Advice To Overcome Pornography & Self-Abuse
Summary
TLDRThe transcript discusses the struggle with lust and the impact of pornography in society, particularly on young men. It emphasizes the spiritual and psychological consequences of such behaviors, referencing Orthodox Christian teachings and the importance of purity and obedience to God's commandments. The speaker suggests that the root of these issues is often pride and a lack of fear of God, and recommends seeking spiritual guidance, prayer, fasting, and adhering to the church's teachings as a path to overcoming these passions and restoring one's spiritual life.
Takeaways
- 🙏 The script discusses the struggle with lust and the impact of pornography, emphasizing the importance of seeking spiritual guidance and understanding the root causes of such passions.
- 📚 It highlights the Orthodox Christian perspective on self-abuse, considering it a grave sin that deprives the soul of purity and leads to spiritual enslavement.
- 🛡️ The speaker suggests that the root of such passions often lies in pride and arrogance, and overcoming them requires a deep understanding of one's spiritual stance and outlook on life.
- 💔 The script mentions the lack of spiritual upbringing and catechesis as a contributing factor to the prevalence of these issues, noting the importance of proper initiation into the spiritual life.
- 🧐 It points out that the world often promotes self-abuse from a young age, creating a societal norm that is in opposition to virtue and spiritual health.
- 🙅♂️ The speaker advises against the immediate return to communion after confession for those struggling with lustful sins, suggesting a period of penance and spiritual healing is necessary.
- 🕊️ The importance of obedience to spiritual rules and canons is underscored as a means of restoring the image of God in the individual and overcoming passions.
- 🕉️ Prayer and fasting are presented as key components of the healing process, with fasting being a cornerstone of expressing obedience and self-denial.
- 👨🏫 The role of a spiritual father is emphasized in guiding individuals through their struggles, applying the wisdom of the church fathers and canons to their specific circumstances.
- 🚫 The script warns against the dangers of self-imposed penance or communion, stressing the need for guidance from a spiritual father and the importance of genuine remorse and change.
- 🌐 It criticizes the institutionalization of sin in modern society, particularly through education systems, and calls for a return to the teachings and practices that promote virtue and spiritual health.
Q & A
What is the main issue discussed in the transcript?
-The main issue discussed is the struggle with lust, particularly the impact of pornography and masturbation, and how these behaviors can affect an individual's spiritual life.
What does the speaker suggest is the root cause of these passions?
-The speaker suggests that the root cause of these passions is often arrogance and pride, which can lead to a lack of fear of God and a disconnection from spiritual life.
What is the significance of the term 'Akida' in the context of the script?
-Akida refers to a kind of spiritual debilitation or a loss of zeal for the spiritual life, which can lead to a person becoming indifferent to their spiritual well-being.
Why does the speaker emphasize the importance of the fear of God?
-The speaker emphasizes the fear of God as a crucial starting point for spiritual healing because it instills the fear of losing one's eternal soul and being separated from God, which can motivate individuals to seek change.
What is the role of obedience in overcoming these passions according to the speaker?
-Obedience is presented as a foundational aspect of overcoming passions. It is through obedience to God's commandments and the guidance of the church that individuals can regain control over their lives and restore their spiritual health.
What does the speaker mean when referring to 'the rule' in the context of spiritual healing?
-The 'rule' refers to the spiritual guidelines and practices, such as fasting and prayer, prescribed by the church to help individuals overcome their passions and restore their spiritual life.
Why does the speaker mention the importance of fasting for children?
-The speaker mentions the importance of fasting for children because it instills the discipline and spiritual practice from a young age, which is crucial for their spiritual development and resistance to worldly temptations.
What is the speaker's view on the use of pornography among Orthodox Christians?
-The speaker strongly condemns the use of pornography, stating that it is a form of fornication and adultery in the heart, which is against the teachings of the church and detrimental to one's spiritual life.
What does the speaker suggest as the initial step for someone struggling with lustful passions?
