You'd open your Bibles to Proverbs chapter 7. Listen again to the Lord's word. My son, keep my words and treasure my commandments within you. Keep my commandments and live in my teaching as the apple of your eye. Find them on your fingers. Write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, you are my sister. Call understanding your intimate friend. that they may keep you from an adulteress, from the foreigner who flatters with her words. For at the window of my house, I looked out through my lattice and I saw among the naive and discerned among the youths, a young man lacking sense, passing through the street near her corner. And he takes the way to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the middle of the night and in the darkness. And behold, a woman comes to meet him dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart. She is boisterous and rebellious. Her feet do not remain at home. She is now in the streets, now in the squares, and lurks by every corner. So she seizes him and kisses him. And with a brazen face, she says to him, I was due to offer peace offerings. Today, I have paid my vows. Therefore, I have come out to meet you, to seek your presence earnestly. And I have found you. I have spread my couch with coverings with colored linens of Egypt. I've sprinkled my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning. Let us delight ourselves with caresses, for my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey. He has taken a bag of money with him. At the full moon, he will come home. With her many persuasions, she entices him. With her flattering lips, she seduces him. Suddenly, he follows her as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as one in fetters to the discipline of a fool until an arrow pierces through his liver as a bird hastens to the snare so he does not know that it will cost him his life. Therefore, my sons, listen to me and pay attention to the words of my mouth. Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways. Do not stray into her paths. For many other victims she has cast down. and numerous are all her slain. Her house is the way to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death. This is the Lord's word. If you'll bow with me, friends, and let's pray. Again, our Father in heaven, we thank you for your word and for the warnings, the admonitions that are put forward in it, the reminders to us to be on our guard and to be ever vigilant. For Lord, we recognize that even in this passage, many have heard her call, and you have been so gracious as to keep your people. And yet we recognize, Father, that we are not living as Christians, as your people, in a vacuum, but we live in the world where there is no shortage of people attempting to snare your people Father, we ask that your blessing be upon this word as it's preached in this place, and as it goes out, we pray, Lord, that it will encourage the hearts of young men and women, that we will walk in your ways and walk in holiness. We pray, Father, that you would guard and protect and bless, and that you will help us, Lord, in this very dire time to make inroads into our culture with the gospel. Please, oh Lord, hear our prayers. And please help us, we pray, and strengthen us by your spirit. And I do ask these things humbly in Jesus' name, amen. You probably wonder why the random selection sometimes of Proverbs. It's a hard thing to explain. I guess I was looking at, I was printing things off the computer regarding sermon audio, and it struck me as strange that years and years ago I preached on Proverbs chapter 7. And of all the sermons that have received hits on Sermon Audio, this one by far is the most popular sermon. And I don't think it's because I'm the most popular preacher. I think it's because the topic is frightening. It's pertinent. I remember teaching at a Bible study one time where there was a group of men. And the subject, I don't know how, the subject of pornography came up. and it was the first time I'd ever seen every man in that Bible study, and there was probably 18 to 20 men sitting around several tables, and every one of them engaged in that conversation. And I remember being a young man in college, and we had to go to chapel every day in college, four years of college, and I only remember one chapel speaker, one, out of how many years of going to college and listening, And this man had a strange accent, British, Australian, I'm not sure. But he didn't beat around the bush. And I remember he gave such a virulent warning against pornography, and it landed on my fresh ears. And I heard, and I heeded. And I'm awfully glad I did. We are to run away, run away from immorality, run away from pornography like Joseph ran away from Potiphar's wife. It's laughable to me that our government makes an issue out of cigarettes, that our government has made issues out of emissions and has made issues out of big gulps and how big a soft drink you can buy at a 7-Eleven. And it makes me want to mock them and scorn them because I think the world is burning under their feet and they're straining at gnats. We have an epidemic of colossal proportions. Some of you are aware of OnlyFans. I've seen it in the news recently where they are streaming billions of dollars and people selling photographs of themselves. I came tonight with a very, very direct application regarding pornography from this passage of scripture because