May 2022 - Make No Provision

“Evil desires are not the unpardonable sin.” || D. L. Moody

by Alan Sharpe May 28, 2022

With evil thoughts that come flashing into our minds, we have to fight them. We are not to harbor them. We are not to entertain them.

by Alan Sharpe May 28, 2022

We are not to blame for having bad thoughts come into our minds. If we harbor them, then we are to blame. But if the devil comes and darts an evil thought into my mind, and I say, “Lord help me,” sin is not reckoned to me. Who has not had evil thoughts come into his mind, flash into his heart, and been called to fight them!

One old divine says, “You are not to blame for the birds that fly over your head, but if you allow them to come down and make a nest in your hair, then you are to blame. You are to blame if you don’t fight them off.” And so with these evil thoughts that come flashing into our minds; we have to fight them, we are not to harbor them; we are not to entertain them. If I have evil thoughts come into my mind, and evil desires, it is no sign that I have committed the unpardonable sin. If I love these thoughts and harbor them, and think evil of God, and think Jesus Christ a blasphemer, I am responsible for such gross iniquity; but if I charge Him with being the prince of devils, then I am committing the unpardonable sin.

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Consequences

Four People You Sin Against When You View Pornography

by Alan Sharpe May 27, 2022

One way to quit porn is to appreciate that your sin harms others. Your sexual immorality involves more than just you.

by Alan Sharpe May 27, 2022

Watching pornography isn’t a victimless crime. Each time you look at a woman to lust after her, you sin against four people. One way to quit porn is to appreciate that your sin harms others. Your sexual immorality involves more than just you.

When You View Porn, You Sin Against God

“Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight— that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge.”
Psalm 51:4

Psalm 51 is a prayer of repentance. The author is David. He wrote this psalm after Nathan the prophet confronted him about his adultery with Bathsheba, and about his sin in orchestrating events so that Bathsheba’s husband would be killed in battle so that David could have his wife. You read about these events in

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Quiz

Quiz: Romans 13:14

by Alan Sharpe May 26, 2022

“Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
Romans 13:13-14

Questions

How does Paul characterize the struggle with sin?
What is the root problem beneath the six sins that Paul mentions?
How many of these six sins are sexual in nature?
How many remedies does Paul mention for lewdness and lust?
What stands out with these remedies?
How do you “put on the Lord Jesus Christ?”
How do you “make no provision for the flesh?”
Why is your flesh a problem?

Answers

Paul characterizes the struggle with sin as a walk. Not a battle to win, not a struggle to fight, but a walk to take with the Lord.
Discipline. The six sins that Paul mentions are examples of lack of self control.</li
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Sanctification

“Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” || Corrie Ten Boom

by Alan Sharpe May 24, 2022

lonely man with torch light walking illuminating his path

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?
Corrie Ten Boom

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Consecration

“God never gives strong faith without fiery trial.” || Charles Spurgeon

by Alan Sharpe May 20, 2022

God will not make you a mighty warrior if he does not intend to try your skill in battle.

by Alan Sharpe May 20, 2022

It is a tough battle which the Christian is called to fight; not one which carpet knights might win; no easy skirmish which he might gain, who dashed to battle on some sunshiny day, looked at the host, then turned his courser’s rein, and daintily dismounted at the door of his silken tent. It is not a campaign which he shall win, who, but a raw recruit to-day, foolishly imagines that one week of service will insure a crown of glory. It is a life-long war; a contest which will require all our strength, if we are to be triumphant; a battle at which the stoutest heart might quail; a fight from which the bravest would shrink, did he not remember that the Lord is on his side; therefore whom shall he fear? God is the strength of his life: of whom shall he be afraid? This fight is not one of main force, or physical might; if it were, we might the sooner win it; but it is all the more dangerous from the fact that it is a strife of mind, a contest of heart, a struggle of the spirit—ofttimes an agony of the soul.

Do you wonder that the Christian is called to conflict? God nev

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Temptation

To Defeat Porn, Discover Your Who, What, Why, Where, When and How

by Alan Sharpe May 17, 2022

To defeat sexual sin, you must understand yourself. Start with the Five Ws and the One H of your sexual temptation.

by Alan Sharpe May 17, 2022

To Defeat Porn, Discover Your Who, What, Why, Where, When and How

When journalists want to get to the bottom of a news story, they ask the Five Ws and the One H. They ask about the Who, What, Why, Where, When and How. If you want to conquer sexual temptation, particularly the temptation to look at pornography or to masturbate, you must uncover the Five Ws and the One H of your sexual temptation. To defeat sexual sin, you must understand yourself. And that means discovering your six types of triggers.