-The speaker suggests that the initial step is to develop the fear of God and a desire to be saved, followed by seeking guidance from the church's teachings and applying spiritual practices such as prayer and fasting.
How does the speaker describe the relationship between pride and fleshly sins?
-The speaker describes pride as the root of all fleshly sins, suggesting that it leads to disobedience and a disconnection from spiritual life, which in turn results in individuals seeking fulfillment through sinful behaviors.
What is the significance of the term 'satisfaction of the penalties' in the context of the script?
-The term 'satisfaction of the penalties' refers to fulfilling the penance or spiritual exercises prescribed as part of the healing process from sinful behaviors, emphasizing the importance of obedience and commitment to spiritual restoration.
Outlines
🙏 Struggling with Lust and the Role of Spiritual Guidance
The speaker addresses the issue of young men struggling with lust, often exacerbated by easy access to pornography. They discuss the importance of understanding the root causes of such passions, which can include a lack of spiritual connection and the influence of societal norms. The speaker emphasizes the need for spiritual guidance and a deeper look into an individual's life, relationships, and background. They also mention the Orthodox Christian perspective on self-abuse, referencing religious texts and the negative spiritual consequences of such actions.
🌱 The Impact of Worldly Training and the Need for Spiritual Fear
This paragraph delves into how individuals, particularly converts to the faith, have been conditioned by worldly desires and instant gratification. The speaker uses the analogy of carving a canal to describe how habits form pathways in the soul, making it easier for passions to take hold. They discuss the concept of escapism through sin as a means of avoiding reality and the lack of belief in one's ability to achieve spiritual freedom. The importance of instilling fear of God and understanding the destructive nature of sin is highlighted, along with the need for proper catechesis and spiritual initiation.
🚫 The Dangers of Immediate Communion and the Importance of Penance
The speaker warns against the practice of immediate communion following confession, especially for those struggling with persistent sins. They argue that true healing requires a therapeutic program involving fasting, prayer, and spiritual guidance. The speaker also touches on the concept of obedience as a foundational aspect of spiritual life, drawing parallels to the biblical story of Adam and Eve. The importance of fulfilling the rule or penance given by a spiritual father is emphasized, as it is seen as a form of obedience that leads to communion and spiritual restoration.
📚 The Role of Patristic Wisdom and the Necessity of Fear of God
The paragraph discusses the importance of heeding the wisdom of the church fathers, particularly in the context of overcoming sin. The speaker recommends reading the commentary of St. Nicodemus to instill the fear of God, which is considered the beginning of wisdom. They also address the issue of pride and arrogance as root causes of fleshly sins and the need to combat societal influences that promote vice. The speaker calls for a return to traditional spiritual practices, such as fasting and prayer, as a means of healing and spiritual growth.
🛐 The Healing Power of Prayer, Fasting, and Self-Denial
In this paragraph, the speaker focuses on the healing methods of the church, particularly prayer and fasting, as essential tools for overcoming sinful passions. They stress the importance of self-denial as a means to achieve spiritual freedom and to fill the void left by the absence of God's spirit. The speaker also discusses the role of fasting as an expression of obedience to God and a cornerstone of Christian life, advocating for its practice from a young age to establish a strong spiritual foundation.
🏠 Spiritual Enslavement and the Path to Mastery Over One's Household
The final paragraph addresses the consequences of being enslaved to sinful passions and the importance of taking control of one's spiritual household. The speaker argues that true virtue and love cannot be expressed through sinful acts and that mastery over these passions is necessary to be the spiritual head of one's home. They reiterate the importance of prayer, fasting, and self-denial as the antidotes to the emptiness that leads to seeking pleasure from material sources.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Lust
💡Self-abuse
💡Purity
💡Pornography
💡Spiritual Father
💡Akida
💡Obedience
💡Penance
💡Fear of God
💡Fasting
💡Despair
Highlights
The impact of young men struggling with lust and the various forms it can take, including pornography and masturbation.
