Adults Saving Kids' Major Messages to Christians

People in prostitution are usually victims of abuse or trickery.

Before we make any judgements about people in prostitution, we best look at two factors: What were they dealing with in their lives at the time they got in? What tools, learnings, and experiences could they have had in their lives which would have equipped them to go another route? See the story of the rape of Tamar in II Samuel 13:1-21, the words about judging others in Matthew, and Jesus and the woman caught in adultery in John 8.

Christians are not perfect.

Children in Christian families do become involved in prostitution. Perhaps abuse, addiction, divorce, or other precipitating factors have been in the family. Much could be happening of which the congregation is not even aware. Parents can be neglectful. Children can grow up naive of what they might encounter or what they might do if they did encounter certain challenges. Even the best parenting does not decisively disarm every ploy and scheme sex industry recruiters might use. See Acts 20:29-30. Pray fervently.

Jesus warns against taking advantage of the weak and vulnerable.

Read Matthew 18:2-7. People who are weak and vulnerable are often the very people the sex industry offers to us. It is possible to live in an evil world without doing this evil ourselves.

Jesus came to liberate the captives and set free the oppressed.

Read Luke 4:18-19. As a part of the Body of Christ, this is also our mission in this world. God does look at how we stand with and care for the oppressed, the ridiculed, the needy. God will bless those who stand with them and provide for them. In fact, God will bless them so much that they will rebuild the walls of safety for the vulnerable - walls which have fallen and exposed young people to harm and danger. (Isaiah 58:6-12, Matthew 25:31-46)

We are salt and light in the world.

Read Matthew 5:13-16. One of the ways we do that in our lives is to be there for the people being devastated. In America today, we Christians are able to see the plight of young people and do something, but will we? Will we stand by and allow more and more child abuse, drug abuse, recruitment into prostitution, and gangs to continue unabated? We Christians have the grace, the promises, the strength, and the will of God to turn this around but we must first commit ourselves to the task.

Leadership is needed!

Commercial sexual exploitation will continue unless more leadership is found. We at A-STOP believe people of faith can give leadership. We can step forth as Nehemiah did and make the necessary difference (Nehemiah 5:1-13). It will be a long, tough battle, and we have God's promises to sustain us.