If you are struggling with overcoming the lust of the eyes wreaking havoc on your Christian life, then, this post on how to overcome the lust of the eyes is for you.
Overcoming the lust of the eyes can be challenging indeed even to Christians considering all the evil and moral pollution we see all around us.
It takes a lot of discipline on your part as a Christian and God’s grace if you want to overcome the Lust of the eyes leading many into the sexual sin of sexual immorality due to lack of discipline with what many let their eyes see.
By the end of this article, you will have learned how to overcome the lust of the eyes with the 10 simple practical steps listed below with reference to bible verses in the Old Testament and the New Testament. Let’s dive in.
What Is The Lust Of The Eyes?
The lust of the eyes 1 John 2:17 talks about refers to a strong desire for something that is seen and is often used when talking about pornography but it can refer to any type of sin that involves looking at something wrongfully.
Very often, the lust of the eyes is associated with the lust of the flesh and the pride of life. This means that if you have any one of them controlling your life, it will lead you into sin by taking away your focus on what really matters: God and His Word.
In addition to moving us away from God and His Word, lust also distracts us from doing other things we need to do in our lives like studying or working.
If we spend too much time looking at things that are not healthy for us such as pornography, then we won’t have enough time left over to accomplish other goals that are important to us like doing well in school.
Bear in mind that the lust of the eyes is different from sexual lust, which comes from the lust of the flesh, but the two are interlinked.
10 Ways To Overcome The Lust Of The Eyes.
Below are the 10 practical steps that will help you overcome the lust of the eyes and the impure thoughts caused by them.
- Abstain From All Evil Appearances.
- Stop Listening To Dirty Music.
- Stop Watching Dirty Movies.
- Read God’s Word Daily.
- Avoid Tempting Situations.
- Be Born Again.
- Don’t Love The World.
- Don’t Visit Dirty Sites.
- Recognize That Lust Is A Sin.
- Recognize The Consequences Of Lust.
1. Abstain From All Evil Appearances.
If you want to overcome the lust of the eyes and are serious about it, you need to abstain from all appearances of evil that seem to be everywhere now.
1 Thessalonians 5:22 in the new testament tells us that we must abstain from all appearances of evil that can tempt or lure us into sin. Sadly, most people don’t which is why they struggle with lust and impure thoughts.
Some of the appearances of evil you need to abstain from are immoral T.V shows, pornography, or anything that promote sexual nudity, impure sexual thoughts or causes your eyes to sin and lust after evil after seeing them.
2. Stop Listening To Dirty Music.
To make overcoming the lust for the eyes easier for you, turn off all music that has sensual lyrics or is not of a Christian nature that promotes and arouses sexual impure thoughts that are lustful in nature.
Instead, focus on listening to music that praises God or promotes holiness which is always, good for your soul because it helps you to focus on things higher than yourself.
As a believer, you must have nothing to do with lustful worldly music that promotes sin that sadly most so-called Christians listen to. The music you listen to must be that which spiritually edifies your soul and glorifies our Lord Jesus Christ, not the flesh.
3. Stop Watching Dirty Movies.
Avoid movies that are violent, filthy, or have sexual nudity in them, because they will stir up feelings of lust in you if you watch them too much.
Movies that have good morals and stories can still be enjoyable even if they do not contain any sex or violence at all and those are the Christian movies you need to watch that promote holiness and not sin.
Remember, the eyes are the window of your soul and if you let dirty things in your eyes to see, your soul will also be dirty and corrupt which explains why you will be struggling with dirty and impure thoughts that are immoral if you don’t regulate what your eyes see.
4. Read God’s Word Daily.
Reading God’s word daily can go a long way in helping you overcome the lust of the eyes as God’s word is what will help you and give you the grace you need to guard your eyes against seeing evil things that stir up the flesh to desire sin.
You need to develop a daily habit of reading God’s word because it’s what will help you develop godly thoughts through the help of the Holy Spirit and the transforming power of His word found in the bible.
