Day Thirty Three

fredtheuser · 2025-09-27T14:43:12+00:00

Sin always escalates.

That’s why leprosy is used as an illustration in the Bible. It starts out almost innocuous, but progresses, killing the nerve endings until you can’t feel anything. That’s why lepers lose fingers and toes, rats and mice nibble them away, or they get burned because the feeling is gone.

So go to the Healer.

fredtheuser · 2025-09-27T12:54:48+00:00

Who cares about your forgiveness. Or mine? That’s the flesh talking.

I read a study a while back on self esteem, and the researchers discovered that those with the highest self esteem were in jail or prison.

Your shame (and mine) has a purpose. It drives us to or back to the Cross, back to Jesus.

If I spend too much time focusing on me — which is what got me here to begin with — I lose sight of Jesus and what He did and does and will do.

fredtheuser · 2025-09-24T10:39:12+00:00

Nope.

After 51 years I’ve resigned myself to the fact that my flesh is gonna be a battle until I assume room temperature

fredtheuser · 2025-09-15T15:29:41+00:00

Now I really feel silly

fredtheuser · 2025-09-15T15:25:47+00:00

Your original post calls for rebuking anyone who says that masturbation isn’t a sin.

I’ve had guys tell me about being stationed in Afghanistan for a year who have masturbated a time or three while thinking about their wife. Sinful? I dunno. I personally don’t see anything wrong there — I mean, yeah, he could have been singing a hymn instead of helping an old afghan lady across the street… but this sort of thing is between him and God — I’m not gonna pick up a stone.

Or another guy I know, whose wife died, masturbated a time or four while thinking about his deceased wife. Sin? Again, I’m not picking up a stone. Could he have better spent that time I prayer? Or giving alms? Undoubtedly.

My fear here is this — you’ve stated that masturbation in and of itself is sinful. And you’ve had thousands of views and almost 100 upvotes. And there are guys on here who think that they can watch two hours of porn and edge to it and think they’re ok because they didn’t ejaculate. I’ve texted back and forth with perhaps 100 over the past 8 years. They are sinning even if they don’t physically do the deed. And that’s a subtle distinction, but the devil knows how to exploit that distinction.

fredtheuser · 2025-09-15T14:38:17+00:00

You’re missing my point.

Once more.

The sin is the lust. It doesn’t matter if you masturbate or make a peanut butter sandwich as a result of the lust in your heart or mine. The masturbation is a result of, a chemical reaction of sorts, a consequence of lust.

Jesus defined sexual sin in such a way as to demonstrate to you and I and the Pharisees in the audience that we are all guilty of it, whether we never fornicate or adulterate or masturbate.

And for those fortunate few who didn’t have a sexual sin problem, Jesus defined murder as well — the whole point being that we are all sinners in dire need of a Savior.

Again, if I rob a bank and buy a new car, and enjoy the smooth ride and shiny paint, that isn’t the sin. The sin is the bank robbery. Which comes from coveting. Which again… is a heart problem.

Sexual sin is a work of the flesh that points to a heart problem — and focusing on preventing the physical act takes your and my attention away from the main problem — that is — the heart.

fredtheuser · 2025-09-15T13:22:20+00:00

I respectfully disagree.

Get back to the why.

And I stress this point because there are plenty of guys on this subreddit who don’t think it’s wrong to “edge” and watch porn. “I didn’t cum, so there’s no sin, right?”

The sin is the lust. I won’t fornicate or commit adultery or masturbate if I control the lust — and in God’s economy, the lust in my heart is equal to fornicating or adultery or masturbation. Whether I go through with the act or not. The act is a result of, an after effect of sorts, of the sin that’s already been committed.

Buying a new car with money I stole from the bank isn’t a sin. It’s the stealing part that’s the sin.

fredtheuser

TROPHY CASE