The importance of understanding the root causes of lustful behavior, such as pride and arrogance, and their connection to spiritual enslavement.
The spiritual dangers of self-abuse, as understood in Orthodox aesthetic literature, and its scriptural references.
The role of technology and the internet in making pornography more accessible and its detrimental effects on individuals from a young age.
The necessity of a spiritual father's guidance in addressing and treating the issue of lustful passions.
The concept of Akida, a spiritual debilitation leading to indifference towards spiritual life, and its relation to lustful behavior.
The significance of the fear of God in overcoming lustful passions and the role of obedience in spiritual healing.
The importance of fulfilling the rule or penance assigned by a spiritual father as a form of obedience and healing.
The potential for self-imposed penance and the risks associated with it, emphasizing the need for spiritual guidance.
The discussion on the appropriateness of communion for individuals struggling with sin and the role of spiritual readiness.
The role of prayer and fasting as foundational practices in the Orthodox Christian approach to overcoming lustful passions.
The importance of teaching children the value of fasting and its impact on their spiritual development.
The connection between gluttony and lust, and how they both represent a form of slavery to worldly pleasures.
The necessity of self-denial as a means to achieve spiritual freedom and mastery over one's own life.
The role of the Holy Spirit in filling the spiritual void that leads to seeking worldly pleasures.
The opposition to virtue institutionalized in modern society and the importance of fighting against it with the fear of God.
The commentary of St. Nicodemus on the Canon of St. John the Faster, emphasizing the seriousness of lustful sins and the need for spiritual healing.
Transcripts
is that sometimes I will see uh online
uh young men will be posting on social
media and they'll say something to the
effect of pray for me I'm struggling
with lust or I fell to the passion of
lust and we don't know what exactly
happened did he look at a woman with
lust in his heart or did he have a
lustful thought or maybe did he uh use
pornography and masturbate which
unfortunately I hate to say the words
but um that's a common thing in our
society today I had I just had a guest
on uh last week who said that he started
looking at hardcore pornography at eight
years old that was available because of
the internet I know what what does that
do what does that do to a person you
know um fortunately I I think I was
spared a lot of this because was just we
didn't have the technology to access
pornography easily when I was growing up
so I mean that was one thing that I was
spared thank God but um so the question
I want to ask you um let's say this
person comes to you and
he's enslaved to this passion he's
falling regularly he falls so often that
you could set a clock to it and then he
comes to you and he asks you for advice
and he says father
help help me what what would you give
this person this young man as advice
who's struggling with this
passion well there there's probably
going to be more to it than just he says
a few things then I give him advice we
would probably go into his life and
what's happening in his life and with
his relationships um you know his his
background and things because
the the root cause of a lot of these uh
passions that let's just take this gross
passion uh that is common today which
unfortunately is not just common with
men but it's common with women as well
increasingly and that is the the
self-abuse it's called in in Orthodox
aesthetic literature because it's
understood as a grave harm to the soul
uh the uh in the Old Testament it's in
Genesis 38:10 its
onanism and that was the first time it
seems to have appeared at least in the
scriptures and it's and it's very
very tragic and the condemnation of God
is Swift and the death of the person who
does it Onan is what is the fruit of
that um so the Lord hates this sin that
you mentioned um
self-abuse and he hates it because it
deprives the soul of the Purity we
talked about which is natural to the
soul and that's the the aim of the devil
first and foremost is to deprive man of
that Purity because he knows that with
from that base of that Purity from that
state of
Purity um he can have communion with God
there's no the obstacles have not been
severely erected and we're not just
talking we not when we mean impurity and
Purity we're not just talking about
fleshly sins you know the sins of the
flesh but because pride is far is is the
is the before there was anything with
the flesh there was Pride right Pride
brings about
often times the fall into the fleshly
sins we oftentimes look for causes of
this of this enslavement to the
self-abuse or fornication or pornography
we look often
times to the belly which is not which is
