The Bible tells us that God is totally against sexual temptation. The Lord Jesus tells us that being tempted by someone is as serious as committing adultery with them. In Matthew 5:27-28 He tells us,
"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lu5t for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
Knowing that lu5t is a serious thing in the eyes of God, we should be careful not to do it.
A sly, cunning sin
Many of us desire to do what pleases God and try to avoid lu5ting after anyone. The problem is, many of us don't know what lu5ting is and fail to recognize if we're already doing it. What is lu5t, and how do we distinguish it?
Lu5t, in general, is a "longing desire; eagerness to possess or enjoy" something. For this article, we will talk about sexual lu5t, which is defined simply as a "carnal desire; to desire eagerly the gratification of carnal appetite."
Sexual lu5t is basically a longing to satisfy the cravings of the flesh, particularly its sexual cravings. Men lu5t after women when they desire their beauty, and women lu5t after men the same way, too.
But how do we stop lu5t? Before we are able to stop it, we have to recognize it and acknowledge it for what it is. This article hopes to help all men (and women) recognize lu5t so they can stop it.
Signs to watch out for
Here are a few signs indicating possible sexual lu5t. Remember that lu5t is a desire, and thus it we will focus on the desiring part of it.
1) When you start to desire a person's beauty
Many Christians make the grave mistake of calling lu5t an "appreciation for beauty." There's a very thin line that separates appreciation from lu5ting, and that line is called "purity."
Suppose a man sees a pretty woman pass by. While that woman is indeed pretty, the longing to gaze at her and marvel at her beauty is what we should be watching out for; why the longing? Why desire to see her face or her body?
2) When you keep thinking about a person's physical qualities
Lu5t is always in the mind before it becomes an action. As such, we've got to check what we're thinking. Let me give an example.
Suppose a man sees an attractive woman but decides not to approach her. While the decision not to approach her out of sheer attraction might be good, what happens next is the challenging part: how about the man's thoughts?
He might not have approached the woman, but in his head he's already thinking about her physical attributes.
The Lord Jesus said that "whoever looks ... to lu5t" has already committed adultery. The thoughts matter more than just the actions.
3) When you can't stop yourself from desiring
Here's the dangerous part that many people don't recognize. Ever "idolized" or got "star-struck" by someone's physical beauty that you can't stop thinking of that person and desiring to be near her? If you said yes, then know that that's lu5t.
For example: you see a scantily-clad woman and desire to look at her body. Your conscience tells you that it's wrong, but you convince yourself that there's nothing wrong with what you're doing. You convince yourself that you're not doing anything wrong, when in fact your fantasies are already getting stimulated.
People who make excuses just to get to someone they want from the opposite sex might not be thinking about sexual things, but the desire to be with them is a lu5ting that must be dealt with. And it gets even worse when the desires become sexual in nature.
In closing
Friends, God made man and woman in His image and likeness. We are to honor God by respecting our fellow humans, especially those of the opposite sex. We must not turn them into objects of desire; rather, we must treat them with all purity at all times.
