How To Overcome Lust
Updated: Mar 2
Hi & welcome back reader! I pray you're having a blessed day, and may the Lord Jesus Christ be your Perfect Peace!
Today, I'm gonna talk about how to fight lust & focus specifically on:
There is also a Reflection + Ending Scripture provided at the end of the post.
[You can now click the subtitles above to take you directly to a specific topic!]
Like I mentioned in previous posts, a Christian's #1 resource should be the Bible, and of course, I will show you these specifics in the Bible.
Supporting Posts:
The Fundamentals of Sin (click here to view it)!
What Does Sin Do? (click here to view it)!
Stop Compromising Your Sin! (click here to view it)!
Sin Is The Gateway For Demons! (click here to view it)!
How To Receive God's Forgiveness (click here to view it)!
What Is True Repentance? (click here to view it)!
Adopt The Fear of The Lord (click here to view it)!
What Is Lust?
1 John 2:16, "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." KJV Version.
Let's look at the definitions, according to The Blue Letter Bible (www.blueletterbible.org):
Strong's definition (G1939)
"epithymia, ep-ee-thoo-mee'-ah; from G1937; a longing (especially for what is forbidden):--concupiscence, desire, lust (after)."
Outline of Biblical Usage (G1939)
I. desire, craving, longing, desire for what is forbidden, lust
Strong's definition (G1937)
"epithymeo, ep-ee-thoo-meh'-o; from G1909 and G2373; to set the heart upon, i.e. long for (rightfully or otherwise):--covet, desire, would fain, lust (after)."
Outline of Biblical Usage (G1937)
l. to turn upon a thing
ll. to have a desire for, long for, to desire
lll. to lust after, covet
A. of those who seek things forbidden
Therefore, lust can be defined as the desire, craving, or longing for things forbidden by The I AM. Did you notice the synonym for lust, concupiscence? According to Google, concupiscence is defined as the "strong sexual desire". This is what this particular blog post will focus on:
how to fight your strong sexual desires, so you don't transgress against the laws of God.
Let The Word Convict You!
I am going to offer my favorite set of scriptures on the topic of fighting strong sexual desires. The Sword of The Spirit (Ephesians 6:17), which is The Word of God, will help you pierce through your lustful thoughts, feelings, and fantasies.
According to Hebrews 4:12, The Word of God is quick (active, alive), powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword. This is the weapon that will help you fight against lust. Let The Word of God convict you:
Matthew 5:28, "But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." KJV Version.
[By the way, Matthew 5:28 applies to women as well. If Women look at a man to lust after him, they have committed adultery in their heart. Women can be adulterers too, not just men. The Word of God is not a respect of persons.]
1 Corinthians 6:18-20, "Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. (19) What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? (20) For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." KJV Version.
[Do you notice how Paul said "flee" not walk. Not tip-toe. Yet, FLEE! Your body is the temple of The Holy Spirit. Fornication is the only sin against the body, but what did Paul just say your body is? The temple of The Holy Spirit. Therefore, you are sinning against The Holy Spirit, when you fornicate. If you masturbate, you are sinning against The Holy Spirit. By the way, masturbation is fornication. Having sex with yourself is OUTSIDE a God-ordained covenant of a husband & wife. What do we call having sex outside of marriage? Fornication. Boom! Let the conviction run it's course. If you are lusting after someone else who is not your husband/wife, you are sinning against The Holy Spirit.]
1 Thessalonians 4:3-8, "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: (4) That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; (5) Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: (6) That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. (7) For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. (8) He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy spirit." KJV Version.
[Once again, ABSTAIN from fornication. God called ALL of us to holiness, not uncleanliness. Your body (the temple of The Holy Spirit) is supposed to be holy because A:) it's God's & B:) you carry His Holy Spirit within you. This is a Treasure within itself.]
1 Corinthians 3:16-17, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? (17) If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." KJV Version.
[Now this is the "slammer" scripture. You can't ignore it. Read verse 17 again and again. What defiles the temple of God? Sin. What is fornication? Sin. If you continue to defile the temple of God with sin, what will God do to you? He will destroy you. Look up synonyms of "destroy". There is no sugarcoating to this scripture, at all. This temple of yours is to be HOLY, SACRED, CONSECRATED, & SANCTIFIED. The I AM does not play. At any time, He can cast His judgement on you, and He has the FULL RIGHT to do so. If you're playing with fornication, you may wanna rethink your choice of fun. Let the conviction run it's course.]
It's Time To Rebuke & Pray!
Now that I've provided substantial amount of swords to pierce through your lustful desires, feelings, thoughts, & fantasies, it's time to utilize them. Whenever temptation comes, open up The Word of God (or you can even recite it from memory), and rebuke the temptations with your mouth!