connected like we you know why are we
why are we a slave to this passion well
it's were analogous or along with this
passion often times is a slave to
something else in terms of the belly or
the drinking or something like this but
ultimately the cause is not there either
the cause is in arrogance and pride so
so if you you to treat to treat this
this sickness this
enslavement uh you have to go deeper and
get to the co root causes and many times
they're going to be in the general
stance and Outlook of the human being
that they've probably oftentimes fallen
into
um uh Akida Aida is is is a kind of
debilitation of the spiritual of the of
the Zeal for the spiritual life right
they've just fallen into a almost a
depression or despair or indifference to
spiritual life um and they're also
oftentimes not focused on or have any
real desire for or or belief that they
can live a spiritual
life uh and so they fall into that I
mean they've they've been trained if
they've coming from outside the church
many of us are converts we've been
trained in the ways of the world which
is to
satisfy uh abruptly quickly uh the
urges and so they probably have become
accustomed to these things and now that
now the they've formed a habit and one
could think of it
as uh uh let's say um
um if you think
of I can't remember the phrase right now
but let's say you have a a source of
water and you want the water to go in a
certain direction what do you do you you
kind of carve a small canal in in the
earth to make the water go to where you
want it to go you you know you're
irrigating or something what what
they've done is they've they've carved a
canal in their soul and so very easily
this passion gets in and F and goes to
its goes to its you know to its end its
completion its fulfillment and and it's
so that habit has been ingrained in them
and and what it is though is it's a um
oftentimes an escape from reality it's a
it's an addiction of drug uh not unlike
other drugs and they're escaping from
reality because they don't believe
ultimately they don't trust and believe
that they can become a saint that they
can be freed that they can become master
of their own
person uh through the grace of God and
and so they need there's a variety of
things that are going on usually right
um they don't have the fear of God also
uh they don't they don't really truly
understand how destructive the sin is
how this
sin um enslaves them to the devil to the
demons how they will not inherit the
kingdom of God if they do not uh get
free from it they don't have the fear of
losing Eternal salvation because of it
it's done in secret it's done in the you
know in their bedroom in their shower
whever so they're almost always alone so
they they don't have the fear of God
another reason why you can tell they
don't have the fear of God is because
they're only concerned about what people
think about them mostly not about what
God is going to do or say or their
communion with God they might they may
have never tasted the spirit the the
true fruits of the of the spiritual life
to remember them like Adam remembered
paradise and wept so they don't have the
Weeping that comes when if you taste it
and then you fall away and you fall into
the these gross fleshly you know sins
you have that memory so many of them
don't have that memory many of them are
coming to the church they've not been
properly catechized not been properly
initiated and so they're they haven't
been properly
purified and so they don't they haven't
tasted the grace of God to such a degree
that that that memory alone could shake
them out and and and bring them back to
to their senses so that there's a lot
going on uh it's a it's a it's the end
of it's the end of many passions uh
Pride uh Aida
slothfulness um no fear of God uh so I I
oftentimes uh try to first and foremost
the beginning of all wisdom is the fear
of God so the first thing that happens
they need to fear losing their Eternal
Soul and fear being separated from God
as a as a Kickstart to the spiritual
life again so I I actually tell them to
go read the the the footnote in the next
Garian that St Nicodemus was written
under the under this particular Canon of
St John the faster which is on page 180
of our of our edition of dexo Garian in
G in in English so if you go to that
page there's cannons on the particular
sins that are committed just so people
know because a lot of people don't know
for this particular
sin anyone having practiced masturbation
is penced 40 days during which he must
eat dry foods and make 100 prostrations
daily that's what the Canon prescribes
now a spiritual father depending on the
person's where they're at how you know
there's going to be maybe an application
of that Canon could be more or less from
what the Canon says often times less for
us sometimes not at all that's one of
the biggest problems is we have
spiritual fathers who don't apply the
Cannons they don't they don't even look
