Book Review: The Death of Porn by Ray Ortlund

The Porn industry is a multi-billion-dollar corporation that is views by all over the world. What was just behind the cash register at the local convenient store can now be seen on our smart phones. If one is not careful, it can even be seen on social media. 

Men and women (yes, women too) have fallen into the trap of this scheme by the devil with the "look but not touch" mentality. There are many who think this is safe when it really it is not. Pastors have stepped down from the pulpit because of this issue. Marriages have fallen apart even when one spouse to trying to imitate what they have seen on screen.

In The Death of Porn, Ray Ortlund attempts to help his readers that they do not have to be in bondage with the sin of pornography.  In this book, he writes each chapter as a letter saying things such as you are royalty because Christ is in you and the woman you are observing on screen matters to God because she is made in His image.

The subtitle to this book indicates this is more for men than women. To say that pornography is only something men struggle with is short sighted. Granted men are more prone for all fall into than women, but women also can struggle with porn just as men can.

As I continued to read this book, there are some suggestions on what men should do in the battle against pornography, however, I did not see anything about holiness or even killing sin. You would think there would the famous quote from John Owen, "Be killing sin or sin be killing you." Colossians 3:5 which, in the ESV, says put to death with is earthly in you, is not even quoted in this book.

Ortlund does compare those involved in the porn industry are slave, which I do not disagree, which he states that this is a justice issue. Do not get me wrong, we need to persuade the men and women involved in make porn to abandon, not because they are slaved in this industry, but they are under the wrath of God, and he will judge them for their actions. This is something I did not get from Ortlund's book. 

There is not even the mention of holiness. You think a book on porn would have a chapter or two on holiness but there is not. Yes, there is being an advocate against the porn industry, but there is nothing about fleeing sin or being holy. Thabiti Anyabwile, who wrote the Foreword, said Ortlund knows that we can defeat the "porn monster" by standing against "the wiles of the enemy in the truth of Jesus's gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit." I do not disagree, but Ortlund did not deliver on that.

As I read this book, I kept thinking is this how helpful others books I have read on sexual sin are compared to this one. Even the beginning of the book made me want to be sure I got the right book because I felt I was reading something from Joel Osteen because Ortlund was telling us men that we are royalty. Even Thabiti said we can "regain" our sense of royalty because of Christ renewing us in the image of God. Sorry, but I do not see anything in the Bible that Christ is restoring us to our sense of royalty which has cause me to feel sick just writing that statement.

I know there are many pastors and teachers who want to stand against the Porn industry but the one thing that we need to do is fight the sin within us. The Death of Porn is a book that will not be very helpful in the areas of holiness and sanctification.

I received this book from Crossway in exchange for an honest review.