Who Triggers You to Sin Sexually?

Let’s start with the Who of sexual temptation. Who tempts you to commit sexual sin? Who do you lust after? Who lusts after you?

As you read your Bible, you discover that men have been tempted to sin sexually for centuries. Most of them were tempted to sin with a particular woman. Job was tempted to lust after

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Temptation

Yielding Doesn’t Remedy the Agony of Sexual Temptation | Hebrews 2:18

by Alan Sharpe May 16, 2022

Overcoming a temptation to sin sexually makes the suffering end at once. But not for long.

by Alan Sharpe May 16, 2022

The Remedy for Temptation is Not to Give In | Hebrews 2:18

“For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.”
Hebrews 2:18

For decades I followed the advice of Oscar Wilde, who famously said, “The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.” That advice is foolish, of course. But if you have ever been in the grip of a powerful desire to sin sexually, and if that desire has attacked you for some length of time, you know the level of suffering involved. And you know that one way to make that agony end is to simply give in and commit the sin. The temptation vanishes. The suffering ends.

Oscar Wilde was correct in one aspect—giving in to sexual temptation works. But only for a season. If you are feeling unbelievably horny, for example, and are feeling tempted to masturbate, you likely know that giving in and committing the sin makes the temptation go away immediately. You gain instant relief. You are tempted no longer. But not forever. The problem with m

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Consecration

“Let us not slip quietly into heaven.” || C. T. Studd

by Alan Sharpe May 16, 2022

Let us see to it that the devil will hold a thanksgiving service in hell, when he gets the news of our departure from the field of battle.

by Alan Sharpe May 16, 2022

Let us not glide through this world and then slip quietly into heaven, without having blown the trumpet loud and long for our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Let us see to it that the devil will hold a thanksgiving service in hell, when he gets the news of our departure from the field of battle.
C. T. Studd

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Sanctification

Four People Brought Me to the Lord

by Alan Sharpe May 13, 2022

My Christian testimony of how I came to know my sins forgiven because of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for me.

by Alan Sharpe May 13, 2022

By Alan Sharpe

How many people does it take to lead somebody to the Lord? You want to find out? Please turn with me in your Bibles to the Gospel of Mark, chapter two.

And again he entered into Capernaum, after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house. nd straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them. And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four. And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. But there were certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, Why doth this man&n
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Quiz

Quiz: 1 Thessalonians 4:3

by Alan Sharpe May 13, 2022

What is the meaning of 1 Thessalonians 4:3? What is the will of God? What is sanctification? What is sexual immorality? Find out.

by Alan Sharpe May 13, 2022

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality.”
1 Thessalonians 4:3

Questions

How do you define “the will of God,” generally speaking?
What is the will of God in this instance?
What is sanctification?
Who does this verse apply to?
What is sexual immorality?
What does abstain mean?
How would you write this verse in your own words so that it applies to you in particular, and to porn and masturbation specifically, now that you have parsed it and defined its terms?

Answers

The “will of God” in this instance refers to God’s decretive will, that is, the will of God that pertains to His decrees. If God decrees something, He commands it. If God commands something, God wills, or desires, that thing to happen. God’s will is what God wants to happen.
The “will of God” in this inst
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Accountability

Porn Is a Snare Because It’s Anonymous

by Alan Sharpe May 12, 2022

Part of the reason you are drawn back to your habitual sin is not your fault. If pornography was only available in public, you would be sexually pure.

by Alan Sharpe May 12, 2022

This post is part three of a three-part series. Pornography is a snare because it is:
Available | Affordable | Anonymous

If you have been struggling with pornography for anywhere close to as long as I did as a Christian man (30 years), the primary cause of your habitual sin is readily explained—you haven’t been caught. Pornography is powerful precisely because it’s private. It’s the sin you do in secret that no one knows about. Not your spouse. Not your kids. Not your work colleagues. Not your brothers in the Lord. Not your church leaders. You are ensnared in porn because it’s anonymous.</

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Faith

“Trust in God must be unreserved.” || Brother Lawrence

by Alan Sharpe May 12, 2022

God never tests us beyond our ability to endure . . . but , bestows on us graces that will enable us to endure as we show our acceptance of whatever He sends our way.

by Alan Sharpe May 12, 2022

Illustration of man climbing a rope in the sky, ascension surreal abstract concept

Along with this total abandonment must go a complete acceptance of God’s will with equanimity and resignation. No matter what troubles and ills come our way, they are to be willingly and indeed joyously endured since they come from God, and God knows what He is doing. This trust must be unreserved with no thought of reward, but inevitably God will reward the person who so believes and endures with graces and treasures far beyond any sacrifices or offerings he or she has made since He is infinitely good. Also, God never tests us beyond our ability to endure and, as a matter of fact, bestows on us graces that will enable us to endure as we show our acceptance of whatever He sends our way.

