Men
Earlier in 2003, yet another computer virus was unleashed into the vast maze of information and technology we know as the Internet. Experts theorize that it took a scant ten minutes for the virus to infect various financial databases around the world, causing ATMs and other computer systems to either go berserk, or implode. We are not talking about just a ‘few’ minor computer networks melting down into a pile of electronic goo; we are talking about a virus that led to a near-world wide computer catastrophe.
Thankfully, those brave men and women blessed with insight into Information Technology did their usual heroic work of rendering that bug null and void. Unfortunately, when one deals with computer viruses, one never knows when they will gather enough strength to come back for another try. Just when you think its safe to go onto the WWW, some viruses stage a comeback after remaining dormant just off to the edge of the cyberspace frontier. Only the next time it attacks, it manages--in some cases--to bring some ‘cousins’ along to make the attack with greater determination.
To those experts in the field of battling these bugs, forgive my being a bit simplistic in my approach. However, there is a reason for such simplicity. This month’s column is heading for the tall grass on a subject that has been around since Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden.
That subject is pornography. A virus that simply won’t go away, but can be overcome, once one has the COURAGE to overcome it!
PORN CAN INFECT MEN--AND WOMEN:
Over the past two or three decades--thanks mainly to the sexual revolution and the spread of feminism--pornography has become an equal opportunity destroyer. Men--as well as women--can be damaged, or destroyed, because of the Porn Virus.
What? The Porn Virus can infect women?
You’ve read that right!
I invite any man to check out any number of women’s magazines at your local grocery or drug store. Not just for who’s on the cover, but some of the articles inside of those publications:
“How To Make Him Take You Bed”.
“Tips To Man Sharing--101”.
“Eleven Steps To Better Flirting--And Keeping”.
“How To Cheat--And Not Get Caught”.
This subject matter--and much more--is available on any magazine rack, aimed at WOMEN. This is nothing more than soft core porn, designed to fan the flames of passion the Bible says need to be held in check--until marriage.
Thanks to the spread of technology, the woman down the street now has the opportunity to run her own pornography service on line. She can take the kids to daycare, come home, put a few suggestive pictures up on the WWW, and rake in the bucks from plenty of willing male--or female--suckers.
But wait--there’s more ahead.
I find it interesting that more than a few ‘high profile’ men and women have had their pasts in the Porn industry exposed. I’m not going to name names here, but if you have been a ‘fan’ of some of those ‘reality-based’ TV shows, you already know which contestants have gotten the ‘boot’ because the producers found out too late about the pasts of some of these ‘squeaky clean’ contestants.
Which brings me to another point. Few feminists have dared to utter a word against the Porn Virus--or its sponsors. The monetary contributions made by porn providers and participants have found their way into many a feminist group treasury. This new breed of ‘hush’ money makes the 30 pieces of silver that Judas took to betray Jesus Christ look clean by modern standards.
But, I digress.
Now, brothers, I would not have you to be ignorant of this blight. It used to be that the Porn Virus only existed in certain parts of town, under the cover of plain brown wrappers. Porn has gone ‘upscale’, and wrapped itself in the clothing of respectability, and birthed a whole new family of members.
Porn now crosses the commercial television airwaves as TV stations sell blocks of seemingly ‘dead’ broadcast time to dating services, video producers, or scantily clad fitness moguls. It can also drift into your home by your cable system, your DSS, or your home computer. Just like a virus, porn can morph--or mutate--into a variety of subtle forms, shapes, and charms, designed to do three things:
*Plant a spirit of discontent.
*Stir up passions best reserved for
marriage.
*Cause a deliberate shift of focus from reality to fantasy.
A LITTLE BIT CAN KILL--OR DAMAGE--THE INDIVIDUAL:
As a computer virus can infect a computer system, pornography can infect a person; serving as a means to corrupt the human computer, better known as the brain. The Porn Virus soon attacks the body, it weakens the defense systems, and can do a great deal of damage--until it is spotted, stopped, and terminated by a biblical, and scriptural antidote.
Think I’m being a bit on the extreme side? Think ‘little things’ can’t kill?
Think back a few months.
Remember the Anthrax scares? Just a little Anthrax in something as innocent as a small envelope was enough to kill more than a few people. If you recall, the nation’s mail had to be treated with radiation in order to kill off these nasty little bugs, rendering the mail safe for delivery.
