In his play Macbeth, Shakespeare wrote, “Away and mock the time with fairest show; false face must hide what the false heart doth know.”

Since the uncovering of sin in the garden of Eden, humanity has experienced shame. Shame is a naked state whereby we know we cannot hide from the One who made us and sees us. The irony is we want to hide but we also want to be found. We want to know and be known. And Adam and Eve created the tension, this need to look over our shoulders for fear that our lies might be unearthed. It’s like we’re all playing a role in this grand Shakespearean drama with fake lines and choreographed dances and imaginary places and costumes and make-up and lots and lots of masks. In his book True Faced, author Bill Thrall notes, “The trouble with papier-mâché is that it doesn’t reflect.” And as the image bearers of God we were made to reflect the glory of God. And few things rob us of that joy like the shame that is born out of porn addiction.

In his book, Wired for Intimacy, bio-psychologist William Struthers observes that:

“As we fall deeper into the mental habit of fixating on these images, the exposure to them creates neural pathways. Like a path that is created in the woods with each successive hiker, so do the neural paths set the course for the next time an erotic image is viewed. Over time these neural paths become wider as they are repeatedly traveled with each exposure to pornography. They become the automatic pathway through which interactions with women are routed...They (men) have unknowingly created a neurological circuit that imprisons their ability to see women rightly as created in God’s image.”

In an interview with Playboy Magazine, John Mayer, a man who has had his fair share of sexual liaisons said, “When I watch porn, if it’s not hot enough, I’ll make up back stories in my mind...This is my problem now: Rather than meet somebody new, I would rather go home and replay the amazing experiences I’ve already had...What that explains is that I’m more comfortable in my imagination than I am in actual human discovery.”

Empty. Lonely. Those are the words that came to mind when I read his words.

I deal with men who started viewing pornographic images in their elementary years of development. Typically, their dads kept a stash of magazines under their mattress or near their toolbox in the garage and the temptation and curiosity was too strong to resist. So as a boy, they snatched dad’s magazine and headed to the woods for a peek. And with their buddies from the neighborhood gathered around, a hushed silence fell over them as they turned each page slowly, soaking in this mysterious wonder known as the female form. With hands trembling, hearts racing and hormones raging, each new picture generated something they had never experienced before as boys...ecstasy! But with the ecstasy came this intuitive reaction of, “I don’t know if I should be looking at this.” In that moment of fixation a small voice in their brain said, “Something about this feels wrong.” But the rush of ecstasy overpowered the whisper of shame. And little did they know that a simple exposure to a naked woman would lead them down a destructive neurological and spiritual path.

James 5:16 says: “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.”

That is a fear inducing verse. It’s far easier to hand our dirty laundry to God. But to air it in front of people...

What we forget is that people are wearing the same papier-mâché masks we are. What we forget is that people are stained by as much shame as we are and need to be soaked in God’s love as much as we do. The same enemy who punked Adam and Eve is the same enemy who is trying to convince us that God’s forgiveness only goes so far. When the truth is, God wants to set us free from the cages we’ve locked ourselves in. The wide open expanse of God’s grace has no fence line.

And in our next series, Throw It Down, which launches in three days, we are going to let go of any and all hurts, habits, and hang ups that keep us from experiencing that freedom! And maybe for you, the cage you’ve been trapped in doesn’t involve pornography. Maybe for you, your lips have been glued to a bottle or your value has been dictated by a scale or a mirror. Whatever it is that you hold on to and whatever it is that holds on to you, God is inviting you to join us as we take a risk together and chase hard after the breathe in deep life that Jesus died to give us!

And know this...it doesn’t matter to us what you’ve done or where you’ve been...what matters to us is you...as you are. So take a look at what this pastor has to say about throwing it down...