Seven Deadly Sins: Lust

Teaching text

Matthew 5:27-30

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 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 stumble, 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. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.”

Sermon recap

This week, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our sermons series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on the destructive power of lust, and how Jesus calls us to become people of love and integrity in Him. Although we can lust over things like money and power, in Matthew 5, Jesus addresses lust in the context of strong sexual desire. Pastor Jon urged us to consider that walking in the way of Jesus includes pursuing a counter-cultural sexual formation.

Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5 is one of His clearest teachings on sexuality. Lust is a deep craving in the human heart, and His language indicates lust is an intentional repeated gazing, with the purpose of self-centered pleasure. Spurred by this intense desire, lust can hold intense power over us as it distorts relationships, normalizes sexual sin, and dehumanizes the people around us. However, Pastor Jon pointed out that the core issue is not desire itself, but the disorder of desires in our hearts. More than our behavior, Jesus is concerned with the holiness in our hearts and how we treat others. Throughout Scripture, the human body is revered as holy and honorable, and even becomes a temple for the Holy Spirit after Christ ascended into Heaven. Dignifying one another by respecting our shared humanity is not only a weapon we can wield against the power of lust, but a calling from God as image bearers. To reorient our desires we must allow God to cut out the culprit, our sinful hearts, and accept His gift of total heart transformation offered through Jesus. Once we receive this heart, we can learn to be people of love through the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit, and recover a sacred view of sexuality as a whole life covenant.

The enemy uses lust to destroy our relationships, lives, and the people we are becoming, and it requires urgent attention. Pastor Jon laid out a path to root lust out of our lives: 1) name the vice controlling your desire, 2) examine its source, 3) seek freedom from illusions, 4) lift your eyes away from shame, 5) behold Jesus’ glory, 6) train for resistance from the enemy, and 7) live a life of love. In the fight against lust, Jesus offers restoration of humanity. His sacrifice wipes our sins away and transforms our heart’s deepest desires. Today, we can ask God to cover us in mercy, fill us with His power to defy lust and choose a life of love, and embrace desiring Him, the only One who can satisfy, with our whole lives.

Discussion questions

Connect

1. What’s your favorite redemption story from a book you’ve read or movie you’ve seen?

Character

Ask someone to read Matthew 5:27-30 aloud. Then, ask the following questions:

1. What words, phrases, or specific parts of this passage stand out to you?

2. What does the text reveal about Jesus’ priorities?

Consider

1. We were made for desire, but the brokenness in our world has caused God’s original design for desire to become disordered. How do you witness disordered desire in your life or in the world around you?

2. Lust is often discussed as an inward focused sin, but consider the point Pastor Jon made: “God is concerned about the holiness in your heart AND the way you treat other people.” Discuss how both the aspect of our own hearts and how we treat others are related to lust.

3. In Matthew 5:29, Jesus says, “If your right eye causes you to stumble, 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.” Although we know He was speaking metaphorically, how does what Jesus is saying challenge your understanding of sin and the measures we should take to live a righteous life?

4. Pastor Jon named these tactics for fighting lust:

   • Name the vice

   • Examine the source

   • Freedom from illusions

   • Beholding Jesus’ glory

   • Training for resistance

   • Live a life of love

   How can we unite as a community and brothers and sisters in Christ to fight against lust, whether in our personal lives, or in the world around us?

Cover

Take a few minutes in the quietness of your own hearts to ask the Holy Spirit if lust is invading your life in some capacity. Break into small groups and pray for freedom and redemption from lust.