Honestly, nobody's walking past her corner anymore, and yet everyone is walking past her corner every day. We were talking, and I think our sister Catherine pointed it out so well. Research has shown that pornography and cocaine have the same effects on the brain. And Catherine rightly pointed out the only difference is you don't find cocaine everywhere you look, but you do find pornography everywhere. And it's not just something now where you go and seek it out, some immoral woman in some alleyway in the city. It's now being streamed on our televisions and on our computers. and it's an epidemic. I'm telling you, it's an epidemic. And what Satan does with it, he guts us, he shackles us with guilt, and he's disabled the army of Christ. Listen to some of these statistics in case you're doubting me. These are statistics I pulled off the website of Covenant Eyes, an app that is used on computers and phones to protect against pornography. They say 61% of the general population report viewing pornography 78% of men watch pornography, and 44% of women watch pornography, which is astounding to me that that number is so high among women. They say 73% of teens have consumed pornography. Most teens who view pornography have been exposed to aggressive and or violent forms of pornography. 12 is the average age for first exposure. They go on to say about Christians and viewing pornography, they say 54% of practicing Christians watch pornography. 75% of Christian men watch pornography. That's only three percentage points different than the world. And here again, 40% of Christian women consume pornography. That's only 4% less than the world. 22% of Christians view pornography at least once a week, compared to 31% of non-Christians who view pornography at least weekly. They say the effects of pornography in marriage when pornography is viewed, couples are twice as likely to separate. 70% of wives of sex addicts could be diagnosed with PTSD. Prolonged exposure to pornography leads to diminished trust between intimate couples, a belief that promiscuity is the natural state. By the way, a goal of the Kinsey Report and what Alfred Kinsey aspired to do to destroy the mores of Christianity. And then it says, finally, lack of attraction to family and child raising is a result of pornography in marriage. They say 67% of pastors have personal history with pornography. 18% of pastors in the United States currently struggle with pornography. Only 7% of pastors report their church has a ministry program for those struggling with pornography. Again, at any second, 28,258 people are watching pornography. Each second, Pornography and the internet generates $3,075. There are 40 million Americans regularly visiting pornographic sites. 35% of all internet downloads are related to pornography. Pornhub, the world's largest porn website, reported in 2017. So these statistics here are eight years old. My guess is that these numbers are much higher by now. 28.5 billion annual visits to their website, 81 million daily average visits, 25 billion searches performed, 50,000 searches per minute, 800 searches a second, 4,052,542 videos uploaded, 68 years worth of content uploaded, And they say 3,732 pentabytes of information transferred. And they go on to say that's enough to fill the memory of every iPhone on Earth. I would say we have an epidemic. And it's something we have to take to heart as pastors, as elders, as fathers, as mothers, as grandparents. there's an epidemic, but what I'm pointing out to you is that it's not just out there, it's in the church. And I wonder sometimes if the Lord or if Satan, because of this, Satan hasn't got us so guilt-ridden that we just sit by and we suffer silently when we can know that there's forgiveness in Jesus Christ and there's also freedom in Jesus Christ. The word of God is a timeless word. Its truth transcends cultures. To listen to it and to do what it says preserves life. But to ignore it, it is to destroy life, it is to destroy families, and it is to destroy marriages. We speak as a culture that we should be able to do what we want, do as we please, and without judgment. The reality is, friends, you can't go against what the Lord has said and how the Lord has wired his universe to work. without destroying yourself or somebody else. You cannot tailor, make your life, decide what you will and won't do, what is right and wrong for you and do as you please, especially the child of God. What destruction comes to those who ignore him and what harm comes to the Lord's witness? Again, I'm reminded of Stephen Lawson and the things that have happened and the harm that has come because of his immorality. This is, in the Proverbs, the last section concerning adultery. The previous chapter, while also showing the dangers of adultery, focused upon the adulterer. In chapter 7 here, the lecture aims to expose the unfaithful wife's seductive tactics. And I mean to apply it as a warning, as a caution, For sin always looks pleasant. Pornography is always advertised as something fun and exciting, without harm. You're not doing anything to anyone. You're just looking at pictures. But I promise you, it will gut you, and it is a cancer to your soul. You will not come away from it unscathed. Here we have a father speaking to his son, giving a dramatic autobiographical description of the tactics of the adulterous so as to help ensure his sons will pay attention to the words