Lust • Devotion 6

I Love You, Lord
Caleb Jones

“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 lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” Matthew 5:27-30

“You can look but you can’t touch.” I have probably heard this saying a thousand times in my life. We hear it mostly when parents are trying to get their kids not to break something in the store. Sadly, I think we have tried to apply this to our theology when it comes to adultery. However, if we look back to the text, we see that God tells us that even looking at someone with lustful intent is adultery. The same principle is true with hating someone. In 1 John 3:15, we read, “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer.” God is trying to teach us that He cares deeply about our hearts. In 1 Samuel 16:7, we are reminded, “Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Countless times throughout Scripture, He tells us to purify and to guard our hearts.

Almost 20 years ago, I worked in a warehouse building manufactured homes. I remember there was a tool crib where they sent us to get extra tools that we needed. I will save you the details on what else was in this closet, but I hated going in there. I did everything I could to avoid it. The times that I felt I had no choice, I would go in singing an old song in my head.

I love you Lord, and I lift my voice
To worship you, oh my soul rejoice
Take joy my king, in what you hear
May it be a sweet, sweet sound in your ears.

Now there is nothing special about this song, but I found it really hard to allow my eyes to lust while also telling God that I loved Him. The more time that we spend with Jesus, the less time we have to fill our hearts with sin. Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”