Quit Porn Through Substitution, Not Just Elimination | Romans 6:19

I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.

Romans 6:19

You don’t quit porn. You replace it. You don’t conquer it and walk away in victory. You subdue it by replacing it with something else. You don’t stop watching porn. You start watching something better.

I am overstating my case of course, but only to make a point. Of course you are to quit pornography, subdue it and stop looking at it. But the way you abstain from porn is through substitution, not just through elimination. This is Paul’s point here in his letter to the men and women at Rome. “You used to offer parts of your body as slaves to uncleanness,” he tells them. “Now, offer parts of your body as slaves of righteousness for holiness instead.”

That’s the key to victory—instead of. Instead of doing A, now do B. Rather than do X, do Y instead. Instead of looking at porn, look at your Bible. Rather than using your hand to pleasure yourself, use it to perform an act that leads to holiness instead.

This is necessary advice because the pathway to victory over sexual sin isn’t just a bunch of negatives. It’s not just a list of don’t look, don’t browse, don’t search, don’t touch. It’s also a list of things to do, such as pray without ceasing, take up your cross, deny yourself, renew your mind, put on Christ. You discover this firsthand when you stop looking at pornography. Suddenly you find yourself with all kinds of free time on your hands. What you do to occupy those idle hours makes all the difference.

You can occupy your mind with senseless movies, video games and TV shows and other time-wasters (as I did, to no avail). Or you can instead use your time more productively. You can offer your eyes, your mind, your imagination and your hands as slaves of righteousness for holiness. You can use your body for good, that is, for your good and the good of others.

So, don’t think of porn as something you renounce. Think of it as something you replace. You don’t just quit porn. You quit porn by starting something better. You leave porn behind by pursuing holiness instead. You remain a slave, of course, but now you are a slave with a better master.