to the Cannons as guides and they don't
they don't understand that okay you
don't have to follow the letter of the
Canon but the spirit of the Canon needs
to be needs to be applied because it's
it's it's the it's the medical textbook
by which we follow the curing of the
passions and so we can't just simply
ignore St nicodemos the kadis mean the U
like guari and the Cannons of seen on
the faster which have come down to us
that's that's not possible otherwise
we're going to end up being Mal
practicers as as priests we're going to
send people back sick and then if they
go in commune which many times
unfortunately priests have been trained
to let them commune or send them
communion almost immediately well that's
just going to double down on the you
know in terms of not getting free of
this passion it's not gonna they're not
GNA be free of the passion simply by
going back by by having Remorse by
confessing and then going to communion
again that's not going to be sufficient
for the 99.9% of the people who have
this passion that's not going to work so
can I can I interrupt
so this brings up a question uh for me
sometimes people wonder I've even had
for example someone asked me should
several actually this has happened
several times sh I I fell into sin
should I not go to communion what if the
priest doesn't give you an
epidemia would do you apply one to
yourself do you skip or
or well that's also fra with dangers
applying one to yourself but can you but
so exactly applying an epidemia probably
not probably not but even just absenting
yourself from communion was that just or
even just or even just skipping
communion you know until I don't see how
anybody can you know I don't think I
don't think a spiritual father can force
one to commune they can say you have a
blessing to commune but if you're not
prepared I I don't see any any good
spiritual father would not say you must
commune that would be we don't do I mean
I've never heard that spiritual father
telling people they have to commune
right so if the person if the if the
person who is is um not healed and he
knows he's not healed and he's
struggling and he's falling again almost
immediately into the passion of he
should not commune interesting
interesting until he gets at least some
therapeutic program some therapeutic uh
you know schedule in his life which
means fasting and prayers and and a
close uh a close observation by a
spiritual father if possible
um you know know if if if that were the
if that if it were that easy so to speak
to overcome the passions we would all be
Saints yesterday you know go to
confession and go to communion again and
you're going to have the grace of God
again like it's that's not in the
tradition no why do we have cannons why
do we have a Penance of 40 days why
would St John the fter give that if if
really it's not necessary you can just
go back to communion in a week There's
Something missing here in our in our
contemporary application of the Patric
wisdom if there is an application of the
patristic wisdom going on uh but it's
it's essential that that they that they
um not fulfill some kind of penance or
some What's the phrase that's used in
some of the Latin terminology that
people really rebel against and
understandably so because it's
legalistic that's not what's going on in
the fathers obviously it's it's rather
um oh I know the term is satisfaction of
the pendants maybe or satisfaction of
the rule I forget so so that's a
unfortunate or just a legalistic way of
saying fulfilling the rule now why is
fulfilling the rule really important
that you that your spiritual father gave
you well if you go back to the you go
back to the Garden go back to Adam and
Eve and what the Lord had given them
what did he give he gave them he gave
them a rule he gave them an obedience he
said don't eat of this tree was the tree
the problem no of course not what was
the issue it's question of obedience how
do we lose Paradise we broke the fast we
broke we didn't keep the rule we we
disobeyed that's at the heart of uh of
returning to God if we want to return to
God we obey and and there's so many
things in the church that legalistic
worldly minds want to dissect and say
well what's the big deal about this why
do we have to do this why do we have to
for instance the big issue why do we
have to Triple immerse when we're when
we're we're baptized why can't it just
be pouring like the Latin are why can't
it just be sprinkling like some other
heter group well because the Lord said
This is how we do it and this we've been
doing for 20 years what the canons say
what the fathers say and it's a question
of obedience so how do we enter Paradise
again we're obedient and why is
obedience so important well because
obedience is a is our yes like the
mother of God to the Archangel it's our
yes like all the Aesthetics we want
communion with you Lord and we want it
and we're going to we're going to do
this therapeutic program because that's
