Addictions and lust are like parasites in our lives. Pornography and any other form of lust addiction are among them. It is not a matter that God cannot forgive. Yes, He forgives when we come to Him with an open heart and acknowledge our sins. God forgives because He is a merciful God, and that is one of His attributes. Still, misunderstanding this could lead us into a lot of pain and moments we don't want to go through. If we are believers and trust in His promises, we can sin and He will forgive us, but there will be consequences, and we will live unhealthily if we persevere in that. That's why He left us His word that teaches us how we need to live for His glory and what our behavior toward sin should be. That's why we need to resist lust and not only rely on the fact that He forgives. This should always accompany us in our Christian lives, but we also need to follow His instructions on how to live a blessed life and fully experience Him.
At times, the fact of knowing that God can forgive any sin could, in a way, deceive us and lead us toward living an unhealthy Christian life, depriving ourselves of His blessings. You mustn’t misunderstand me here, of course, He can forgive, no one is doubting that, but He also said to the woman who was condemned for her sin, but He had saved: “Go and sin no more” (John 8:11). This should be our principle, so that we can live a healthy Christian life to the fullest, along with the blessings He has for us. He doesn't condemn. He is our advocate, and He will forgive us when we go to Him with a sincere and repentant attitude, but He also wants us to live in His will, blessings, and to be used for His Kingdom. To another person healed by Him, He said: “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you” (John 5:14). There are consequences of sin, and He doesn’t want us to experience them.
With all this, I am not dismissing the fact that He forgives. I myself had to be forgiven many times, but through all of this, I learned lessons on how harmful it is and how I should treat it in my life.
As a comparison, we can use the example that Paul gave in 1 Corinthians 3:10-15 about building on the solid foundation, which is Christ, but not using the right materials. One can build with materials enduring the trial of fire, such as gold, silver, or precious stones, and another can use wood, hay, or straw. The one building with such materials as wood, hay, or straw represents the believer who has been saved but doesn’t dedicate himself much to what the Word says and doesn’t put much effort into it. He is also the person who often backslides in sin, causing problems for himself. If we want to live a life in the fullness of God's blessings, the way He intended it for us, we need to walk as much as we can in His grace in the right way. We obviously need His strength and faith for that. This way, we will be the ones who build with the right materials on the solid foundation, which is Christ, and we will endure the fiery trial without damaging our works. They will remain and glorify God. These are the fruits we bear for His glory. This argument has to do with a lot of areas in our lives. It has to do with our present earthly life as well as the life awaiting us in heaven.
There is also the story of Lot, which is quite similar to the example in 1 Corinthians 3:10-15, given by Paul, about how a person builds upon the foundation. We all know that Lot chose to live in Sodom and Gomorrah. He was attracted by the appealing appearance of those lands. He made His choice based on what attracted his eyes, but without considering that those were sinful places (Genesis 13:10). This situation represents the situation of when someone deliberately chooses sin or makes light choices that “might” be wrong without seriously considering the consequences. The scripture tells us that he was a godly man, but we all know that his life wasn't entirely complying with that, and he didn’t end up so well. The city where he lived was destroyed by fire, and his wife became a pillar of salt by looking back. We can say that he was one of those saved by fire, as 1 Corinthians 3:15 tells us. He didn’t build with the right materials. Surely, he wasn’t living completely as an unbeliever, and as the rest of the inhabitants of those cities, but due to his choices, he went through painful consequences. God doesn’t want us to suffer. His plans are good for us, to give us hope and a future. That’s why He left us His Word. Surely, He corrects us, but that is to let us avoid further suffering and problems. Most of the time, it is we who cause ourselves harm. That’s why we need to ask Him to help us be obedient to Him and walk in His path.
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