Miles McPherson

On October 9 the Rock hosted one of the most exciting events in our 10-year history.  Porn King, Ron Jeremy faced-off with XXXchurch.com founder and anti-porn crusader Craig Gross in a debate about Pornography and its effects on culture.  I hosted the event and moderated a Q&A session with the audience.

When I met Pastor Craig last year we discussed the possibility of hosting this debate at the Rock.  They had never hosted the debate at a church and I believed this would be a perfect opportunity to connect with a segment of our community that most churches rarely have an opportunity to reach.

And we did.

We had over 3,000 people in attendance.

- 21% or 630 people of those who attended do not attend church

-  20% of that group said this event changed their perspective on porn

- 94% of that group said they would come back to an event like this

Praise God!

Although a great majority of you supported this event, there were some who voiced concerns and asked why we would ever consider hosting an event like the Great Porn Debate.

Here is why:

Every Sunday millions of people go to church and then go home and watch porn.  In fact, Sunday is the most popular day of the week to watch porn!!   So it is our responsibility to bring these issues to the light.

Infact:

- 50% of men in the church struggle with a porn addiction

- 1 in 6 women are addicted to porn

- The average age that children first see porn online is 11

John 8:32 says, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  As long as it remains in the dark… the devil has power over it.  We boldly welcome topics like this because we know the bulletproof gospel is our only hope.

God created marriage, love, relationships, and sex; this means His church is best equipped to have these conversations.  If porn is destroying people’s lives, then the church has a responsibility to help restore and address the brokenness.

So does Jesus love porn stars? Of course!

God loves Ron Jeremy and porn stars just as much as he loves you and me.  His love is perfect – consistent – and available to all.

Sometimes it’s difficult for people to separate the sin from the sinner.  It is important for us to welcome and love those trapped in sin, while trying to rescue them from its destructive grip.

The Rock is committed to engaging every segment of society to reach the lost, just as Jesus did (Luke 19:10). There are countless times in scripture that Jesus reached out, ate, drank, and was hosted by the socially unaccepted, just to share the love of the Father.

If you are among those who struggle with an addiction, then I encourage you to reach out to one of the many ministries here at the Rock that deals directly with these issues.  There is safety in the healing arms of the church, but you must make the first step.

Click Here if you want help.

A. SOURCE: crosswalk.com: Article written by Mike Genuna B. SOURCE: Internet Pornography and Loneliness: An Association? Vincent Cyrus Yoder, Thomas B. Virden III, and Kiran Amin.  Sexual Addiction & Compulsivity, Volume 12.1 (2005) C. SOURCE:  Family Therapy Magazine (March 2010) D. Source: news.bcc.co.uk (January 2009)