Was the Forbidden Fruit….Sex? Many consider the story of Adam and Eve to be a symbolic story—a means to allegorically explain our sinful condition. To those who think this way, a common—almost intuitive—interpretation has been to claim that the forbidden fruit stands for sex.I don’t accept the allegorical approach. For me, the story is too [...]
Were Adam and Eve Set up to Fail? I can’t let go of Genesis 3. It is such a consuming, pressing story that it squeezes more out of me. Two lessons were highlighted last week from the story of Adam and Eve: 1) We need to be aware of deception and 2) we must carefully [...]
What was it about Eve? (edited 2/9/13) It may even be that Eve became more desirable, happy, content, clever, or…something—after she ate the fruit. Clearly Adam wanted what she had. Eve was the first to sin, being misled and deceived by the serpent (Genesis 3). Adam was much easier to pull down. He joined in [...]
Where is Your Water Going? Water is vital to our lives. In an arid country like Israel it is also scarce and precious. Proverbs 5:15-20 uses water to illustrate the need for sexual purity—warning specifically against promiscuity and adultery. Should your fountains be dispersed….in the streets? Water stands for our sexual activity. This passage in [...]
What can the story of a medieval robber barron teach us about lust? In the 1300s, the robber barron Dirk Loef van Horne built an impregnable, state of the art fortress called Loevenstein—Loef’s Stone—pictured above. It is near the village of Giessenburgh in South Holland which is where my mother was born. Her sturdy ancestral [...]
Are you looking for a magic bullet to overcome lust—one sure-fire approach that will get you past this sin? Unfortunately, life does not work that way for those ensnared by any life-dominating sin—certainly not lust. Instead, it will require concentrated, determined effort on your part. Because it is hard, God has given us many tools [...]
Do you feel like the picture above when confronted by temptations to lust—strongly pulled in two ways—often making the wrong choices? I can relate. I was like that—frequently doing what I did not want to do. (Galatians 5:17) I know now that my anguish came because my approach was wrong. Instead of directly confronting the [...]
Is lust a wedge in your marriage—pushing you apart? Does a rebuke along this line—“Quit looking at that girl (or image)!”—sound familiar? If so, how do you answer? I am not doing anything wrong. (denial) Looking is OK, I only love you and am faithful to you. (rationalization) Look at the way she dresses. She could [...]
As I was launching this website, a friend with a lot of expertise in this area advised me to fish around for a better name than Overcoming Lust. She thought that Overcoming Lust was too in-your-face and unimaginative. It did not resonate or create an emotional response. She was likely correct. Others who write about this [...]
Earlier this year, I received an encouraging email from a reader of the book Overcoming Lust. He identified himself as DP. Here is what he wrote: Jim, just finished your book…life changing. As I have started paying attention to the ongoing thought activity in my mind, I am overwhelmed by the volume that is lustful [...]
