Sinful desires. They are the bane of the Christian's existence. Apostle Paul explained it perfectly in Romans 7:15 - I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. Like him, many of us aspire to live for the Lord yet somehow end up doing the opposite sometimes. It's a conundrum.
But what exactly are sinful desires? Some of us think we know the answer. However, in a world filled with chaos and confusion, where "alternative facts" are not considered lies but clever communication, we must sit with this issue and remind ourselves what God says.
The Lord has called us to obey His commandments. We are to study His word to learn what His expectations and instructions are so we can comply with them. He has made it clear that those who obey will be well rewarded here on earth and after death when they will live with Him for eternity.
When we look at the Old Testament, we see there are a lot of instructions given to the Israelites. It might seem difficult to keep track of them all so God sent Jesus who taught believers two main things. First, "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" (Mark 12:30). Second, he also taught believers the Royal Law, which is to ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ (Mark 12:31).
Our sinful desires are those emotions that send us into actions and thoughts that contradict Christ's instructions. They spring up from our flesh and not the Spirit of God that has been given to everyone who submitted themselves to Christ the Son and God the Father.
Consider what God told Cain in Genesis 4:7 - If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
This is the war we wage - if we do what is right then we will conquer sinful desires. If not, sin will overcome us and create distance in our relationship with God and His Son. This is why Apostle Peter taught in 1 Peter 2:11 - Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. He warned us to keep our eyes on heaven so we don't think Earth is our home and succumb to the things of this world. God has provided what we need to overcome sinful desires and satan itself (2 Peter 1:3).
Fortunately for those who have given their lives to Christ, He has promised to protect them so sin (i.e. satan) will never overcome them (1 John 5:18b). This is also why the Bible teaches that those who are led by the Spirit of the Lord are the children of God in Daniel 11:32. These individuals can rely upon God's Spirit to steer them through life so that their sinful desires don't control them. This requires the genuine cooperation of the individual because God will not force His people to live right. He will, nevertheless, help them when they submit to that assistance.
So the question becomes are we going to be the ones who rely on God to overcome our sinful desires so we are not overcome by them? Or are we going to the people who in hubris think we've got it all figured out and can rely on our own strength? With God's grace and mercy, we will rule over sinful desires, living free from continuous sin through Christ who died to liberate us. IJMN, Amen.
