in the midst of wartime. Can you imagine a soldier in World War II being deceived into thinking that he’s on a luxury cruise ship heading for the shores of Bora Bora to a luxury resort, when, in reality, he’s on a Higgins boat heading towards the shores of World War II Normandy?”
The Stand writer, Hannah Meador, cut to the point: “This is a $97 billion industry. For our churches, congregants, children, and world, we have to have the hard talks. Wake up church, for we are losing a dangerous battle. We’re losing our own.”
Read Next: Over Half of Christians View Porn. How Should the Church Respond?
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