Lust

In this session, we will see what lust is, the nature of the trap, and the only solution—the gospel of Jesus. Because lustful thoughts can be so consuming, so obsessive, it is important that we train ourselves to look elsewhere, to look at the cross of Jesus Christ. Training our spiritual “eyes” to behold the glory of Jesus and the purity of His righteousness is what will help us train our physical eyes from lingering where they should not and our hearts from dwelling on impure thoughts.

Memory Verse

Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
    and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;
Proverbs 6:25

Voices from Church History

See wherein we are free, wherein we are delighted with the law of God. Freedom delights. For as long as you do what is just out of fear, God does not delight you. As long as you do it still a slave, he does not delight you. Let him delight you and you are free.
—Augustine (354-430)

1. Lust is the intentional gratification of immoral sexual desire (Matt. 5:27-28).

What are your thoughts on the statement “Lust is always intentional”? Why does it seem so easy and natural to commit lust?

What would have been a better approach than pushups for helping young men on that beach curb lust?

What are some cultural evidences that women also struggle with lust?

Voices from the Church

What does God have for us when we have squandered his grace in the past?…More grace!
–Ray Ortlund

Lust Is the Sexualization of Pride

What makes pornography so powerful? How is it that while lust is always intentional, it feels so accidental, so automatic? The ease of lust derives from the way it mirrors the original sin of pride. It entices one’s flesh, appeals through the eyes, and offers one a self-centered, habitual lifestyle, taking over a sinner’s mental and private life (1 John 2:16; see the original pattern in Gen. 3:6).

But there is good news for those wrapped up in this web. Jesus has been tempted as we are, and He has been perfectly obedient (Matt. 4:1-11). He has conquered the original sin of pride and therefore all that is in the world, including lust. Therefore, He can forgive you for and redeem you from pornography. You know from experience that pornography does not satisfy as it claims; lay hold of the gospel by trusting that Jesus does.

2. Engaging in lust creates an ever-strengthening trap (Rom. 7:18-23).

Did the lessons your church taught about lust as you were growing up prove helpful? Why or why not?

If you did not grow up going to church, what advice, if any, did you receive from your parents or teachers about lust and handling sexual attraction?

OR

Voices from Church History

Do you think that anyone with a knowledge of sin can avoid it?
–Ambrose (circa 340-397)

3. We overcome lust by beholding the beauty of God’s grace (Matt. 5:29-30; 1 Thess. 4:3-5).

Flee Temptations

What obstacles often keep us from taking steps to curb our sinful behaviors and to avoid temptation?

What measures of accountability do you already have in place to deal seriously with lust? What steps will you take to secure greater accountability in this area?

Behold a Better Vision

How are you affected by the forgiveness and purity granted by Jesus in the gospel?

Voices from Church History

If sin inheres in my flesh and corrupts it, it may well be that the law offers help and gives advice, but even so it does not set me free from sin. Yet for those who are bound by the weakness of sin, it is hardly enough to know that they should be doing better; what they need is the strength to do what is right and in accordance with the law.
–Cyril of Alexandria (circa 378-444)

Voices from Church History

The wrong vision of God lies at the foundation of pornographic practice.
–Dallas Willard (1935-2013)

Conclusion

The gospel tells us that we are worse than we dare imagine but loved more than we dare believe. Believe this, I dare you!

When we begin to fill our minds with the better vision of God found in the gospel of Jesus, we see ourselves as we truly are—sinful and deserving of hell but deeply loved and eternally secured by the grace and righteousness of Jesus—and we begin to see others in a different light as well.

See, lust is essentially about using people, treating them as commodities for our own sexual gratification. People become objectified, reduced to the sum of their body parts or sexual performance, whether real or imagined. When we give in to lust, we place ourselves at the center of the universe and everyone else in orbit around our desires and satisfaction. This is how the sin of lust is also the sin of pride.

But if, in our consuming vision of the gospel, we get to know ourselves and our sins better and therefore taste the love of Jesus more sweetly, we will start to see people as they are—the precious image bearers of God. And as we grow to love God more and more, we’ll begin to love our neighbors more and more, which means looking to sacrifice for and serve them in the name of Jesus rather than objectify and use them.

The deeper we know the love of God, the less we will be given to lust. This begins with being honest about your sexual brokenness, addressing it sincerely and radically, and looking at the gospel with the same intensity and desire as you would a lesser, less-gratifying vision.

Voices from The Church

It is unhurried meditation on gospel truths and the exposing of our minds to these truths that yields the fruit of sanctified character.
–Maurice Roberts

Wrath

The purpose of this lesson is to explore the differences and similarities between righteous anger and sinful wrath as well as the differences between human wrath and God’s wrath. Because the Bible says that vengeance belongs to God and not to humankind, the Bible forbids personal wrath. This lesson will survey these distinctions, show the roots of sinful anger, and point to the gospel as the announcement of Christ’s satisfaction of God’s holy wrath owed to sinners.

Next Week