Promotional monologue (by Nick Stumbo) addressing the pervasive presence of sexual content in modern life and how churches can respond pastorally. The speaker outlines three scripture-rooted themes — pain, shame, and renewing the mind (Romans 12:2) — as entry points for pastoral teaching and discipleship, cites prevalence statistics about sexual abuse and online pornography, and invites leaders to the Sexual Integrity Leadership Summit in Portland, Oregon to gain tools for helping people find wholeness in Christ.
Hey everyone, you've probably noticed, like I have, that sexual content is everywhere. In fact, I was reading an article this week that pornography websites get more visits than Amazon, Twitter and Netflix combined. What was once confined to behind the counter or pay per view access is now available on any device with streaming Internet access. Not only the smartphones in our pockets, but now our refrigerators and our washing machines connect to the Internet as well. We're experiencing the reality that author Damon Brown said a number of years ago that it seems so obvious if we invent a machine, the first thing we're going to do after making a profit is use it to watch porn. The sobering reality is that we live in a world inundated with sexual content. And yet for most people, the last place they expect to hear about sex and get any kind of guidance on this topic is the church. Maybe we feel like it's socially awkward to bring up or just taboo, that we shouldn't even be talking about it. And yet people are desperate to understand how to process the world happening around them today. I want to give you three quick ideas of themes in scripture we could use to touch on sexual content not just during a specific sermon on it, but in the normal stuff that we talk about in our faith journey. The first theme is that of pain. Most of the greatest pain that people have experienced is sexual in nature. One of three women and one in six men have been sexually abused before the age of 18. For others, it may be the affair, the unconfessed addiction or the silent pain of a sexless marriage. The pain of things done to us or by us is silently destroying lives. I'm guessing the topic of pain is something you teach or preach on regularly. And how could you use that connect to people's sexuality? The second theme is that of shame. Shame leaves a unique thumbprint on the soul. A sense that there's something wrong with me or that everyone else has it figured out, but I don't yet. As we look at scripture, perhaps in the story of Gideon in the Book of Judges, or the woman at the well in John chapter four, we see that shame was keeping people from following what God had for them. And yet, as the angel of the Lord with Gideon or Jesus with the woman in John chapter four, call them out of shame, they're able to be used for his purposes. The third theme is that of renewing the mind. Romans chapter 12:2 says that we are to be transformed by the renewing of the mind. And we see throughout Scripture that thought leads to action, belief to behavior. And so instead of just telling people to stop a behavior, how could we help them understand the destructive thoughts or beliefs that are contributing to that behavior? So whether the theme is pain, shame, or renewing the mind, there are so many places throughout Scripture we can use to connect to people's sexual brokenness. This is one of the many reasons I'm excited to invite you to the Sexual Integrity Leadership Summit coming up so soon in Portland, Oregon. We want to help equip church leaders like you with effective tools to build a bridge between the sexual brokenness in people's lives and the wholeness they can find in Christ. I hope you'll consider joining us there.
