When shame compels isolation, we hide from the very people and resources that we need. We whiteknuckle it until Satan deceptively promises that sweet relief will come only from embracing that lustful glance, clicking that Internet link, or turning off the lights to our bedrooms and hearts and embracing the fellow divine image-bearer that God forbids us to embrace.

Coming to Christ is the ultimate reality check, as it makes us face the fact that our sin is our biggest problem. Every day, a believer must face the reality that original sin distorts us, actual sin distracts us, and indwelling sin manipulates us. This distortion, distraction, and manipulation create a wedge between us and our God. We are in a war, and the sooner we realize it, the better.

Sexual brokenness comes with boatloads of shame, as sexual sin is itself predatory: it hounds us, traps us, and seduces us to do its bidding. Sexual sin won’t rest until it has captured its object. When our conscience condemns us, we sometimes try to fight. But when shame compels isolation, we hide from the very people and resources that we need. We whiteknuckle it until Satan deceptively promises that sweet relief will come only from embracing that lustful glance, clicking that Internet link, or turning off the lights to our bedrooms and hearts and embracing the fellow divine image-bearer that God forbids us to embrace.

We sexually broken sheep will sacrifice faithful marriages, precious children, fruitful ministries, productive labor, and unsullied reputations for immediate, illicit sexual pleasure.

We may pray sincerely for deliverance from a particular sexual sin, only to be duped when its counterfeit seduces us. When we pray for deliverance from sin by the atoning blood of Christ, this means that I know the true nature of sin, not that I no longer feel its draw. If you want to be strong in your own terms, God will not answer you. God wants you to be strong in the risen Christ.

People who are sexually broken—you and I—need to know in a deep way the following scriptural realities if we are to find freedom in Christ and minister to other sexually broken people.

God’s Love

God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8). Christ’s death is personal. It is “for us.” If you are in Christ, His atoning love comes with the power to save you from your sin and from your guilt. Sexual sin produces three things that push God’s love away. First, its practice over time sears the conscience, making us numb and dumb to the beauty of holiness. Second, because sexual sin flourishes in secret, it isolates us from the family of God. Third, sexual sin usually involves another person, and therefore it draws someone else into sin, thus increasing sin’s expanse and harm. If you suffer under the weight of sexual sin, come to Jesus, because His yoke is rooted in God’s love. God is love and He is for you. He is advocating for you. He wants you to know His love.

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