LUST

LUST

Do not be drawn away from God.

I remember a time in high school when I worked second shift at a hosiery mill to save money for my first car. I had it all picked out—it was a beautiful convertible car in buttercup with a black top. I had called the owner of the car dealership to advise I was on my way. Someone else came before I arrived and bought the car I thought I wanted. Needless to say, I bought a different car but a few weeks later the owner (who was also a good friend of our family) called to share that the car I had intended on buying caught on fire and burned up. God had saved me from something I could not see or know.

This was a spiritual lesson I learned at a young age before college. It has helped me know and understand that God goes to extreme measures to save us from harm. The Bible says:

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: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death (James 1:13-15).

This Scripture says we are tempted when we are drawn away. Drawn away from what? God! Anyone can be drawn away from God. As believers in Christ Jesus, our inner man wants to do the will of God. Our hearts desire to please Him and to do what is right inside. The battle that sometimes rages within is a warning from God to make the right choice. We have freedom to make choices, but not consequences.

We all have to contend with the temptations of the flesh. As long as we live in this world, there will be a battle that rages between the spirit and the flesh. The word that is most often associated with flesh is the term “lust.” When you hear or see that word, most think of sex or immorality. The Greek meaning is “strong desire.” Simply put, the lust of the flesh is the strong desire to follow after the ways of the world, rather than after God.

Lust for money, power, and control can draw you away from God. Lust for having everything your way will also draw you away from God. Lust for being a people pleaser and not a God pleaser will destroy you. The green-eyed monster of envy and jealousy can raise its ugly head when you lust for things and use people to get them, and when you choose to hurt people on purpose.

Lust for anything that goes against the Word of God will eventually destroy you. The car I thought I wanted was not a sin—it was just that God knew it wasn’t best for me at the time.

It is acceptable to God to have desires to obtain an excellent career and education, while it is also acceptable to have a desire for success, but not at the risk of destroying others. These “wants” are acceptable and permissible as long as they line up with God’s Word and are kept in perspective. We must choose to be watchful on purpose so that none of these things draw us away from God.

As believers in Christ Jesus, we are already citizens of the kingdom of heaven and we can walk and function in this world without being subjected to it (John 17:16). God calls us to be a living sacrifice in this world—a person who is not conformed to this world, but we are to present our bodies a living, holy sacrifice, and being transformed by the renewing of our minds to the will of God.

The manifestation of God’s power is directed related to purity and holiness in the Body of Christ—His Church. God does not manifest Himself to those who are disobedient and have sin in their lives. The Holy Spirit works in us to bring us to the light of God’s Word and His ways, while Satan works without to keep us in bondage to the world and people.

But we are tempted when we are drawn away and trapped by our own evil desires. (James 1:14 GNTA)

Anything you gain through manipulation, deception, and control will ultimately end in disaster. Whatever or whomever you try to destroy to protect self will ultimately end in eternal disaster unless there is true repentance. You can read the account of Judas in the Bible and find out how deception and betrayal brings destruction. A story with a better ending is the account of Joseph who had brothers who sought to destroy him.

We must defeat the enemy’s schemes and choose to walk in the life of the Spirit of God, being led by Him and by His Word—if we are to be vessels of honor and power.

Don’t get into agreement with Satan or the people he is using. Stay connected to God. God does not lie. The circumstances on this earth do not bother God. He is not bound by circumstances and He is not limited to them either. God knows how to turn anything around for you. It doesn’t matter how awful things may seem, nor does it matter who has come against you. You are in the world with a Savior—His name is Jesus! Stay in God’s Word and remind the enemy that He has messed with the wrong person—a person connected to Jesus! You have the power connection with the power above ALL power, and choose to maintain a divine awareness of that connection!

You will find the most wonderful relationship with Jesus that is beyond anything you can dare think or imagine that will change your life! Dare to believe Him today and draw close to Him! Choose to walk the straight and narrow way with God—even if it feels like you are sometimes alone!