Often, when one approaches the anti-human trafficking sector, they become overwhelmingly heartbroken at the thought of a victim being forced, frauded, or coerced into committing sex acts or suffering hard labor. Understandably, their initial reaction is to think, how can we rescue these victims, alleviate their suffering and begin a path of restoration? Most often, their focus turns to the rescue and restoration of the victims. For example, suppose they enter the words rescue or restoration in the context of human trafficking in an internet search. Undoubtedly, many organizations will appear on such a search that advertise these as their primary objectives. Veritably, people are more apt to donate to an organization that shares rescue stories in countries where overt trafficking occurs, such as India. And let there be no mistake; rescue and restoration are critical in this fight; however, on the other end of the spectrum — the prevention side — there is a too-often hidden battle that can take the legs from under the intractable giant that is human trafficking, and it is called demand reduction.

In other words, human trafficking survives on supply and demand. In terms of sex trafficking, if you remove the buyers of commercial sex – the demand – there is no longer an impetus for the supply – trafficked victims. Categorically, the most crucial battlefront in fighting the demand side of sex trafficking right now is the porn industry. Current “science and research now show,” according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), “pornography fuels sex trafficking” (Pornography: A Public Health Crisis, 2015). At the same time, not only are prostitutes the victims of sex trafficking, but most women in pornography are also trafficked (Farley, 2015). Tragically, the NCOSE reported that “[more] than 80% of the time, women in the sex industry are under pimp control—that is trafficking” (p. 30). Therefore, reducing the demand for pornography, by extension, reduces the demand for sex trafficking. 

Biblical Guidance

Accordingly, for Christians passionate about fighting on the demand side of trafficking, Scripture offers us direction. In this case, the Apostle Paul, on his third missionary journey through the Province of Asia, illustrates the prodigious impact that an intervention of prevention creates in an industry undergirded by greed. No doubt, as is frequently the case with Scripture, “God, the divine Author, had future congregations in mind” (Duvall & Hays, Daniel, 2012). In this particular situation, God inspired Luke to record arguably the largest uproar Paul’s presence had ever caused in one city; yet, Luke also inadvertently recorded a paragon example of modern-day demand reduction. 

In the biblical account of Paul’s mission to the Greco-Roman city of Ephesus, we witness macro-level trade reduction in an economy supported by the production of a false idol. That is, a pagan idol, a replicate of the goddess Artemis, whose worship constituted evil spirits and immoral behavior (Acts: 19:18-19). Because the temple in Ephesus was vastly admired, visitors from other countries and far-off lands came to witness its splendor and purchase these shrines to worship (“Acts,” 2002). As a result, the livelihoods of the silversmiths, who manufactured the shrines of Artemis, and all other tradesmen who profited from the temple, depended on the idol worship of Artemis. 

Therefore, when Paul shared the gospel in Ephesus, “large numbers of people” were turning away from man-made idols (Acts 19:26); they “openly confessed their evil deeds” (19:17), and they were turning to faith in Jesus Christ. Significantly, this disrupted the comfortable profits the tradesman enjoyed from the temple of Artemis. Consequently, these tradesmen became furious with Paul, so much so that they met together to discuss their profit losses, the temple’s reputation, and the demand reduction for their products (Acts: 19:27). In other words, the gospel, as preached by Paul, had reduced the demand to purchase what the tradesmen were supplying.

Modern-Day Artemis

Comparatively, in our modern world, pornography resembles the same misguided idol that drove the citizens of Ephesus to indulge in immorality during Paul’s generation.  Indeed, pornography was also created by men who enjoy the profits of those who genuflect to its lure. It insidiously rose in the twentieth century and has increased rapidly since the turn of the twenty-first century as technology has catapulted its following. Pornography has prostitutes trapped against their will – trafficked — to serve it and to serve the men who fall prey to its deviance (Farley, 2015, p. 30, 33).

Strictly speaking, the porn industry is a well-oiled machine that hijacks the divine sexuality God gifted every human being. The porn industry targets children; it promotes prostitution; it promotes pedophilia; it teaches sex is not about intimacy, marriage, or creation; it shows behaviors that are “toxic, hurtful, narcissistic, traumatizing” (Pornography: A Public Health Crisis, 2015, p. 35), and false, and it is becoming more and more deviant to meet the demands of the sex addicts who follow it. 

