From Brokenness to Belonging

From Brokenness to Belonging        February 22, 2026

SB26-097  Concerning decriminalizing commercial sexual activity among consenting adults.

· This is directly from the Colorado General Assembly website.

Bill Summary:

Quote:

“The bill requires the statewide decriminalization of commercial sexual activity among consenting adults. It declares that decriminalizing commercial sexual activity among consenting adults is a matter of statewide concern and expressly preempts statutory or home rule city, town, city, and county, or county ordinances, resolutions, regulations, or codes criminalizing commercial sexual activity.

The bill repeals the state criminal offenses of prostitution, soliciting for prostitution, keeping a place of prostitution, patronizing a prostitute, and prostitute making display. It also repeals the offense of pandering when it involves knowingly arranging or offering to arrange a situation that permits a person to practice prostitution. The bill maintains current state criminal penalties for pandering that involves menacing or criminal intimidation and for pimping, but it changes terminology in those offenses by replacing "prostitution" with "commercial sexual activity". The bill makes various conforming amendments, including those related to: reporting requirements, immunity, affirmative defenses, and criminal conviction records in human trafficking cases; public nuisances; certification by the Peace Officers Standards and Training Board; and the regulation of escort bureaus and massage parlors. The bill eliminates a court program for persons charged with certain prostitution-related offenses.”

End Quote.

· Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary

PROSTITUTION — the act or practice of promiscuous sexual relations, especially for money.

1. Introduction

· The Context: Acknowledge that prostitution is often called the "oldest profession" and has existed across cultures and throughout biblical eras.

· The Tension: The Bible presents a dual reality: a firm condemnation of the act as contrary to God's design, alongside a radical, compassionate inclusion of those trapped in it into God’s family.

· Thesis: While prostitution reduces the human person to a transaction, the Gospel restores our identity as "image-bearers" of God, who are never too far gone for His grace.

2. Point 1: The Devaluation of the Image of God

Scripture: Proverbs 6:26 (1For a prostitute can be had for a loaf of bread, but another man’s wife preys on your very life.)

1 Corinthians 6:15–16 (Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” )

The Transactional Trap: Proverbs warns that involvement with a prostitute reduces a person to "a loaf of bread"—a metaphor for how the industry treats humans as disposable commodities rather than sacred beings.

The Spiritual Bond: Paul argues in 1 Corinthians 6 that sexual union is not just physical but creates a "one flesh" bond. Joining the "members of Christ" with a prostitute is a spiritual contradiction because it brings the sacred into a broken transaction.

The Warning: Proverbs 26:27 describes prostitution as a "deep pit," warning that it leads to spiritual and emotional ruin by separating sex from its intended context of mutual honor and covenant.

3.  Point 2: The Radical Grace of Christ

Scripture: Matthew 21:28-33 (“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.’”)

Luke 7:36-50 (When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.” Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, teacher,” he said. “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[ and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.” Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”)

Jesus’ Social Scandal: Jesus shocked religious leaders by saying that "prostitutes and tax collectors" were entering the Kingdom of God before them. He prioritized repentant hearts over social respectability.

The Woman with the Alabaster Jar: In Luke 7, Jesus allows a "sinful woman" (likely a prostitute) to wash His feet with her tears. He ignores the Pharisee's disgust and affirms her great love and faith, declaring her sins forgiven.

Friend of Sinners: Christ did not affirm the sin but moved toward the suffering. He recognized that many were driven by desperation or exploitation and offered them a path to healing rather than condemnation.

4. Point 3: Redemption and a New Lineage

Scripture: Joshua 2 (Rahab and the Spies Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.” But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut. Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed.  When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don’t tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.” So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. She said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.” Now the men had said to her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house. If any of them go outside your house into the street, their blood will be on their own heads; we will not be responsible. As for those who are in the house with you, their blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on them. But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.” “Agreed,” she replied. “Let it be as you say.” So she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window. When they left, they went into the hills and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had searched all along the road and returned without finding them. Then the two men started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua son of Nun and told him everything that had happened to them. They said to Joshua, “The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us.”)

Matthew 1:1-6 (The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah

This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac,

Isaac the father of Jacob,

Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,

Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,

Perez the father of Hezron,

Hezron the father of Ram,

Ram the father of Amminadab,

Amminadab the father of Nahshon,

Nahshon the father of Salmon,

Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,

Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,

Obed the father of Jesse,

and Jesse the father of King David.)

Rahab the Harlot: Despite her profession, Rahab’s faith in God led her to protect the Israelite spies. God not only saved her but also integrated her into the very lineage of the Messiah, Jesus.

Redefining Identity: God redefines those with a past. In Matthew's genealogy, she is no longer merely "the harlot" but the mother of Boaz and a progenitor of Christ.

Spiritual Prostitution: Hosea’s marriage to Gomer (Hosea 1) is a metaphor for all of us. We "prostitute" ourselves when we seek satisfaction in idols rather than in God. Redemption is God’s costly act of "buying us back" into a relationship with Him.

5.  Conclusion & Call to Action

For the Broken: If you feel "messy" or disqualified by your past, remember Rahab and the woman at the well. Jesus’ lineage is rooted in stories of redemption.

For the Church: We are called to be a refuge, offering practical help and restoration to those affected by exploitation rather than casting stones of judgment.

Closing Prayer: Focus on the believer's identity as the "Temple of the Holy Spirit," bought at a price.