If you don’t read God’s word, you will struggle with overcoming the lust of the eyes as you will lack the grace to make a covenant with your eyes not to look at evil things or lust after the opposite sex as Job says in Job 31:1.
5. Avoid Tempting Situations.
You need to avoid situations where you might be tempted by lustful thoughts, such as going out with friends who drink and smoke or staying up late watching movies or television shows that might be stimulating sexually in some way (Colossians 4:5-6).
As a Christian, it’s your responsibility to ensure that your legs don’t make you go to places that can make you vulnerable to sinning such as strip clubs, brothels, or places you know where sin and pervasion are found where people especially ladies walk half naked.
If you don’t avoid tempting situations you know that can make you fall into sin, you won’t be able to overcome the lust of the eyes which requires you to be proactive.
6. Be Born Again.
To overcome the lust of the eyes, you need to be born again. In fact, this is the most important step you need to take if you want to overcome the lust of the eyes once and for all.
This is because being born again is what helps us inherit the new nature of Christ Jesus made in righteousness and God’s likeness the apostle Paul talks about in Ephesians 4:24 that enables us to overcome the lust of the eyes by not desiring to see evil things.
If you are born again, you won’t be able to overcome the lust of the eyes because the old sinful nature that makes your eyes love, desire, see and lust after the evil things of this world is still active in your life.
Related: How To Be Born Again In 7 Simple Steps (+Video Sermon).
7. Don’t Love The World.
The bible in 1 john 2:15.17 tells us that we must not love the world nor the things that are in this world because all you find in the world is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life which are of this fallen world and not the Father.
If you don’t love the world and the things that are therein, you will see no reason to lust and covert worldly glittery things that excite the eyes where the lust of the eyes comes from.
However, if you love the world too much, you will find it hard not to desire and lust after the mundane things in this world with your eyes.
Related:13 Major Characteristics Of A True Christian [+ Sermon].
8. Don’t Visit Dirty Sites.
Avoid visiting dirty websites on the internet that may entice your eyes to desire and want to see evil things and moral perversions that exist on the internet such as pornography ravaging and ruining many Christian lives out there.
You need to understand that the reason you desire to see the evil and dirty things you watch in secret on the internet is your uncleansed eyes of yours that are making you desire to see evil things.
If you are struggling with this, pray and ask Jesus Christ to cleanse your eyes from desiring to see evil things that defile you and to give you the grace to make a convent with your eyes not to see evil things that defile or stir lustful and impure thoughts in your mind.
9. Recognize That Lust Is A Sin.
To overcome lust or the lust of the eyes is knowing that lust is a sin against God and others. You might not think this applies to you, but you’re participating in a sinful act if you’re looking at pornography or visiting pornographic websites.
Don’t try to justify it by saying it doesn’t hurt anyone else because it does to your spouse, children and future generations are all victims of our culture’s obsession with sex.
You need to understand as Jesus Christ said in Matthews 5:27,28 that looking at someone lustfully with impure sexual thoughts is committing adultery in your heart which happens when your eyes are full of lust.
Related: 13 Traits Of The Sinful Nature [That Makes Us Evil].
10. Recognize The Consequences Of Lust.
Last but not least, knowing the consequences of lust and the various forms in which it comes will help you overcome any form of lust your sinful flesh has be it that of the flesh, the eyes, or the pride of life 1 John 2:17 talks about.
For example, if you know the consequences sexual sin such as adultery or fornication brings such as emotional damage, shame broken families, and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) like HIV/AIDS, herpes, and gonorrhea, you will not want to indulge in it.
Knowing the above horrific consequences of lust is what will help you avoid indulging in sinful things that please your sinful flesh and end you up in hell fire in the end if you don’t repent from lust and the various forms it comes in causing you to sin.
Conclusion.
I hope the above post on how to overcome the lust of the eyes will now help you avoid looking at anything that may defile you and help you make a covenant with your eyes not to look and lust after the evil things of this world. In closing, if this post was helpful to you, let me know in the comments below, and don’t forget to share before you leave. Godspeed.
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- How To Overcome The Lust Of The Flesh In 7 Easy Steps.
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