Invariably, men who watch pornography want to emulate what they are watching. “No longer are they satisfied just looking, but must experience what they have seen” (Smart, 2015). For single men, this quick fix is found in purchasing a prostitute. For married men who know their wives will not do what the women in pornography do, they will frequently also buy a prostitute to satisfy the cravings planted by pornography. 

The Battle Among us

By and large, what does all this mean for us, as Christians, living in modernity? For starters, many Christians believe pornography is a worldly issue; yet, recent research conducted by the Barna Group revealed that 75% of Christian men and 40% of Christian women “report that they view pornography at least occasionally” (Beyond the Porn Phenomenon: Equipping the Church for a New Conversation About Pornography, Betrayal Trauma and Healing, 2024, p. 6). Equally important, in a previous, study the Barna Group found that 39% of Christian men and 13% of Christian women said their porn use was excessive (Porn Stats: 250+ Facts, Quotes, and Statistics about Pornography Us, 2020, p.23). By Contrast, Dr. Ted Roberts, a pastor and counselor to men recovering from porn addiction, would disagree with the Barna Group’s findings. He believes half of all church congregations are quietly struggling with pornography addiction today (Roberts, p. 70).

Regardless, we need evangelists to preach the gospel as the Apostle Paul did to the world, and we can trust its power will turn hearts from sexual immorality; however, we also need the gospel preached in our churches. Said another way, the gospel relevant to our current church struggles. Consider these words by Martin Luther: “If you preach the gospel in all aspects with the exception of the issues which deal specifically with your time – you are not preaching the gospel at all” (Roberts, 2008). 

Turning to the Apostle Paul again, who knew Luther’s philosophy well because as he was preaching the gospel in Ephesus, he was writing to the Corinthians regarding the sexual immorality inside their church. Incredibly, Paul was turning the Ephesians away from their immoral acts through his proclamation of the gospel while simultaneously writing to the church in Corinth about the harmful effects of uniting their bodies with prostitutes (1 Corinthians 6:12-18). 

In contrast to the Corinthian church’s overt sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 5:2-6), pornography addiction is secretly hidden under the burden of shame. Most often, like many addictions, it is a temporary escape from a person’s reality or the pain of their past. More often than not, childhood trauma is found below the surface of their addiction. In fact, during a “four-year study of a thousand recovering sex addicts,” well-known sex addiction therapist Dr. Patrick J. Carnes and his team “discovered 81 percent of men and women had been sexually abused as children…” (Roberts, p. 67). Notably, Carne’s statistic does not count the sex addicts who came from dysfunctional families of neglect or psychological abuse, split apart by divorce, or raised in foster care. Decidedly, the crux of addiction is the attempt to mitigate a deep wound in the soul. 

Therefore, it is not the church’s place to judge or shame anyone trapped by the temptations set forth by the porn industry. These addictions destroy marriages and families; they are very sensitive and require immense patience and love. Healing these addictions takes more time than we like to admit, and it has to take place in a space of grace. The kind of love Jesus commands is agape love, which takes commitment and sacrifice, but our hurting Christian brothers and sisters are worth the price. And if there is any doubt in the importance of this mission, we must remember that each man or woman freed from porn addiction means one less customer for the porn industry. Thus, a reduction in the demand for the captivity of another boy or girl into the reprehensible underworld of human trafficking.

Fighting from the Pew

Do you feel the call to join the fight to stop sex trafficking globally? At this moment, you have the unique opportunity to fight human trafficking on the demand reduction side from the comfort of your church pew. Ready to get started? Here are a few suggestions that can make a major impact: 

• Advertise recovery support groups through your church’s social media outlets. Dropping the Stones, an initiative of Life 107, offers biblically-based and clinically informed programs for adults struggling with pornography addiction or unwanted sexual behaviors. Visit wncfreedom.org for more information.
• Encourage your pastor to preach a sermon series on sexual integrity.
• Create a safe space – free of shame – for men and women to come for healing and support.
• Meet with church leadership and offer resources and training that will aid them in helping those who come to them with a sexual addiction.
• If you know someone struggling with unwanted sexual behavior, encourage them to join a recovery support group. They cannot do this alone; it takes social support and strong relationships.