We live in a world of sin and deception. That includes the church world, which is supposed to be the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15), but isn’t in our day! The sin of adultery, caused by illegitimate marriages and lust, is especially rampant. Because of the prevalence of pornography, lust is so commonplace that I have had various professing Christians unashamedly admit to me that they lust all the time, yet the same also profess to have eternal salvation and eternal life as once saved always saved proponents! Jesus addressed the lust issue and its seriousness in Mt. 5:28,29:
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
God’s eternal truth is obvious. Lust in the heart is adultery and will take one to hell. Hence, it is impossible to be a Christian and have a lust bondage at the same time. There are no Christian adulterers (1 Cor. 6:9,10; etc.). Anyone willing to accept the truth can see what the Lord taught about lust, regardless how common and downplayed it is in our society. So how can we guard our hearts regarding this? You must monitor your thought life and only ponder thoughts that God would approve. Spending time regularly in Scripture plus memorizing the word will be the victory as you seek God and draw near to him. According to Mt. 5:28,29, you will have to overcome lust in the heart to escape hell. That fact was spoken by the same Lord Jesus who gave us John 3:16 and who said one must be born again to enter God’s kingdom (John 3:5). Victory is in Jesus and nowhere else. You can live holy. You can obey God. You do not have to lust.
