Adultery & Lust

A relationship has the power to change what a religion does not, it can change a heart.  

• Condemnation has a finger in my face and tells me how bad I am.
• Conviction has an arm on my shoulder and tells me who I might be.

At the base level, we desire good things but look in the wrong direction.

Matthew 5:27–28

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

Lust — when we allow our minds to willingly linger on a sexual or emotional desire for someone.

Lust is imagining what you would do with or to another person if it was guaranteed there wouldn’t be any consequences.

In the “with God” life, heart and thought sins are real things.

Matthew 5:29–30

If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell. 

Myth: Sex is just a physical act.

Truth: Sex is not just physical.  

At the base level, we desire good things but look in the wrong direction.

We want the things God wants for us, but those things have become so twisted, we have no idea where to find what we want anymore.

Psalm 37:4

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 

1. What good thing do I actually want when I find myself lusting?
2. If I follow through, does this have the ability to give me what I want?
3. If not, where might Jesus tell me to search for that same good thing?