of his mouth so that he will not, they will not be destroyed by the adulterous woman. The chapter has three sections. Verses one through five is an introduction, giving an admonition to keep and hold fast to his father's instructions. Verses six through 23 are the tactics of the adulterous woman and verses 24 through 27 is a reiteration of verses one through five. Again, listen to your father. and not to the adulterous. Again, listen here to the admonitions to keep and hold fast to his father's instructions. He begins here in verses one through five. Listen again. Keep my words and treasure my commandments within you. Keep my commandments and live, and my teaching as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers. Write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, you are my sister, and call understanding your intimate friend, that they may keep you from an adulteress, from the foreigner who flatters with her words. Keep my commandments and live, he says. Here again, the father is speaking to his sons, whom he loves, And he urges them twice to keep, keep my words, keep my commandments and live. It's not merely helpful advice that this father is giving to his son. By the way, by the way, fathers, grandfathers, grandmothers, oftentimes Satan plays us like this as well. Well, who am I to talk? How should I, how can I address My children, my grandchildren, how can I address others when I myself have surely fallen and not done what is right? Friends, that's not the point. That's where grace comes in and is an awfully wonderful thing, because we have all fallen. But we warn people because of what the Lord's Word says. And we mustn't take on that sheepish attitude that says, well, I'm just not going to say anything. They have to make their own path. You know how ridiculous that is? Let them run into harm, say nothing. That's a terrible thing. We should not do that. Keep my words, keep my commandments. Again, it's not helpful advice, but the passing on of God's commandments. We are called to observe these commandments, not merely to hear them, but to be doers of these words and commandments such as James has instructed. He says to him, treasure my commandments within you, Keep my teaching as the apple of your eye. To treasure something is to hold something dear. Where your treasure is, Jesus said in Matthew 6, there your heart will be also. And my teaching or law, keep it as the apple of your eye. In Deuteronomy 32.10, where the Lord found Jacob in a desert land and in the howling wastes of wilderness, he encircled him, he cared for him, he guarded him as the pupil of his eye. What this pictures is that Jacob was special to the Lord as the pupil of the eye is guarded. So the Lord cared for Jacob. This is the way in which, and the attitude in which we ought to hold the Lord's law. The law is precious. These commandments are precious. Our culture would say, you're a killjoy. Don't you know what you're doing? Um, you're trying to strip away fun from us. You remember, Remember trick-or-treating? And you come home with a bag full of candy. And you just determined, my goal tonight, before I go to bed, is to eat every single piece of candy. And your mother would say, no, no. My mother would make us put it up on the refrigerator so we couldn't eat it. We'd have to dole it out over weeks. It's a loving thing. not to give in to the demands of your children and to those around you. We are told in Psalm 1 that his delight, his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law, he meditates day and night. Keep and treasure and safeguard these commands. And even further, he says, bind them on your fingers, write them on the tablet of your heart. This is seen in chapter three, is the idea of glorying in, meditating upon, and acting by these principles, those things we treasure and hold dear, we keep near to us. And still further, he says, say to wisdom, you are my sister and call understanding your intimate friend. He does not mean sister in the sense that we think of it though special in its own right, but he refers to a wife, or to the marriage relationship, how beautiful, Song of Solomon 4, how beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride. How much better is your love than wine and the fragrance of your oils than all kinds of spices. Call understanding your intimate friend. It is not a plastic, mechanical, and artificial, arbitrary adherence to the law, the commands of God, that the writer exhorts his sons but a cherishing and an intimate knowledge of always carrying around in his heart, the command of the Lord. In chapter six, we read in verse 22, when you walk about, they will guide you. When you sleep, they will watch over you. And when you're awake, they will talk to you. Why is that friends? Why does he exhort them to this? People we find regularly, regularly succumb to these things and hear the father loving his son. Take my words to heart. The Lord says you shall not commit adultery. He says, furthermore, in 1 Corinthians 6, 18, we read this, flee immorality, every other sin that a man commits is outside of the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own, for you have been bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body. Furthermore, in Ephesians 5, 1 through 5, we read this, Therefore, be imitators of God as beloved children and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you as is proper among