Re: Lust Is Not From God

Hi John:

I Want to share with you that there is a difference between lust and love. Lust is not from God. He did not create us this way, it is the result of the fall. it is our fallen sinful soul and flesh, not our spiritual being. In marriage sex is the consummation of love. You don’t have the feelings of lust you had before marriage, that is because it is of Satan and since sex in marriage is okay Satan doesn’t influence you anymore, he has nothing to gain. However, if two spouses stop loving each other in marriage, sex can turn into lust. When a person stops seeking the Lord and living for the Lord and when they stop loving their spouse, then their need for sex turns into lust.

What am I saying John? I am saying base your life on Jesus will, not on lustful feelings. Lust is not from God. Lust is momentary pleasure with no real fulfillment afterwards. It satisfies a need of the flesh for a few minutes but has nothing to do with coming into a godly loving relationship or building a godly long lasting relationship with the opposite sex. This is why it should never be a consideration in pursuing a relationship. Love has nothing to do with it. Always be suspicious of physical attraction alone. Don’t depend on it or decide to pursue a relationship based on it by itself. Satan doesn’t want you to do God’s will, so he is going to attack you with lust all the more because he doesn’t want you to do God’s will. Remember, lust is not from God, it is your enemy. This is why 1 John 2:15-17 states,

"Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides forever." (1 John 2:15-17)

Lust is the result of the fall. It was not something God created in us. It was lust for knowledge and to satisfy the soul and flesh which led to Adam and Eves fall. Because this is true, it is completely used and controlled over us by Satan. So it is something to be resisted at all costs because it will not lead to life or true loving relationships. It will give you satisfaction for a few minutes, but afterwards you will be discusted with yourself and the other person because no love is involved. So cut off those things which incite lustful feelings and desires in yourself and fight off thoughts that lead to lust. They are not from God, they are of Satan to destroy you, not lead you to any lasting happiness. The Bible says "Faith, Hope and love; but the greatest of these is love." Love goes into eternity, lust does not. This is what the Bible means when it says in 1 Corinthians 15 that "Flesh and blood will not inherit the kingdom of God." This is God’s instruction to you about what to do about lustful thoughts,

"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you." (Phil 4:8-9)

"If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it." (Genesis 4:7)

Sally is not a believer, this is not God’s will for you. "Do not be bound together with unbelievers, for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14). So what you feel is lust, not love. Lust is not from God, is not God’s will. We are not to cater to it, base our lives on it, or make decisions based on it. We are to master it (something you have to work at all the time), but never to base our lives, our decision making, on it. Only when what we are doing is in obedience to God and by His initiative is it love and are we then acting in love. This is what we are to focus on: God’s will, not our fleshly desires or the lusts of the flesh. This is because lust is not of God and has nothing to do with God. It is of the flesh and we are not to base our lives on our flesh, but on the Holy Spirit. The flesh is to be resisted at all costs. The lust of the flesh and the Holy Spirit have nothing to do with each other.

"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh with-strong-passion-fights against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." (Galatians 5:16-17)

You are walking by the Spirit when you are obeying God and focusing on obedience to God not what your flesh wants. If you are focusing on obedience to God, even though you may at times have lustful feelings, you won’t carry out their desires because you are focused on and doing God’s will. Paul wrote in Galatians 5:16 "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh." Love is a choice to obey the Holy Spirit, to obey God, to do what is right. When we choose to walk in obedience to God and obey God we are loving God and our brother and sister.

"By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do His commandments." (1 John 5:2)

God’s call to you to walk with Him is His call to you to not live by the flesh, but to bring your flesh into complete submission to Him, to master it, not be mastered by it. When the time is right according to His will for you, he will bring you a wife. If you can force your flesh into submission to God’s will and wait for His timing for a wife, then you will have no problem discerning what is of Him and what is of your flesh. If you can walk in obedience to Him until He brings you your wife, then you won’t have any problem obeying Him after marriage either. That is why you must give this decision and timing to Him and focus instead on His will for your life now.

"But seek-continually first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you." (Matt 6:33)

"Delight yourself in Yehovah; and He will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4)

Your Friend in Jesus,

Dale P. Kruse