who we want to be we want to be in
communion with you so obedience leads to
communion and communion is restoration
of the image and likeness it's it's the
it's obedience and communion is what
leads us to a restoration of the
according to nature which are the
virtues so the rule is fulfilling the
rule is extremely important for no other
reason than at least the question of
obedience right and so the rule it
doesn't have to be 100 frustrations it
could be 50 could be could be 150 if
you're a robust young man you should do
150 I mean that's not what's important
important but it's important is whatever
the spiritual father gives you do and
you do it in all humility and you do it
crying out to God asking him for
assistance to overcome this passion to
overcome this
slavery um but that won't happen if you
don't have the fear of God so that's why
one of the first things I say to them is
read the read the commentary of St
Nicodemus why because it strikes you
strikes the fear of God in you if you
have any piety at all and it's meant to
do that if you read if you read it and
we we could read it but I I think it's
probably best not to because you know
people need to do it according to the
spiritual father's guidance but he
quotes scripture fathers and he drives
home the point here that is totally not
said in the world the world the world is
teaching people to to self abuse right
from a young age they they're
encouraging it the the UN the un uh
Charter which is trying to be imposed in
Greece in the education system says from
age three or something something let's
help let them explore and and do do this
sin I mean it's it's unbelievable the
opposition to Virtue that is now
institutionalized in America and in the
world so so you've got to fight against
that and you've got to have the fear of
God because you've been you've been
watered with pride arrogance and
Rebellion from your earliest days and
you will get nowhere if that's your
stance and that's ultimately the cause
of all the all the fleshly sin
is this pride and arrogance um you
mentioned you said ni uh the rule of
nicodemos or what was that is that what
you were saying the rule that's laid
down here in the in the Canon of St John
the faster Canon 8 but I think you also
mentioned another another text he said I
think it was I think you said nicodemos
was that right say ncos here has the
commentary on the C oh okay the
commentary all right yeah the commentary
on on this canid by St nios and he's
Gathering all the patristic evidence uh
why why this is such a serious sin I'll
read just one or two little excerpts
which I think will be helpful to people
okay okay
um
so he talks about the Old Testament he
talks about St Paul in Romans 1:24
referring to the pagans and he's
referring to this sin when he says the
following wherefore God also gave them
up to uncleanness through the lust of
their own Hearts to dishonor their own
bodies between themselves and it's
interpreted as as this sin committed uh
between themselves and then there's also
St John the latter in his step 15 who
says this sin is fornication performed
without another body so this could lead
us also to talk about the other part of
this scenario that you presented which
is uhh pornography which is ravaging the
world and including Orthodox Christians
including married Orthodox
Christians who have unfortunately the
delusion they fallen into the gross
delusion that pornography is not
fornication pornography is fornication
brother you are fornicating you are
you're committing adultery through
pornography and how do we know that well
what does the Lord say in the gospel he
doesn't say if you do the deed you are a
adulterer but if you lust after in your
heart the woman or the man could be
applied to women you've committed
adultery in your heart he says so he's
taking us to another level obviously the
now the spiritual life is being
introduced we're no longer just talking
about morality and and the law now we're
talking about the spirit and the spirit
has a much higher standard because
that's the Inner Man and that's where
the kingdom of God has to dwell and so
if you uh are committing this sin of of
looking at pornography and lusting after
a woman in your heart you're you're
unfortunately coming under the words of
Our Lord that you've committed adultery
in your heart now you're doing that and
you're doing so self- abuse now you're
doubly uh falling into into this this
gross sin now what should be the
reaction to my words if you're in if
you're a slave to these passions not to
fall into despair not to fall into
judgmentalness not to reject the words
but if you desire salvation it is to cry
out to God and to ask him to help you to
overcome these and be freed of these and
that's the whole point of the church why
do we go to church why are you in church
on Sunday to become healed to become
free not to be enslaved as the fathers
say right but to be free and to be
restored and so no matter what the sin