Excerpted from The Practice of the Presence of God: The Best Rule of a Holy Life, by Brother Lawrence. Public domain.

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Accountability

Porn Is a Snare Because It’s Affordable

by Alan Sharpe May 11, 2022

Porn’s affordability is partly why you are in the trouble you are in. If it was crazy difficult to get hold of and impossibly expensive to acquire, you would be free.

by Alan Sharpe May 11, 2022

This post is part two of a three-part series. Pornography is a snare because it is:
Available | Affordable | Anonymous

There was a time when pornography was avoidable because it was unaffordable. Christian men like you and me had an easier time staying sexually pure because every form of pornography on the market, whether the open market or the black market, cost something. This made the battle for purity a lot easier because men never got snared by something they couldn’t afford.

The economics of porn in those days was simple: the harder the porn, the higher the price. So

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Accountability

Porn Is a Snare Because It’s Available

by Alan Sharpe May 10, 2022

You may be hooked on porn, but the easy availability of this sin isn’t your fault.

by Alan Sharpe May 10, 2022

This post is part one of a three-part series. Pornography is a snare because it is:
Available | Affordable | Anonymous

You are living during the worst time in human history as far as sexual temptation is concerned. You face more temptations, of greater strength, in more places, at more times of the day, than any other man has faced in the past. Which means, if you struggle with pornography, part of your struggle is not your fault. Yes, your sexual sin is your responsibility. But the pervasiveness of porn isn’t.

Your challenge as a Christian man is that pornography is Avail

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Accountability

To Quit Porn, Change Your Mind | 2 Corinthians 12:20-21

by Alan Sharpe May 9, 2022

Paul is not concerned about finding sexual sin in the church as much as he is afraid of finding believers who haven’t repented of their sexual sin.

by Alan Sharpe May 9, 2022

To Quit Porn, Change Your Life | 2 Corinthians 12:20-21

“For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults; lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced.”
2 Corinthians 12:20-21

Is your challenge pornography? Or is it repentance? Are you struggling against sexual immorality? Or are you struggling against repentance? Is you problem that you can’t quit? Or is it that you won’t quit?

When you read the New Testament letter of 1 Corinthians, you discover that the church at Corinth had all manner of problems. The church members were suing each other in court. Some members were claiming spiritual superiority over others in th

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Obedience

“Great things are accomplished by great sacrifices.” || Anthony Norris Groves

by Alan Sharpe May 8, 2022

A life free from sufferings and sacrifices our Lord has not promised, and the Apostles did not enjoy.

by Alan Sharpe May 8, 2022

old man raising stairs to reach the city

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth.
Matthew 6:19

That the hearty reception of this principle may be connected, by natural consequence, with many and great difficulties in this life—no one, who knows any thing of human nature, as opposed to the nature of Christ’s kingdom, or the Gospel History, can doubt. In this world’s history, great things are not accomplished but by great sacrifices. A life free from sufferings and sacrifices our Lord has not promised, and the Apostles did not enjoy. Such a portion they did not even expect, but were always prepared to live on the remembrance of the “faithful saying–If we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him”. It should therefore be no question of ours whether, in literally fulfilling our Saviour’s command, we shall be subjected to many sufferings and privations, or not. The question is–Is it the command of Him, who loved us too well to enjoin any thing but for our good; and whether in his sovereign arrangement, the embracing of it may not

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Judgment

Escape for Your Life | Genesis 19:17

by Alan Sharpe May 5, 2022

If you want to escape God’s judgment, escape your sexual immorality. Lot escaped the sexually immoral city of Sodom while he had the chance. You should, too.

by Alan Sharpe May 5, 2022

“Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.”
Genesis 19:17

God’s advice for the Christian man who watches pornography can be summed up in one word—escape! God will have mercy on you just as He had mercy on Lot, but only if you obey God, escape the wicked city, don’t look back, and go to live somewhere safe.

