What is desire? Desire is a strong urge of wanting to have something or to hope for something to happen. As human beings, we all have desires for one thing or the other whether it be good or evil. Mankind by nature is rebellious and, I must make it known that demons cause men to commit shameful acts. Nevertheless, the decision that we make when we face temptations is what will determine our destiny. Many battles with strong desires cause individuals to operate like a puppet on a string. The word of God says in:
James 1:13-15- When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. And so it’s, many individuals are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. And it is true that many of us temp satan to tempt us.
Let me illustrate by using an example. A man struggling with the spirit of lust and pornography decides that he wants to go to a pool party. Now at this party, there are nude women. This man is dragged away by his desires and the lust of the flesh. He is acting upon the urges that he’s feeling. This man knows that going to such a place will cause him problems. However, he ignores his conscience and the nudging of the Holy Spirit that is talking to him, telling him not to go.
At this pool party, this man’s heart is racing like a horse on a track, and his mind is like a camera, taking pictures and storing them. He also stands on one leg for as long as he is at the pool party. When he now goes to his dwelling place to relax, he sees beautiful girls parading in front of him. He feels the urges and, the desires arise. He will now go further into sinful activities and turn to pornography and masturbation. This man is now drawn away by his lustful desire and has now tempted satan to tempt him.
It is important that we do not operate based on our feelings. Our feelings come from our emotions and our emotions come from our soul. The soul is the mediator between the flesh and the spirit of man. In a man’s soul lies their will, mind, and emotions. As believers, we must not operate base on how we are feeling. We must know that God doesn’t tempt us. When the word of God dwells in our hearts, it will protect us from desiring sin. Whenever an individual keeps repeating the same errors, it’s because of sin that lives inside. As the scripture clearly states in:
Roman 7:15:20- I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do–this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
As children of God, we are equipped by the grace of God to overcome our challenges. However, we overcome our challenges with our willingness to overcome them. As with our willingness and God’s ability, we can move mountains. The scripture says in:
1 Corinthians 10:13- no temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
Many individuals yield to temptation not understanding the spiritual implications of their actions. I must say that whenever there is a lot of attacks, it means that promotion is near and, satan watches carefully with a grudgeful eye wanting to steal it. As you know that satan’s motto is to kill, steal and destroy. Whenever we are faced with challenges, we must not be afraid. We must remember that the testing of our faith produces perseverance. The error that many make is to bow to temptation when it comes. When a person is pressured into committing sinful acts, that person should go into alone time with God to seek his guidance. Fasting and prayer is an atomic bomb in the face of temptation. The more you bow before Christ in the midst of temptation is the weaker the desire of the flesh becomes. However, many are too quick to entertain satan by giving in to the desires of the flesh.
Some time ago, The Lord explained to me that when we are faced with temptations we must allow him to stand at the forefront of the battle. He explained that whatever situation we are going through, we must seek his face in praise and worship, fasting, and prayer. This will weaken the desire of the flesh.
There was once a pilot who was flying his plane, and while flying, the hostess rushed to him and said, ‘Sir we have a problem, there’s a snake on the plane,’ the captain looked back at her and smiled. The hostess thought he was crazy. The pilot elevated the plane a little higher in the air but, the hostess came back and repeated herself and the captain said, ‘check again’.
She came back and said, sir, it’s still there. The captain kept elevating the plane higher and higher until the serpent died. The higher the plane went the more the serpent became cramped and paralyzed until it eventually died. And so whatsoever desire you have, once you stick to the word of God that is sharper than any two-edged sword, it will destroy it utterly. The higher you go in God, the more the desires of the flesh will decrease. Nonetheless, it also depends and what you do when the desires come. When you have the word of God in your heart, it will preserve and protect you from desiring sin. Whatever a man puts in his heart, that is what will surface in the face of temptation. The more you read the bible, is the more you grow and become more like Jesus. The less you read the bible, the weaker you will get spiritually. Remember, God is his word and because he is his word and he hates sin, once his word dominates the heart, sin’s power over such a one is broken.
Based on my knowledge dealing with individuals who have desires for masturbation, lust and, pornography, it’s always the same story. After a person is delivered, he/she must stay in the word of the Lord and dwell on the things of the Lord. Being in this flesh means we will have desires of the flesh. But when these desires come, one must not entertain them. If you do, you will submit and fall into sinful activities. Now the sad part is after one has fallen into a sexual or sinful act, immediately they would feel awful especially a Christian. I must also add that if a person was delivered and has reopened the door by acting upon fleshy desires, then demons will re-enter with seven wickeder spirits. Remember, satan has no access in one’s life apart from the ones we open to him.
Having a desire is not bad because God works upon the desires of one’s heart. However, it’s the kind of desire that is sinful and pushes one away from God that is dangerous. I encourage you to not tempt the devil to tempt you. Allow the word of the Lord to be the standard of your life. Allow it to saturate your heart, ask Jesus to take more of you and give you more of him.