saints. And there must be no filthiness and silly talk or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know with certainty that no immoral or impure person or covetous man who is an idolater has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God." And then again, in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, we read in verses 1 through 8, finally then, brethren, We request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that as you receive from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God, just as you actually do walk, that you excel still more. For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification, that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality. That each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor. that is his body, his own body, not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God, and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you, for God has not called us for this purpose, for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So he who rejects this is not rejecting man, but the God who gives his Holy Spirit to you. cannot keep these commandments of the Lord and be viewing pornography. Again, why should he cherish the command of the Lord? Why should he take these things and hold them close and love them and embrace them and cherish these things? It's to keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress. Do not desire her beauty. in your heart, nor let her capture you with her eyelids, he said in chapter six. There he speaks of the adulterer and here on the ways of the adulterous, the more to safeguard his sons. In verses six through 23 then we see the tactics of the adulterous woman. And this just reminds me of how appealing and how glamorous sin always looks. always is enticing to us, always making us think, oh, it's not so bad. Well, everyone is doing this. And quite literally, almost everyone is doing pornography. Shouldn't be in the church, my friends. The Lord set us free to bring us out of these things. Listen again to verses six through 23. For at the window of my house, I looked out through my lattice. And I saw among the naive and discerned among the youths a young man lacking sense passing through the street near her corner. And he takes the way to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the middle of the night, and in the darkness. And behold, a woman comes to meet him dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart. She is boisterous and rebellious. Her feet do not remain at home. She is now in the streets, now in the squares, and lurks by every corner. She seizes him and kisses him, and with a brazen face, she says to him, I was due to offer peace offerings today. I have paid my vows. Therefore, I have come out to meet you, to seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you. I have spread my couch with coverings with colored linens of Egypt. I have sprinkled my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning. Let us delight ourselves with caresses, for my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey. He has taken a bag of money with him. At the full moon, he will come home. With her many persuasions, she entices him. With her flattering lips, she seduces him. Suddenly, he follows her. As an ox goes to the slaughter, or as one in fetters to the discipline of fools, until an arrow pierces through his liver, as a bird hastens to the snare, so he does not know that it will cost him his life. These are the tactics of the adulterous woman. Many men think that they are strong and this could never happen to them. I remember being quite astounded watching an interview, and it was back in the late 90s when I remember when I had my first AOL account, and you listen to the modem squeal and squawk, and you're like, I'm actually dipping my toe into the internet. And it was just about that time that there was somebody on Good Morning America, a kid, a 16-year-old kid, who prided himself on being able to look at pornography. And this 16-year-old said, Charlie Gibson's interviewing him, and he says, Charlie Gibson, that is, says to the 16-year-old, don't your parents mind that you're doing this? And he said, and I thought, the poor sap, he said, my parents know I can handle it. And I thought, he's 16. He's either been divorced multiple times or he's in prison because you can't handle pornography. Friends, we were never intended to handle Pornography. It is truly probably one of the most insidious evils in our country today. And we are one of the largest purveyors of it in our movies, in our music, and on the internet. And we're piping this garbage around the world, and we're destroying people, families, marriages, children. These tactics, many men again think they are strong. I can view it and it won't hurt me. Remember Proverbs 16, 18, pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before stumbling. I can handle this. I got it. Don't be an idiot. The father tells a story, a dramatic account of someone who did not listen, who did not heed wisdom, who did not embrace it as his own. Again, we see in verses six through nine, this picture, Here, Solomon is looking out his window through the lattice, and he's observing what transpires. He sees a naive youth, a young man lacking sense. And this is obvious, isn't it? How, you ask? This boy is obviously stupid. He is passing through the streets near