Command 7 : Do Not Lust | Day 47

Target the Twin Giants!

Lust is a giant that has a twin--anger. Both lust and anger are manifestations of uncontrolled passion. They feed each other and cause great damage to any relationship. The connection between lust and anger is demonstrated in one Greek word for anger. It is the word orge. The same emotional drive that causes a sexual orgy causes an anger orgy. Thus, God instructs us to:

“Put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth” (Colossians 3:8).

Anger is often caused by deep hurts from the past that were never forgiven. When similar hurts occur, the emotion from the past surges up into an explosion of anger. David's angry outburst and harsh judgment for the man who stole his neighbor's sheep was possibly motivated by the shame and rejection that he and his men received at the hand of Nabal years earlier. (See I Samuel 25:10.)

Moses's angry outbursts could be traced to the rejection from his own people that he experienced years after he sacrificed so much to try to deliver them. The following testimony illustrates the freedom that comes by forgiving past offenders.

"Thirty years ago I attended a Basic Seminar¹ in Seattle as a very angry, bitter man. I was raised in a home of angry beating and sexual abuse. I lived with the goal of killing my stepfather. In the seminar, you spoke about my need to go to my stepfather and ask for his forgiveness. I did not want to do this, but the moment I did I was set free.

"The next year I re-attended the seminar and now heard the truth that God becomes the Father to the fatherless. The joy of the Lord so filled me that I learned to laugh for the first time in my life at the age of 33. I became a pastor and have shared these truths all over the world. I am now 60 years old and love the Lord more than I can say."

Failure to forgive past offenders means that God will turn us over to tormentors, which can include lust. (See Matthew 18:34.)

When we refuse to forgive our offenders and hold them prisoner by our anger and bitterness, we resist God's grace and give Satan the "legal right" to hold us hostage by sins that we cannot conquer. (See Ephesians 4:26-27.) Just as the unforgiving servant was turned over to the tormentors until his full debt was paid, Jesus said, “So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses” (Matthew 18:35).

The battle to conquer lust is tremendously important. We cannot afford to lose it by refusing to forgive an offender! Now is the time to ask the Lord to reveal to us anyone whom we have not fully forgiven and sincerely forgive him from the heart.

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1. Learn more about the Basic Seminar.