Jesus Loves Prostitutes
By Brian Nixon, Special to ASSIST News Service
ALBUQUERQUE, NM (ANS – Feb. 3, 2015)
-- It’s been said that prostitution is the oldest profession in the
world. And though that's an overstatement—the first professions
mentioned in Genesis are farming and shepherding(1)—prostitution
is a widespread reality. There is willing prostitution (practiced on
their own accord) and forced prostitution (such as the sex-slave trade).
According to Business Insider, there are over forty-two million prostitutes working in the world, “three quarters of them…between the ages of 13 and 25.”(2)
There's no real way to know how many of them choose it and how many are
forced. In America alone, some estimate that there are over one million
prostitutes, raking in over 250 million in commerce.(3)
The
Bible speaks of prostitution in both the Old and New Testaments. The
general consensus of the biblical witness is that it is immoral (see
Proverbs 23:27-28). God's word makes it clear that prostitution wreaks
havoc on everyone involved with its practice—from practitioner to pimp
to purchaser—and does great damage to the souls of the people involved.
It's a perversion of God's purpose and plan for sex.
Yet, Jesus loves prostitutes.
While prostitutes are not living within God's will for their lives, they
are not outside of His grace and mercy. They can reach out to the
loving hands of the Savior, finding hope, salvation, and new life.
To help us understand the
topic, we’ll define the word, discover what the Bible has to say about
the topic, and develop a plan to reach the hurting person caught in
prostitution.
Define:
The word prostitute is taken from two Latin words, the prefix pro (meaning before) and statuere
(meaning, set up, or place). In a literal sense, it means someone who
set up a place beforehand. Throughout the Middle Ages, the definition
was generally understood as someone exposed publically, or offered for
sale. In its modern usage, a prostitute is someone who engages in sexual
activity for payment, and refers both to men and women.
Prostitution is part of what is deemed the sex-trade industry, which includes sex tourism and sex trade.
Discover:
The Bible has a multitude of references to prostitutes and the act of
prostitution. Some of the Hebrew and Greek words used for prostitution
include:(4)
A temple prostitute: qadesh (Hebrew)
A harlot: qedashah (Hebrew)
Someone who commits fornication: zanah (Hebrew)
A male prostitute: keleb (Hebrew), a reference to a dog.
A general New Testament reference to a prostitute: porne (Greek)
Key Bible verses include:
Proverbs 23:27-28: For
a harlot is a deep pit, and a seductress is a narrow well. ??She also
lies in wait as for a victim, and increases the unfaithful among men.
Proverbs 6:25-26: Do
not lust after her beauty in your heart, nor let her allure you with
her eyelids. For by means of a harlot a man is reduced to a crust of
bread.
1 Corinthians 6:13b: Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
Romans 8:1-2: There
is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who
do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the
law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law
of sin and death.
Develop:
In an article for Christianity Today,
writer Rachel Marie Stone interviewed a former prostitute named Anny
Donewald. Donewald entered the field of prostitution at the age of
nineteen, plunging “headlong into the sored world of exotic dancing and
prostitution.”(5)
When Stone asked Donewald the
most effective way to “minister to strippers and prostitutes,” she
replied, “We want to offer a message of hope, rather than condemnation.
Ultimately, I believe it’s the Holy Spirit who convicts. They ought to
know we’re Christians by our love. But that won’t happen if we come
across as judgmental. If anything, that turns girls in the sex industry
off from Christ. Besides, to these girls, the attitude is 'I’m already
in hell—why are you telling me I’m going to hell?' What they need,
instead, is a sense that a different kind of life is possible.”
As is the case with all people—regardless of the sin in which they are entrapped—Christians must offer LOVE:
L—Listen to people. Make a sincere effort to get to know them and their situation.
O—Observe
their life. Where are they coming from—emotionally, intellectually, and
spiritually? Find the root of the issue. Ask yourself, How can I assist them?
V—Voice God’s
truth. What does the Bible teach concerning prostitution? Even more
importantly, what does it say about forgiveness, grace, and love?
E—Embrace them
with the love of God in Christ. Empathize based on shared experiences
(if possible and useful), but keep Jesus the focus of your conversation
and outreach.
To learn more about the Jesus Loves People series at Calvary Albuquerque, click here: http://jesuslovespeople.com/
1 See Genesis 1:29 and Genesis 4:2.
Photo caption: A prostitute working the street
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