her corner, and he takes the way to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the middle of the night, and in the darkness. The sun has just begun to set. He is going in the direction of her house, her corner. Notice it's called her corner. She's notorious for standing on that corner. As the sun goes down, the nightlife begins to prowl. And darkness begins to settle in, not mere physical, but moral darkness has settled in, as well as a dark fate for this young man. He knows what he is doing. but he doesn't realize what it will cost him. Sin is always this way. Again, we are told, can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? Or can a man walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? If we sow to the flesh, said Paul, we will reap corruption. And what do we see? Behold, look, the femme fatale. Verse 10, behold, A woman comes to meet him dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart. She looks good, but behind those makeup eyes lies a beast. Remember, we are told in chapter six, verse 25, do not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her capture you with her eyelids. The goal would be to run, to get away, to get out of there while you still can. She has concealed her evil intentions. She is dressed to kill, and she knows it. She is a prostitute. Verse 11, she is boisterous. She is loud. She's advertising. And she is wayward. She is rebellious. She doesn't stay at home. Her focus is not on her family, as the woman we read about in Proverbs 31. This one is all about herself. She is not a home builder. She is a home wrecker. Verse 12, she is now in the streets, now in the squares, and lurks by every corner. She is aggressive. She's a man eater. She comes up to this stupid boy. He knows, or she knows, that he's gawking at her. And she grabs him, and she kisses him. And just as she is, so she does, and tells a bold-faced lie, a brazen face. She is a seductress, the female counterpart to male rape, He uses physical force to rape, and she uses her words to kill him. Listen to what she says with smooth speech. Remember, again, she has a cunning heart. She comes looking fine. She has a brazen face. She is a liar. And she gives this assurance, this appearance of, I'm really quite good. Sin always presents itself as something good for us. Oh, you know, I'm just supporting these young people trying to make money on OnlyFans. I'm just trying to help them make a living. Well, look, they've got some educational videos on their channels, too. Well, look, there's so much good there that can be gotten. Oh, I'm going to witness to them. I'm one of those kind of OnlyFans. I'm going to go witness to them. I'm going to make comments about how they really should repent and turn to Jesus. She presents herself well. She presents herself as a good girl. I was due to offer, verse 14, I was due to offer peace offerings today. I have paid my vows. This is wrong on so many levels. She's not an Israelite. She's not a Christian woman. Nowhere is this commanded. She, if anything, is a Canaanite woman, points out. Bruce Waltke involved in a fertility cult, which would have required her to have a male partner for sexual intercourse. Fertility rites in Canaanite religion followed communion sacrifices. The invitations to have sex with her was also an invitation to participate in the fertility religion. But she's a good girl, really. You've just misunderstood her. This idiot is being counted, courted rather, to serve, to help. out a damsel in distress or not. She is a liar. We don't know if even she is telling the truth in any way. Either way, she is dangerous, using religion to promote and to justify sexual deviancy. We've seen this oftentimes in churches, Protestant and Roman Catholic alike. She sounds so pious. She gives this Godspeak. I've paid my vows. I truly am a good Christian girl. Further, she gives flattery. Therefore, I have come out to meet you. Notice what she says here. I've come out to meet you. She didn't say, I've come out to meet somebody. She says, I've come out to meet you, to seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you. Flattery, yes, you'll do great. big, handsome, and brainless. You're the one. I come out to meet you. You're the one I was seeking and I found you. Why isn't he special? She sure makes him feel that way, doesn't she? Again, Waltke says, having flattered his ego, she now further stimulates his sexual appetites by a sensual vision of the luxurious couch she prepared beforehand for the feast and lovemaking. Verses 16 and 17 read, I have spread my couch with coverings with colored linens of Egypt. I have sprinkled my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. She entices him with rare and expensive aphrodisiac aromas, beckoning him to, in verse 18, come and let us drink our fill of love until the morning. Let us delight ourselves with caresses and reassuring him, my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey. He has taken a bag of money with him. At the full moon, he will come home. The stage is set. I need you. I want you. It will be beautiful. What possibly could be wrong?" And the writer, the father, summarizes what happens between the adulterous and the stupid, stupid boy. With her many persuasions, she entices him. You see, she has turned him now to her side With her flattering, smooth lips, she seduces him, draws him in, and suddenly he follows her as an ox