As we choose to surrender to Christ, our life changes from figuring out things on a surface level perspective to now finding the root cause of every obstacle that we are facing.
I once read a quote that gave a profound truth on sexual temptation, which was, “Once a person has self-control over sexual temptation then they have solved half of the problems in their life”.
Very profound, especially living In this generation, that is so filled with the glorification of sex
It is really hard to stay pure especially for believers; having that we are all placed with the conviction from the Holy Spirit that sex is only to happen in a marriage setting and anything other than that is a sin.
In the book of 2 Corinthians 13vs 5, Paul asked the believers this question, “or do you not realize about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you?”
Which means that when we choose to surrender our life to Christ, He is no longer just a “character” talked about in the bible who died on the cross for sins
But He now becomes a friend living in our hearts.
So, then what does this mean for us? For every righteous or unrighteous deed that is done in our day to day lives, He not only has to see it but yes, even endure it with us.
So, to make this clear YES!!! Jesus is right there with you when you choose to commit sexual sin.
So now that we understand the extent to which sexual sin destroys our relationship with God, how then can we overcome it?
I must note however, that as a born-again believer, nothing happens by our on strength.
We first need to submit our life to God for him to actually convict us to know that sex before marriage is a sin. Then, seek for ways through Him on how we can overcome it
And again, ask for strength and guidance from the Holy Spirit to do so.
Here are some ways that can help you achieve this;
FIND THE ROOT CAUSE OF YOUR URGES.
I’ve said this and I will continue to say it, sex in its self is not a sin, it was created by God. In fact, the first commandment God ever gave Adam and Eve was to pro-create.
Genesis 1 vs 28 NIV “God blessed them and said to them, “be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature the moves the ground.”
The act however becomes a sin when it’s removed from its intended context to now, please our fleshy desires.
It is important for people to identify what causes them to give into their sexual urges
Perhaps it’s because we feel lonely as singles and feel we need sex to satisfy us and make us feel loved by someone.
Or maybe is the peer pressure from society to make us feel accepted because people that have sex with multiple persons look cool
Or is it that we feel undervalued by our Husband/wife that we feel we need sexual relations outside of marriage to make us feel wanted again?
Whatever it is, we need to surrender it to the Lord in prayer to He can heal us from it.
Which leads me to my next point.
SPEND MORE TIME DIGGING DEEP INTO HIS WORD
Sexual temptation comes from the enemy. But be encouraged to know that Jesus overcame temptation when He was in the wilderness Mathew 4 v1-11.
For whatever temptation the devil threw at Him, He backed it up with scripture. So, if we are to fill up our mind with anything as believers
It should be with the word of God; as it serves as a guideline when we are faced with any circumstances and questions on how to move in our faith journey.
The word of God is truth, it was written for us as a love letter from our Father to show us and help us understand how to live as believers.
And when we read His word daily, we become closer to Him and develop an intimate relationship with Jesus and get stronger in our faith.
HAVE A CLOSE CIRCLE OF PEOPLE THAT WILL KEEP YOU ACCOUNTABLE
God really knew we would be grateful He gave us the scripture in
James 5 vs 16 NIV “therefore, confess your sins one to another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerfully effective.”
There is power in community, prayer and confession.
Having an inner circle of believers that push you to your best ability and will righteously rebuke your ungodly actions is very important.
Confession of sins to one another is one way that will set us free from the guilt and shame we might be feeling when we are battling with sin.
Sharing of struggles with others and encouraging one another makes it easier, encourages our faith and in the end, dethrones the lies of the enemy.
We were all called to serve on this earth and help each other fight to overcome battles through the blood of Jesus.
So, by staying in community, and people speaking truth over us, it lessens the burden of having to fight temptation on our own.
CHANGE YOUR DAILY ROUTINES
Reflect on the things that you listen to, watch or conversations that you part take in. Are they leading you closer to God?
Will they be able to set you apart from the patterns of this world?
Unfortunately, we live in culture where nudity is normalized, we can’t avoid it, it is everywhere. But feel glad to know that the book of
James 4vs 7NIV says it best “submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Temptations of this world will always attack us, but thank God for our advocate the Holy Spirit who serves as guidance and protects us from all of it.
But we also have a part to play, by allowing Him to Convict us of any of our unrighteous actions.
It is so easy to sometimes think that the things we watch or listen to are very meaningless in the moment.
But it only takes the devil even the smallest loophole to lead us into temptation and then sin.
It is very hard to flee from sexual temptation when all you do is give into is sexual content on a day-to-day basis. But with accountability partners around
It makes life easier because you can share your password to certain social media apps with them if you feel like you will very strongly to give into temptation
Or replace your social media/ movie time with group bible study with friends
They are generally a lot of activities and programs that you can do that will help you get through it.
At the end of the day, we all feel guilty and feel unforgivable by God when we commit any sin.
Just an encouragement that He still loves you no matter how much you mess up. There is nothing we can do more of or less of to earn His unfailing love towards us.
By you reading this and wanting to take more action to avoid sexual temptation to live a Holy life makes God so proud and I want to congratulate you for choosing that.
It is not easy, but just trust and believe that by the grace of God you will make it and be released from sexual bondage.
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