“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” While there may be some truth to this adage, the human heart bends toward the hedonistic ideals of ALL play with as little work as possible. There is nothing wrong with having some pleasure in this life in its proper place. But hedonism says that pleasure is the prime goal of life and anything that causes pain or discomfort should be avoided at all costs. The mind that thinks like this is just one click away from a porn addiction.
Modern hedonism traces its roots to an 18th and 19th century philosopher named Jeremy Bentham. He said, “every law is an infraction of liberty,” and, “the greatest happiness of the greatest number is the foundation of morals and legislation.” His whole aim in life was to live pleasure-filled and pain-free. Does this not describe the goal of much of modern America? And sadly, this also represents a large number in the American Church.
Bentham’s ideology is nothing new. Scripture tells us of the danger of living a pleasure saturated lifestyle through King Solomon 3000 years ago. The wise king wrote in Ecclesiastes 2:10 (NET), “I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure.” At the end of this pursuit he would write in Ecclesiastes 12:8 (NLT), “Everything is meaningless…completely meaningless.” In our day, has Scripture’s warnings about the pitfalls of seeking after pleasure fallen on deaf ears? The answer is a resounding “yes.”
With the American Church being influenced more by a hedonistic culture than the Bible, it is no wonder why so many Christians are addicted to pornography. Steve Gallagher gives keen insight as to how a life lived with no restraint regarding pleasure and indulgence is the perfect breeding ground for sexual sin.