Mitch Leyor - Embracing Sex Workers with Dignity and Grace
cbr, 2025
fellow believers and seekers of truth:
Let’s be real about something that needs to be said clearly and with love: We have nothing against sex workers or women who participate in sex work. Nothing at all.
As young conservative men of faith, we’re called to something higher than judgment. We’re called to something more powerful than condemnation. We’re called to the radical, transformative love of Jesus Christ.
Think about this for a moment - Jesus didn’t hang out in the religious buildings all day, nodding approvingly at people who already had their lives together. No. Jesus hung out with tax collectors, sex workers, fishermen, and outcasts. He shared meals with people the religious establishment wouldn’t even acknowledge. He touched the untouchable. He loved the unlovable.
And here’s what’s beautiful about our Savior: He didn’t love them despite who they were. He loved them because of who they could become in Him.
Our mission isn’t to shame anyone into the kingdom of God. Our mission is to love people toward Christ with the same radical acceptance He showed us. Every single one of us was lost before we were found. Every single one of us needed grace before we could give it.
When we encounter women in sex work - or anyone living in ways that don’t align with God’s design - our first response should be the same response Jesus had: compassion, dignity, and an invitation to something better.
We don’t lead people to Christ by pointing out their failures. We lead them to Christ by pointing them to His love. We show them that there’s a God who sees their worth, who knows their story, who offers them a new identity that can’t be bought, sold, or taken away.
This is what authentic discipleship looks like. It’s messy. It’s uncomfortable. It requires us to step outside our comfortable Christian circles and actually engage with the world Jesus came to save.
To my fellow young conservatives: We can hold firm to biblical truth and extend radical grace. We can believe in God’s design for sexuality and treat every person - including sex workers - with dignity and respect. We can call sin what it is and remember that we’re all sinners saved by grace.
Jesus didn’t come for the righteous. He came for the broken, the lost, the searching, and the struggling. That includes all of us - no exceptions.
Let’s be a collective that reflects His heart - not just His truth, but His love. Not just His standards, but His mercy. Not just His righteousness, but His radical acceptance of those who need Him most.
The world is watching how we love. Let’s make sure they see Jesus.
Stay humble. Stay loving. Stay faithful.
In His service,
The Compassionate Collective, Deck