@ETUDE - Lust

UV 3265/10000 @Etude –Lust

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wise and insightful, she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.

Genesis 3 v 6

The origin of human lust or the illegitimate desire for something apparently good but intrinsically evil and harmful can be traced back to this uni-verse. Most of the human decisions are based on the superficial, not the supernatural. We choose what looks good over what is genuinely good. Being “good for food” appealed to the lust of the flesh, being “delightful to look at” appealed to the lust of the eye and being “desired in order to make one wise and insightful appealed to the pride of life. As Adam and Eve yielded to the temptation, they broke trust or faith with God, their Creator.

Jesus, the Son of God, sent to redeem mankind, in contrast judged things not on the basis of what He saw but He discerned things spiritually and not carnally. We, too need the help of the Holy Spirit to judge rightly and take the right decisions, make the right choices. Jesus resisted the temptations of satan and harked back to the wisdom of the Word of God to resist the lust of the flesh when He was asked to turn stones into bread to satisfy His hunger after forty days of fasting, the lust of the eye when He was shown the glory of all that lay below and asked to worship satan, the pride of life when He was tempted to jump since the angels would keep His feet from dashing against a stone.

Lust left its consequences and scars on the first couple even as it leaves its disastrous impact on individuals, families and society to this day. Desires in itself are not evil but if one tries to satisfy desires that God has declared to be illicit or illegitimate per His word, then it amounts to violations of His law. What draws the attention of our senses is often alluring and delightful but it requires us to exercise the fruit of self control. Self control does not mean control of self by self but control of self by the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit directs, leads and controls our spirits, our spirits lead our minds, our minds lead our bodies and all related faculties, we have true self control.