goes to the slaughter or as one in fetters to the discipline of fools until an arrow pierces through his liver as a bird hastens to a snare so he does not know that it will cost him his life. That is the naive, that is the young man lacking sense. And this is the problem with pornography in our day. We don't walk past her corner anymore. We run our mouse over her website. And it's taking nearly 80% of Christian men Statistically, we have a church full of men addicted to pornography, statistically, and I pray that's not the case. Statistically, we have a bunch of women who are addicted to pornography in our congregation. And how will we do the work of the Lord when we are unclean vessels? He has called us to holiness. He has called us to put away those things. And what the world calls right and what the world says is acceptable and right and good, the Lord says, beware, it will destroy you. To whom will you listen? Will you listen to the Lord or will you listen to the wayward woman? To the Lord or to the world? Verses 24 through 27, we read this then. coming full circle to verses one and five. Now, therefore, my sons, listen to me and pay attention to the words of my mouth. Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways. Do not stray into her paths. For many are the victims she has cast down, and numerous are all her slain. Her house is the way to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death. Solomon says, listen to me and pay attention to the words of my mouth. He having just painted a picture of her ways, do not let your heart turn aside to her ways. Do not stray into her paths. Why, for many are the victims she has cast down, and numerous are all her slain. Her house is the way to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death. I think of Isaiah, woe is me, I'm a man of unclean lips, living and dwelling amongst a people of unclean lips. Who can escape when it is everywhere? It's everywhere. What do we do? First, my friends, we look to Jesus Christ. We look to Jesus Christ remembering two things. One, he died on Calvary's cross in order that we would be set free from sin, so that we would not go back to it. And secondly, he died on Calvary's cross because of those sins. And so we should endeavor not to go back, but keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, treasuring his word and his commandments and making them our direction. Secondly, you cultivate healthy homes, healthy marriages. 1 Corinthians 7, spend time together behind the bedroom door locked. That is God's command. to foster, to promote what God has given. It is a good thing. It is a beautiful thing. And you'll notice the scriptures are never explicit. There's no how-to manuals in the scripture. We're given these things to learn and to cherish between a husband and a wife alone. So cherish those things. Third, set up fences. Make no provision for the flesh. If your devices, your phone, your computer, whatever it is, if it's a source of pornography and you can't run from it, get rid of it. It's not worth it. Get rid of it. Set up fences. Don't allow those things to go on. If you have sons, talk to your sons. Talk to your husband. Ask your sons. Ask your husbands. Ask your daughters. Caution them, warn them, don't let it continue. Encourage them that there is freedom to be found in Jesus Christ, and it's a long fight, but it is a fight worth having, and it is something we're called to flee from. Again, we're not out walking past corners. It's come into our homes in the most beautiful and enticing way, and we have to be on our guard. I really do fear that it's gutting the Lord's Church We come in and we love the gospel message because it reminds us that our sins are forgiven. But friends, we're not just a rehab ward. We're an army. And our sin, which entangles us, keeps us from serving the Lord with boldness and with faithfulness. Let us look to the Lord and ask his help. Again, our Father in heaven, we do thank you for your faithfulness to us. We thank you, Father, recognizing, perhaps late in the game, what a devastation pornography has been to this nation and to your church. We have felt the effects of it, and ask, O Lord, that we would not be indifferent that we would not be so indifferent, that we allow these things in our lives, that we would condone these things in our lives or anyone's life, but that we would understand that you have saved us from our sins in order that we would be a people who are holy, whose bodies are used for holy ends and not, Father, for indulging our flesh and our lusts. No different is our struggle today among so many than it was in this Proverbs chapter seven. The adulterous is there calling, the sin is enticing, and it is taking out many. Father, would you please help us? Would you, Lord, please set brothers and sisters free? Would you help us, Lord, to be proactive in delivering people and helping people come out of these sins? And we pray, Father, that we would not be embarrassed. but that we would, with the grace that has been extended to us, that we would go and help others as well. Please forgive us, Lord. We pray that we would be wise and faithful servants and that we would fight, Lord, for the souls of men and women, that we would fight for future families and husbands and wives. We ask for your grace. Again, we thank you for this evening and thank you for your word. Blessed now we pray in Jesus name, amen.