is no matter what the sin is no matter
how many times you've committed it no
matter how enslaved you feel you are the
church's life the grace of God the
guidance of the fathers can and does
free you when you apply the medicine and
so first and foremost fear of God I want
to be saved I don't want to be lost I
want to obey God if if you don't have
that disposition there's nothing I can
do or any other spiritual father can do
that's the first and foremost the root
of
good what's that the root of good yes
yes so start there and then start to
apply the medicine the medicine will be
the opposite like when you have a
sickness you apply you know the that
which will heal and that which will
replace the illness right so if you are
lusting after
uh the flesh if you're if you're
um let's say you're a gross Glutton
which is not far away from the sin of
fornication because it's the same uh you
know lust after food lust after flesh
it's it's it's a Des it's a slavery to
something outside of ourselves and and
Desiring to fill up this emptiness that
we have because we're not fulfilling the
law of God not not filled with the Holy
Spirit we're trying to fill up this
emptiness that we have with whatever we
can from the material world right and so
uh we have to recognize that hate that
as a fake uh replacement of the real
life in Christ hate those things and the
sins not the things and uh and and then
Begin by applying the healing methods of
the church which is going to be first
and foremost at the core of every
healing is prayer and fasting prayer and
fasting is going to be the key uh and
fasting is essential a Cornerstone some
Orthodox Christians unfortunately don't
fast very much or they're raising their
children and they're not fasting I I was
I'm shocked to see um among very sincere
Orthodox Christians that their children
age 9 10 11 12 are not fasting this is a
disaster for that child now he doesn't
have to fast strictly but he's got to do
something because if he doesn't learn as
a young boy or
girl the way of life of fasting then
when he goes older he's not going to
going to do it it's going to be much
harder to do it right whatever you
ingrain in a child from five on even
before five St porfidio said all the
raising of the children happens before
age five think about that I think
psychology would agree with that that
the the uh the the personality is set by
that time yeah so they're they're
they're observing constantly and soaking
in everything you're doing you are the
Prototype of what they what they think
life is about so when you don't fast or
you don't have them fast in any way
you're not you're not exemplifying the
fast you're teaching them not the fast
and so fasting the Lord says when you
fast you say if you fast and St Sarah
from Sarah says there is no Christian
who does not fast if you don't fast
you're not a Christian according to St
Sarah from Sarah and why why is that
because you we lost Paradise again
through Disobedience and breaking the
fast returning to Paradise is going to
be a question of obedience fasting first
and foremost what is it it's a question
of obedience it's not a question of
athetic struggle it is also that but
it's first and foremost a question of
obedience and that's how we enter
Paradise again right the Lord showed us
obedient unto
death he didn't he wasn't obedient and
then he had you know it easy unto death
he was obedient there was no limit to
his obedience to the will of the father
so he is showing us that's the path to
paradise and and fasting and prayer but
fasting we're talking about right now is
is a Cornerstone to express in and
living out that life of obedience and
that self-denial is to if we be if it
becomes a habit and a way of life that
self-denial and U the opposite of that
love pleasure seeking that self-love
right the opposite of that is
self-denial what that does is it it
frees us it makes us free from the uh
slavery of the pleasures uh that we're
constantly trying to amass in order to
fill up the the whole which is the
absence of the spirit of God so it's a
Cornerstone to True spiritual Freedom
it's a Cornerstone to
Restoration and for you to be the the
the Lord of your house of your manner
right because when you are enslaved to
self- abuse or pornography or
fornication or whatever or sodomy or
other sexual acts we can talk we'll get
to this eventually I'm sure even within
marriage if you're enslaved to these
things you think these things are
expressions of uh virtue and love uh
then you cannot uh you cannot uh you're
not you're not in charge of your own
household so to speak spiritually
speaking I mean you're you're you're
still a stranger that has strangers
living in your house and they're ruling
your house your spiritual house so
there's so much uh there's so much
um in other words these these fleshly
sins are ultimately really
the root of them is pride and
Disobedience
[Music]
ultimately
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