Levo
Bible verses for lust
When desire pulls hard
The lie
I need this to feel better, and no one gets hurt.
The truth
It promises relief and delivers emptiness. You are not its slave anymore. Get out, then go after something better.
More truth
- You can win this one. Every time. God promises a way out, and sin is not your master anymore (1 Corinthians 10:13, Romans 6:14).
- Feeling the pull is not sin. Feeding it is.
- You're already accepted in Christ. You fight from that, not for it.
Pause
Stop. You don't have to act on this. Breathe slowly. The urge will rise, peak and pass. Ride it out with God, not alone.
My verses
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it.
Flee from youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
I have made a covenant with my eyes. How then could I gaze with desire at a virgin?
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to everyone. It instructs us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live sensible, upright, and godly lives in the present age.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow springs of life.
How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your word. With all my heart I have sought You; do not let me stray from Your commandments. I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.
For it is God’s will that you should be holy: You must abstain from sexual immorality; each of you must know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God.
Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.
Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.
Pray
Jesus, I'm being pulled right now and I can't win this on my own. You were tempted too and You never gave in. I give You my eyes and my thoughts in this moment. Give me the strength to get up and walk away, right now. I want You more than this. Amen.
Your way out
- Stand up and leave the room you're in.
- Put the phone in another room, face down.
- Go outside, or go where other people are.
- Text your trusted person now.
- Put on worship and say the verse out loud.
Someone threatening to share your pictures?
You're not in trouble. Don't pay, don't send more, keep the messages (don't save or forward the images), block, and tell someone. It's a crime against you, and help is free.
Not safe, or thinking about hurting yourself?Get help nowAll countries
New Zealand
Netsafe 0508 638 723
Online harm, including someone threatening to share your pictures. Text Netsafe to 4282, or report online any time at report.netsafe.org.nz. Calls weekdays 9am to 5pm.
Take It Down takeitdown.ncmec.org
Helps get nude pictures taken before you were 18 off the internet. The picture never leaves your phone. Online, any time.
Australia
eSafety Commissioner esafety.gov.au
Report sextortion and shared intimate images. They help get them removed. Online, any time.
Take It Down takeitdown.ncmec.org
Helps get nude pictures taken before you were 18 off the internet. The picture never leaves your phone. Online, any time.
United Kingdom
Report Remove childline.org.uk/remove
Under 18: get a nude picture of you taken down, with Childline and the IWF. Online, any time.
Take It Down takeitdown.ncmec.org
Helps get nude pictures taken before you were 18 off the internet. The picture never leaves your phone. Online, any time.
Ireland
Take It Down takeitdown.ncmec.org
Helps get nude pictures taken before you were 18 off the internet. The picture never leaves your phone. Online, any time.
United States
Take It Down takeitdown.ncmec.org
Helps get nude pictures taken before you were 18 off the internet. The picture never leaves your phone. Online, any time.
Canada
NeedHelpNow.ca needhelpnow.ca
Help for young people when sexual pictures are shared or someone threatens you (Cybertip.ca). Online, any time.
Take It Down takeitdown.ncmec.org
Helps get nude pictures taken before you were 18 off the internet. The picture never leaves your phone. Online, any time.
Germany
Austria
Rat auf Draht 147
For children and young people, free and anonymous. Also if someone threatens to share your pictures. Any time.
Switzerland
Pro Juventute 147
For children and young people. Also WhatsApp and chat at 147.ch, and if someone threatens to share your pictures. Any time.
Somewhere else? Call your local emergency number, or find a free helpline for your country at findahelpline.com.
Stay on guard
A long stretch is not a reason to relax. That is often when the guard drops. Stay watchful and stay humble.
So the one who thinks he is standing firm should be careful not to fall.
Go deeper: Free to want something better
Five days in the Bible on this, one passage a day.
- Joseph runs Genesis 39:6-12
- David's slide 2 Samuel 11:1-5
- A clean heart Psalm 51:1-12
- Cut it off Matthew 5:27-30
- Not your master Romans 6:11-14