God's View:
Exo. 20:4 , 5 , 17 - Matt. 5:28 -The "flesh" desires many things. It wants power, pleasure, wealth, status, admiration, etc. Nothing wrong with liking things. But lust is more than liking. It is the will to possess. Lust turns good things into objects of worship and this is closely linked to idolatry. We are to image God in our thoughts, emotions, and in our wills, not people or things.

Hope:
Gal. 3:13-14 ; Gal. 5:16-18 -It is a question of desire, replacing desire with desire, desire to please God rather than to please self. As we choose to honor God in our thoughts daily, the desire of the inordinate flesh will fade away. This battle is a lifetime of spiritual warfare.

Lu. 9:23-24 ; Matt. 22:37-39 - Gen. 2:18 -Pornography, masturbation, and other misdeeds are substitutes for intimacy. By these acts a person is addicted to self-centeredness, committed to serving themselves, doing whatever they can to avoid dying to self. This is a spiritual problem, not primarily physical. It always involves the spirit of man, either in concert with the will of God, communing with the Holy Spirit, or in rebellion against that will, trying to push the Holy Spirit out of the way.

Change:
Rom. 12:1-2 ; Col. 3:1-5 -Concentrate on setting your heart and mind on things above, then after you do this, put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature.

Matt. 5 ; 29; Matt. 6:9-10 -Just because you can't help lusting does not make it acceptable. Jesus is dedicated to bringing in another kingdom. To be His disciple, you must put lust to death. You must learn to want what He wants for you, and to put away everything else.

Gal. 5:13-14 ; Rom. 6:3-6 -Having been 'buried ' with Christ in our baptism, we are 'made alive' with Him by the Spirit. We therefore make our choices accordingly to the point of becoming 'slaves to one another' out of love rather than serving self and its lusts.

Gal. 2:20 -As a result of your union with Christ( Eph. 4:1 , 20 , 21; 5:6) you are compelled to speak truthfully ( Eph. 4:25 ), to build up ( Eph. 4:29 ), to die to self ( Eph. 5:1 ), and to not be ruled by self, passion or anger ( Eph. 4:31 ) in relationships especially in marriage.

l John 4:7-8 ; l John 1:6-9 -God says if my heart is kept pure by continually meditating on the word in the context of God's sanctifying work, I will have the power to overcome temptation that leads to indulgence, pornography and masturbation. It is not psychological techniques, not a problem of dealing with our drives but of sanctifying our hearts in communion and intimacy with God and with others.

Memory/Meditation/Prayer :

1 Tim. 4:7 .

Devotions :

BSAF on 2 Tim. 2:22 ; Phil. 2:3-4 ; 1 Tim. 4:7 .

Put-off and put-on:

Review and briefly answer the following questions:

• Lust Objects: What controls or possesses you - magazines, x-rated films, quest for power, status, wealth, etc. ?
• Relationship Lusts: What are your relationship desires? What do you want out of a relationship? Do you want to be close? distant? Do you want to get involved in the lives of others? or do you want nothing to do with people?
• Life Meaning Lusts: What do you believe makes life work? What's important? What isn't? What do you believe you must have in order for your life to work, to function, to be successful?

Note: Keep a journal of times when you are tempted.

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