Brothers, think of pornography in the same manner; there is no such thing as a ‘little’ bit of porn being harmless. Even a ‘little’ bit can cause a man or a woman to commit vile and heinous acts that hurt not only them, but the innocent.
We’ve seen quite a few shows and documentaries about the pornography issue over the last few years. We have heard the testimonies of those who are making big money in the Porn industry. We have seen articles and commentaries in various newspapers documenting how corporations are making big money off of pornography, but are keeping quiet as the profits fill in the gaps of weakening corporate bottom lines.
But we never quite get the chance to see the damage from the Porn Virus:
*The increase of sex crimes, ranging from rape to incest.
*The spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs).
*The increase in homosexuality, lesbianism, adultery, and fornication.
This is the side of the Porn Virus that the general public never quite gets the chance to see. However, those involved in counseling ministries, law enforcement, social work, and probation and parole services see this side of the picture more than the general public. These professionals see the damage, and the destruction. These professionals have to deal with the victims, the destruction, and the damage caused by the Porn Virus as it rampages through a human soul.
Now, there are better, and more detailed articles on this subject. There are also active groups who are fighting the spread of the Porn Virus, via letter campaigns, boycotts, legal challenges, and a host of other means. However, there is something that WE can each do, in order to kill the spread of the Porn Virus.
CALL SIN WHAT IT IS--AND STOP IT:
This story has been told in a few different ways over the years, but it is still worth repeating. A female member with a problem once approached an old preacher in the prayer line of his church: “Oh Pastor,” the member said, “I have a problem with exaggeration. I just can’t help myself. I exaggerate constantly!”
The Pastor looked at the member and said the following: “Sister, you just need to call the problem by its right name--LYING and QUIT IT!”
Brothers, sin does still exist. It may be called one thing or another in our modern terminology, but it still boils down to S-I-N. Until one calls the problem by the right name and is willing to forsake it, the problem will continue to linger--and possibly increase in intensity.
In our modern era, the names have been changed to protect the guilty--not the innocent! The rallying cry of our modern era can be heard from the housetops to Capitol Hill: “I may be wrong, but DON’T tell me the truth, and DON’T correct me, just AGREE with me!”
Back in MY day--which wasn’t that long ago--a promiscuous man was called a gigolo--not a male escort. A married woman who slept around was called an adulteress--not ‘a lonely, unfulfilled woman in search of adventure’. A man who drank until he couldn’t walk was called a drunk. One devoid of knowledge was called a FOOL.
Changing the name of the problem is not going to help you in, nor get you out of the problem.
Brothers, the Bible sitting on your shelf has the antidote and the solution guaranteed to kill the Porn Virus: CALL it SIN, trust Christ to deliver you from your affliction, and don’t travel that path again--no matter the cost! If it means doing away with certain videos, cable services, or magazine subscriptions, DO IT and don’t look back!
You may not believe it. You may have some ‘other’ beliefs, feelings, or education on the matter. You may think that you are too grown up to need to read the Bible. You may feel that you are too ‘intelligent’ to get infected by the Porn Virus. You may think that you are immune, or your ‘human computer’ is protected from outside infestation. Funny--that’s just a short list of what many a manager thought, the day before a computer virus arrived in the corporate email account--and turned their databases into electronic pudding.
Think of pornography in the same fashion.
There are those who are more than determined to send a Porn Virus to your human computer by some innocent-looking email, or to your TV set via an innocent show. Only help from above can help any man--or woman--call it what it is, and stop it before the email is opened…or rebuild their lives should the Porn Virus already be on the loose.
Brothers, as always, its your call--and your sorrow--if you call wrong.
Part Two will be along very soon.
RAMEY, a syndicated columnist and book reviewer, lives in Indianapolis, Indiana. THE RAMEY COMMENTARIES appears on fine websites and gracious blogs around the world. To correspond, email [email protected]. © 2011 Mike Ramey/Barnstorm Communications International.
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Thankfully I came out of porn. How? I got fed up with the junk going into my eyes and mind. But I also started pursuing my dream of becoming a writer. I became so focused on writing that it gradually, over time, displaced my attention on porn.
Outstanding! Your use of the virus analogy is very effective. You are very right in pointing out that sin, is sin. The article is well written and well done.
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