Sex and Power

A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.  Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors.  But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves

Luke 22:24-26

Disclaimer: The material in this blog is of a sensitive nature, and caution should be exercised in determining who reads this material.

The uproar over the Epstein files is still going strong- and it should. The perpetrators named in those files were in some way involved in a horrific violation of young girls. Decency demands that we pursue such abusers no matter where it may lead. If we are a nation of laws and morality, then justice must be pursued in the satisfaction of maintaining a functioning society.

The trafficking of young girls for sexual exploitation has been in the world perhaps since the beginning of time. The underlying motives- sexual gratification, dominance, power, extortion, amassing great sums of money etc. all fall somewhere into the famous “seven deadly sins” category.  

As we look at the rape of these young girls and young women, we know that rape is not just a sexual sin, but it is an exercise and a perversion of power. Men involved in this Epstein mess not only could gratify their sexual lust, but they exerted a sense of power and dominance over their victims. As I have said in past blogs, pride is the source of all sin. Every one of the so-called seven deadly sins are descendants of the root cause- pride. Pride says, in effect, “I am entitled to do what I want whenever I want to. I can have my way if I dominate you, so, I will do just that. The rules that apply to other people do not apply to me”.

Pride involves more than that little statement above, but it serves as a quick capsule of the sins that we see being exposed in the Epstein files. Indeed, the need to dominate another person, to force them to submit to my will for my gratification, is a grievous sin. History is replete with examples of this- slavery, colonization, exploitation of other people groups, etc.

Why does God hate sin? It hurts people. Whenever we deliberately exploit or hurt others, it is sin. Indeed, none of us is exempt from sinful behavior, and we all must be held accountable for things that we have done to hurt others. On a societal scale, these searches for justice for the victims of Jeffery Epstein must be pursued to ensure that we still want to strive for a society that can function remotely close to what God has intended for us.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us for having fallen so short of your plans for this world, Amen