by William C. Sexton<\/p>\n
The word addiction is one we usually associate with drugs. An “addict” is defined as “one who has a confirmed habit, as the overuse of drugs…” (Webster’s).<\/p>\n
If we look, however, we can see that one can be addicted to almost anything; that is, to have a “confirmed habit.” I suggest that many in our day are addicts, that is they have “a confirmed habit” of deviant sexual behavior. One can become involved over a period of time in practices that God does not approve of. One can do it to the point that he becomes obsessed, and addicted to that practice.<\/p>\n
Just as one is not born with the urge to consume alcohol or other drugs, one is not born with the desire to engage in deviant sexual practices. Yet, one may learn to do so, by experimentation, by seeing others engage in such, or by hearing others talk about it. That is why pornography is so harmful today. Being available, many are introduced to it, and they get gratification from viewing it. People see things on printed pages (pictures) and view things in pornographic movie acts that are glorified so as to arouse the sexual impulse in an individual. It begins to work on one’s mind, and he becomes obsessed with such till the point that he’ll do things that are very hurtful to his well-being and that of many others!<\/p>\n
God made us either male or female, sexual beings (Genesis 1:26-28). He provided for that need (Genesis 2:24): “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.<\/em>“<\/p>\n Jesus pointed back to that beginning when asked about the duty or rights involved in that relationship:<\/p>\n “And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.\u00a0Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate<\/em>” (Matthew 19:4-6).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This was referred to by Paul when he was showing the need for purity and the sin of fornication in sexual behavior:<\/p>\n “Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For ‘the two,’ He says, ‘shall become one flesh’<\/em>” (I Corinthians 6:16).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Sexuality is as much a part of us as our appetite for food and water, but, as in those areas, each must exercise control.\u00a0To ignore what God says on this subject, as so many are doing in our day, is destructive to themselves and to others. Beloved, let us get our minds cleared of all unscriptural views, determine to do right ourselves, and help others to the extent we can do right!<\/p>\n If one has a problem, the first step is to\u00a0admit<\/strong> it — face up to it. Then one can seek and find help. But until one admits that he has a problem, no help can be forthcoming.\u00a0Let us all look honestly at ourselves, and if there is a problem, let us handle it scripturally.\u00a0Let us be looking for others who may have a problem, and be willing to help them\u00a0overcome<\/strong> their difficulties. There is no problem that can’t be handled if one will honestly face up to the problem, have a desire to administer the teachings of the Lord, and seek help from fellow Christians!<\/p>\n “Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it each day, and at last we cannot break it.”\u00a0[Horace Mann]<\/p>\n “The habit of looking at the best side of any event is worth more than a thousand pounds a year.” [Dr. Samuel Johnson]<\/p>\n “I’m not afraid of tomorrow. I have seen yesterday and I love today” [William Allen White]<\/p>\n “You can unlock a man’s whole life if you watch what words he uses most.” [Drummond]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by William C. Sexton The word addiction is one we usually associate with drugs. An “addict” is defined as “one who has a confirmed habit, as the overuse of drugs…” (Webster’s). If we look, however, we can see that one can be addicted to almost anything; that is, to have a “confirmed habit.” I suggest…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[387,372,226,63],"class_list":["post-54962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-addiction","tag-drugs","tag-pornography","tag-sex"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5146,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-you-deal-with-an-addict\/","url_meta":{"origin":54962,"position":0},"title":"How do you deal with an addict?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 2, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I wanted to know how the church deals with a member who practices self-destruction? The individual is a brother who has so much potential to excel in the church but has demons he is facing (e.g. alcohol). He is full of energy and commitment but had a recent incident\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":45677,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-do-i-do-about-my-drug-addicted-husband\/","url_meta":{"origin":54962,"position":1},"title":"What do I do about my drug-addicted husband?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 3, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, I am a follower and believer of Christ for almost four years now. I don't know what to do with my husband. He is doing drugs. We are living with my in-laws in a living room. We are struggling money-wise, but thank God my husband got a raise.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":37761,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/im-addicted-to-prostitutes\/","url_meta":{"origin":54962,"position":2},"title":"I’m addicted to prostitutes","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 9, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am addicted to prostitutes. I want to get out. I have tried but I still sin. I want to give my life to Christ. Answer: People claim to have an addiction to give the impression that they have little choice. No one starts life as an addict, whether\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":54279,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/not-what-they-told-you-opioids\/","url_meta":{"origin":54962,"position":3},"title":"Not What They Told You – Opioids","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 23, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Titus 2:1-8 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Opioids are a class of drugs derived from opium \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They include heroin, fentanyl, oxycodone, hydrocodone, codeine, morphine, and many more \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0These were originally developed because they attach to the opioid receptors in your brain, muffling your perception of pain and increasing your\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20553,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-my-soul-in-jeopardy-if-i-dont-talk-to-a-christian-about-his-smoking\/","url_meta":{"origin":54962,"position":4},"title":"Is my soul in jeopardy if I don’t talk to a Christian about his smoking?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 21, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is my soul in jeopardy if I don't address the issue of a known smoker that attends the church where I attend?\u00a0\u00a0He was baptized years ago and partakes of the Lord's Supper. By not addressing the issue with him, am I now out of Christ?\u00a0 Also, if a preacher\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13239,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-i-reconcile-with-my-ex-husband-who-is-addicted-to-marijuana\/","url_meta":{"origin":54962,"position":5},"title":"Should I reconcile with my ex-husband who is addicted to marijuana?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 8, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Should I reconcile with my ex-husband although he has issues with smoking pot? I divorced him over three years ago and I discovered biblically I was wrong because it was not for adultery. He since then continues to smoke but seems to have changed in other areas. I despise\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54962"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54962\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nA Few Quotes to Ponder:<\/i><\/h3>\n