Lot was a righteous man who lived with his wife and family in Sodom, a city so wicked that the Bible uses the name of the city as a symbol of wickedness. Its destruction at the hands of the Lord is held up as a warning to sinners of coming judgment (Jude 7). God had mercy on Lot and his family by giving them a chance to leave the city before it was consumed from heaven with fire and brimstone.

Today, if your life

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Sanctification

“Revival follows the law of cause and effect.” || Charles Finney

by Alan Sharpe May 4, 2022

There is one fact under the government of God, worthy of universal notice, and of everlasting remembrance; which is, that the most useful and important things are most easily and certainly obtained by the use of the appropriate means.

by Alan Sharpe May 4, 2022

Illustration of teamwork assembling puzzle pieces, business problem solving abstract concept

There has long been an idea prevalent that promoting religion has something very peculiar in it, not to be judged of by the ordinary rules of cause and effect; in short, that there is no connection of the means with the result, and no tendency in the means to produce the effect. No doctrine is more dangerous than this to the prosperity of the church, and nothing more absurd.

Suppose a man were to go and preach this doctrine among farmers, about their sowing grain. Let him tell them that God is a sovereign, and will give them a crop only when it pleases him, and that for them to plow and plant and labor as if they expected to raise a crop is very wrong, and taking the work out of the hands of God, that it interferes with his sovereignty, and is going on in their own strength: and that there is no connection between the means and the result on which they can depend. And now, suppose the farmers should believe such doctrine. Why, they would starve the world to death.

Just s

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Obedience

Eight Lessons I’ve Learned After Six Months Porn Free

by Alan Sharpe May 4, 2022

If you are struggling with pornography, if it has a grip on you that you seem unable to shake, be encouraged. I went porn-free for six months. You can, too.

by Alan Sharpe May 4, 2022

Eight Lessons I've Learned After Six Months Porn Free

I looked at pornography as a Christian for 30 years. In all that time, I knew that my sin was wicked, and that God hated it. I wanted to quit. I tried to quit, multiple times, and in multiple ways. And I did achieve sexual purity for a season. But I never lasted for long. That all changed when my 30th anniversary as a Christian arrived. I finally realized how ridiculous it all was, me still struggling with a besetting sin after 30 years for crying out loud. So, I got serious, and made some drastic changes in my life to quit porn.

Today marks my six-month anniversary of not looking at pornography and not doing the physical act that usually follows it. I have learned a few lessons on this journey, so here they are.

Sexual Purity is Possible: I can last six months without looking at pornography and not die. I can go six months without touching myself and the
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Quiz

Quiz: 1 Corinthians 10:13

by Alan Sharpe May 3, 2022

What is the meaning of 1 Corinthians 10:13? What does “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man” mean? Take this quiz and find out.

by Alan Sharpe May 3, 2022

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
1 Corinthians 10:13

Questions

How many sexual temptations do I face that are unique to me?
What characteristic of God can I depend upon when I am tempted sexually?
Will God ever allow me to be tempted sexually in ways that I cannot withstand?
When does God help the sexually tempted?
What does God do to help me overcome sexual temptation?
What is the primary thing I am to do when sexually tempted? Pray? Resist?
How often does God provide this way of escape to me?
What is the end result of God making a way of escape from sexual temptation?
God provides the way of escape. What must I do?
Why do I keep falling to sexual temptations?

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Accountability

Make Sure Your Sin Finds You Out | Numbers 32:23

by Alan Sharpe May 2, 2022

In my daily battle against porn, when I ensure that my sin will find me out, it does. And that makes all the difference. Vulnerability leads to victory.

by Alan Sharpe May 2, 2022

Covenant Eyes accountability report screenshot

“But if you do not do so, then take note, you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out.”
Numbers 32:23

Four of the most beautiful words ever written in the English language are: “We Believe in You.” I see these four words each morning when I boot up my computer. They are found in a daily email report that I receive from Covenant Eyes, the company I use to block porn and hold me accountable online.

The Covenant Eyes app, installed on my desktop, laptop and tablet (and smartphone, if I still had one), keeps me accountable by taking screenshots of where I go and what I do on my devices. Covenant Eyes uses artificial intelligence to detect explicit content. When it catches me looking at pornography or nudity, it takes a screenshot and sends it to my accountability partner. The AI catches explicit content on websites, in apps, in downloaded images and videos, and in DVDs. Basically, if porn appears on my screen, Covenant Eyes knows about it, and tells on me. As you can imag

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