In Matthew 4:1-11, we are shown where Jesus Christ rebuked Satan with what? The Word of God. You can rebuke Satan's TEMPTATIONS with The Word of God. This is one of the many reasons why it's imperative to know The Word of God for yourself. You need to keep your weapon (The Sword of The Spirit) on go, at all times.
I'll give an example of rebuking and praying:
"I rebuke these lustful thoughts and feelings in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. This temple is to be holy, sanctified, and consecrated. I will not defile this temple with sin. This is not my body, but God's. I am to treat His temple with respect, honor, and holiness. Jesus has called me to holiness, not uncleanness. It is in His will & my sanctification that I abstain from fornication. Holy Spirit help me in this time of temptation to hold fast to The Word of God. I do not want to transgress against Your temple. I do not want to dishonor or profane Your temple. Help me Father, in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, I do pray, Amen!"
Prayer is effective. Read what Jesus said in Matthew 26:41, "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." KJV Version. Don't be hesitant to ask The Holy Spirit to help you during this struggle. He is our Helper & Comforter, but you have to ask Him.
Once again, this was merely an example. Sometimes you can just recite scripture in your head, until it flushes out the thoughts. You can worship, & praise God through it (literally). Or you can open up The Word of God and just start reading scripture.
The significance of this is to turn your attention and focus on Jesus, so you get out of your flesh, and get active in the spirit. The flesh and the spirit is at a constant battle. You cannot win by yourself, you NEED Jesus Christ. Therefore, incorporate Him and His Word in your struggles.
Remove Yourself From The Sources of Temptation
Matthew 5:29-30, "And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. (30) And if thy right hand offend thee, cut if off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." KJV Version.
James 4:7,"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." KJV Version.
If you truly wanna to be free from lust, you need to FIRST ask for The Lord's forgiveness for sinning against Him. This is the first step because you have this sin in your heart, and God wants you to be cleansed from it before anything else. After receiving His forgiveness, its time for repentance, which will include removing yourself from the sources of temptation.
Whatever causes you to lust after a woman or a man that is NOT your spouse, you need to abstain from it. You have to be mindful of what enters your ear and eye gates. You can't listen to certain music because it may cause you to have sexual fantasies. You can't watch certain movies. You can't hang with certain friends or family. You may have to leave your boyfriend or girlfriend, if they're adamant on fornicating (remember now: whoever defiles the temple of God, He shall destroy. Just reminding you, so let them go!). You probably can't cuddle or kiss them (which I deem unwise because these are intimate actions, which will lead to? Intimacy, but hey!).
Like Jesus said, "for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell."
Sin is fun, but hell ain't.
Pick a side, & pick it fast. If you do not remove yourself from the sources of temptation, then you CANNOT complain why you're having lustful thoughts, or why you fall into fornication. You put yourself there. You're spoon-feeding the temptation. You are getting carried away by your own lust:
James 1:13-15, "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: (14) But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. (15) Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." KJV Version.
3 Q's You Should Ask Yourself
Genesis 1:27, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." KJV Version.
Based off Genesis 1:27, 1 Corinthians 6:18-20, & 1 Corinthians 3:16-17, I ask myself these two questions:
"Valencia, why would you want to defile the image of God?"
"Valencia, why would you want to defile the temple of The Holy Spirit?"
By asking myself these questions, I exclude my feelings and desires, and put ALL the focus and attention on Jesus Christ. If you love Him-if you truly love The I AM-, you will not want to defile the image or temple of Him. Look up the word, "defile"! Read the synonyms! If you have a heart for God, your heart will be pierced with a boulder of conviction.
This one came to me, as I was typing this blog post:
"How can I call myself a servant of a holy-righteous-sacred God, yet I choose to defile, profane, violate, debase, contaminate, degrade, and taint the temple of God with my sin?"
The importance of these questions is that they help you remove your feelings, thoughts, & desires, and focus on God's feelings, thoughts, desires, and commandments (because this is HIS TEMPLE, HIS PROPERTY, HIS POSSESSION).
Reflection + Ending Scripture
I thank you for taking the time to read this blog post. I pray you use this information for the edification of yourself and others. I do pray that you CHOOSE to overcome lust in the mighty name of Jesus Christ! Stop being a slave to lust, and be a slave to righteousness. God's temple (your body) is to be holy, sanctified, and sacred. If you do not treat it as such, then you know the consequence. If you don't recall, it's okay. It's the ending scripture:
1 Corinthians 3:16-17, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (17) If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." KJV Version.
Exclude your feelings, thoughts, & desires, and think SOLELY about God's because your body is not your own, & watch how you overcome lust. Be blessed, family!
For further information, you can always contact me through the blog's email (tamarstestimony@gmail.com) or the blog's IG (@tamarstestimony). Bye-bye!