Every day, television, movies, billboards, newspapers and magazines bombard us with lustful images. And when lustful thoughts become part of our lifestyle, we feel like prisoners to those controlling desires. But God does not want us to suffer in the prison of lust. He offers hope and freedom when we turn to Him for help to understand the truth behind the lies of lust.
The Roots Of Lust
Lust has been with mankind throughout history. In fact, at the creation of the world, God met Adam and Eve's basic needs for food, companionship and protection. Yet He put one thing out of their reach to test their love for Him - the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:16-17
But the LORD God warned him, "You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden —except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die."
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Due to lust, they failed God's test! Satan tempted Eve by telling her that God was holding back something good. She and Adam, through lust, ate the forbidden fruit. As a result, they subjected all mankind to God's curse (Genesis 3:6-19
The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man* and his wife heard the LORD God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the LORD God among the trees. Then the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?" He replied, "I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked." "Who told you that you were naked?" the LORD God asked. "Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?" The man replied, "It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it." Then the LORD God asked the woman, "What have you done?" "The serpent deceived me," she replied. "That's why I ate it." Then the LORD God said to the serpent,"Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild.You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live. And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring.He will strike* your head, and you will strike his heel." Then he said to the woman,"I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth.And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you.*" And to the man he said,"Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat,the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it. It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains. By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eatuntil you return to the ground from which you were made.For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return."
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A Thirst For More
The roots of lust run so deep that it is almost instinctive. And once we begin to fulfill our own lusts, a vicious cycle begins. Lust leads to sin. Sin breaks our relationship with God (Romans 1:24-32
So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other's bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God's justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.
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). We become numb to lust's impact, so we think we can lust even more.
That is the very nature of lust: an unquenchable thirst for more and more ... . More money, fame, power, revenge, food, clothing, love. Unless our desires are turned over to the Lord, we will never be satisfied.
Quenching The Thirst
If you have been searching in vain for fulfillment through the things of this world, then now is the time to discover the answer to the greatest desire in your life.
The Bible says that our greatest need is to worship God. This is why we created (Colossians 1:16
for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth.He made the things we can see and the things we can't see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.
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). But sin has separated us from God (Romans 3:23
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard.
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) and only through Jesus can we be forgiven of our sins and restored to God.
Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life! ... Without me, no one can go to the Father" (John 14:6
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
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). If you have never given your life to Jesus - and made Him Lord of your deepest desires - then do so now. Simply pray and ask Jesus to come into your life by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 10:9-10
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.
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The Daily Battle
Due to our fallen nature, we will have to deal with lust until we die. The temptation to lust will come in many forms. There are external lusts, including ungodly sexual appetites and overindulgence in food and drink; and there are internal lusts, such as the lust of power, fame or position.
Therefore, we must rely on the power of the Holy Spirit inside us to overcome lust every day. "Let the Lord Jesus Christ be as near to you as the clothes you wear. Then you won't try to satisfy your selfish desires" (Romans 13:14
Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don't let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.
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No matter the form of lust we face, we can be assured that we have an Advocate who "understands every weakness of ours" and "was tempted in every way that we are. But He did not sin" (Hebrews 4:15
This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.
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). Jesus is not a distant God who is looking to judge you, He is your friend, and he has walked the road you are walking right now!
Victory Over Lust
God does not want you to be a prisoner of lust. The Bible says, "Christ has set us free! (Galatians 5:1
So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don't get tied up again in slavery to the law.
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). We have assurance from our Lord that he will help us to battle lust (Romans 8:31-32
What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won't he also give us everything else?
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). Try these practical steps and ask God to lead you to victory.
Ask God for help. Sometimes we are too ashamed to take this first step. Don't try to fight the battle of lust on your own. Go to God and ask Him for help. This is what humility is all about.
Die to lust. The Bible says "sin does not have power over dead people" (Romans 6:7
For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.
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). So to overcome lust, we must recognize that "the persons we use to be were nailed to the cross with Jesus" (Romans 6:5
Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was.
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). Of course, we are not actually nailed to the cross. We just recognize that our old way of life died with Jesus. When we understand what it means to be dead to sin, we will then find freedom from lust.
Walk in the Spirit. The next step is to submit your life to the Holy Spirit. "If you are guided by the Spirit, you won't obey your selfish desires" (Galatians 5:1
So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don't get tied up again in slavery to the law.
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6). Remember, you can't fight lust on your own, so ask the Holy Spirit to help you.
Renew your mind. Focus on God's Word and allow Him to remove your lustful thoughts and actions (Romans 12:2
Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
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). put away everything that appeals to the flesh and focus on God (Ephesians 4:17-24
With the Lord's authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity. But that isn't what you learned about Christ. Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.
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; 2 Cor. 10:5).
Resist and flee. Perhaps the best advice all is simply this: Run! Don't allow lust to linger in your mind. Get far away from situations and influences that threaten to trap you (Proverbs 5:8
Stay away from her! Don't go near the door of her house!
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; James 4:7-8
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
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As You Pray
"Dear Heavenly Father, I can't deal with lust apart from you. Please forgive me and cleanse me from my sin. And please replace my lustful desires with Your desires for my life, so that I can glorify You in everything I do. Thank You. In Jesus' name, Amen"
God's Word On Lust
"Don't love the world or anything that belongs to the world. If you love the world, you cannot love the Father. Our foolish pride comes from this world, and so do our selfish desires and our desire to have everything see. None of this comes from the Father. The world and the desires it causes are disappearing. But if we obey God, we will live forever" (1John 2:15-17
Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers' coins over the floor, and turned over their tables. Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, "Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father's house into a marketplace!" Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: "Passion for God's house will consume me."*
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Scriptures For Study
James 4:1-4
What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don't they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don't have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can't get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don't have what you want because you don't ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don't get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure. You adulterers!* Don't you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.
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-- The origins of lust
Romans 7:14-25
So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.* I want to do what is right, but I can't. I want to do what is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God's law with all my heart. But there is another power* within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God's law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.
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-- Our struggle with lust
1 Corinthians 6::9-10 -- Consequences of lust
Romans 6:12-23
Do not let sin control the way you live;* do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace. Well then, since God's grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living. Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
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; James 4:5-8
What do you think the Scriptures mean when they say that the spirit God has placed within us is filled with envy?* But he gives us even more grace to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say,"God opposes the proud but favors the humble."* So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
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-- Freedom in Christ
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible.
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