“Don’t touch. Don’t taste. Don’t handle”. We hear these three “rules” often when learning how to fight—and overcome—lust.
The problem is, mere rule-keeping does not itself get to the heart of lust. This is one of the great lessons Paul teaches in Scripture. Merely knowing the law only aggravates our lusts (Romans 7:7-12), and following rigid ascetic regulations—don’t touch, don’t taste, don’t handle—is “of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh” (Colossians 2:20-23).
If the “law” itself is not able to turn our hearts away from temptation, then how exactly do we fight against a spirit of lust? And how can we finally overcome it?
Editor’s Note: Are you a teenager struggling with lust? Before reading this post, I encourage you to check out this article we wrote especially for teens, How to Overcome Lust: 4 Tips for Teens.
How the Bible Teaches Us to Fight Lust
In 2 Timothy 2:22, Paul offers some of the best, most concise bits of Biblical advice on how to overcome lust: “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”
Commit it to memory. Chew on it daily. Let your mind marinate in it, for in it lies three biblical strategies for fighting lust.
See related: What is Lust in the Bible?
1. Run From Lust
“So flee youthful passions”
“Passions” refer to our cravings, our longings, and our desires. More specifically, the passage speaks of “youthful passions.” These fleshly lusts are said to “wage war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11). On the surface, these cravings are anchored in the members of our body (Romans 6:12), but as we look deeper, we find they stem from our sinful hearts (Romans 7:7). Ultimately, these passions are forms of idolatry (Colossians 3:5), revolving our lives and desires around created things rather than the Creator.
See related: For singles: How to Handle Strong Sex Drive in a God-Honoring Way
We must run from these things. Every Christian, even though he or she is indwelt by the Spirit of Christ, still lives in a mortal body surrounded by worldly amusements. These youthful lusts stubbornly cling to our heels. As we see these passions stirred in us, we must habitually flee from them.
- This might mean mentally fleeing: bouncing our thoughts away from lustful imaginations.
- This might mean visually fleeing: bouncing our eyes away from lustful images.
- This might mean physically fleeing: walking (or running) away from tempting situations.
See related: Overcoming Temptation: Bible Verses and Principles to Help You Resist Sin
2. Run to Christ
“. . . pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace”
It is not enough to flee from youthful lusts. We must run toward a new passion. We are to “pursue,” that is, eagerly and swiftly run toward Christlikeness.
Christ promises His people a heart of:
- Righteousness (real integrity, a passion for justice, and a life pleasing to God)
- Faith (strong and welcome conviction and trust in God)
- Love (benevolent affection toward God and others)
- Peace (tranquility in the heart and harmony with God and others)
We are to run hard after these things each day knowing these character qualities are how we were created to live. We pursue these things knowing it is our destiny to live this way. A billion years from now, when sin is a distant memory, we will be living lives of love, peace, and righteousness in the kingdom of God. Having this hope we purify ourselves, just as He is pure (1 John 3:3).
3. Run With Godly Friends
“. . . along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”
We must not only run from lust and toward God’s vision for our lives, but we must also run with our brothers and sisters with the same vision. We must all find companions for this stretch of the road, those who share our faith and convictions, those in the common struggle for holiness.
These friends should be those who “call on the Lord,” an expression for those who are saved (Acts 22:16; Romans 10:13). These are other men and women who have also cried out to God for the forgiveness of their sins from a “pure” (genuine) heart.
Running with others involves a certain level of intentionality. It is not enough to simply know others around us are on the same journey because they profess the Christian faith. We must have real running companions, those who actually help us flee youthful passions and pursue a Christlike heart.
James 5:16 and Hebrews 10:24-25 offer four key building blocks that give structure to how Christian accountability should look. These building blocks are: meeting together, confession of sin, prayer, and encouragement.
Meeting together is the foundation. This includes all the basic methods of communication and conversation: meeting for coffee, talking on the phone, texting, writing emails, or anything that involves a meeting of minds. The central pillar in the room is confession of sin: getting honest with God and one another about what we are doing that we shouldn’t do or not doing what we should. The outer walls that support and protect this relationship are prayer and encouragement.
Why Can’t I Just Stop Lusting?
People ask me all the time, “Why can’t I just stop lusting?” I share my response to these people in this video below, which happens to include references to 2 Timothy 2:22. We believe so strongly that this verse contains the best strategy for how to overcome lust and quit porn that we actually used it as the foundation for a 40-day challenge called Overcome Porn. This challenge walks you through these three strategies and equips you with some of our best resources to put porn in your past for good. So watch this video, and give Overcome Porn: The 40-Day Challenge a try today.
Fighting against lust isn’t easy, but it’s also not something that you need to do alone. Through prayer, Scripture, accountability, and a heartfelt desire to flee from lustful passions, you can resist temptation and overcome lust.
We’d love to hear from you. What has God taught you about breaking free from lust? Comment below!
Good thought Luke!! Have to put into work..
I am thanksful to God for all His lovingkindness towards me. I used to be involved with porn and masturbation but God gave me victory. One thing i am currently doing now is making a vow to God that for 1 month, i dont want to masturbate or watch porn and i have been able to keep my vow to God, though i still some days to go. After the one month, i plan to do another month because it has really helped me to stay clear lust, masturbation and porn.
I am also finding it hard to overcome lust. I really God loves me but I keep falling into lust and it costing me time and money. I sometimes pretend to families and friend as if I am. not doing this kind of things but deep in me, I know I am hurting myself and God. can someone advise me what to do cause I am tired of falling over again.
@Manny, now that you’ve read this article, have you put the “run from,” “run to,” and “run with” into practice? Lust doesn’t die easily – if this is something you’ve struggled with for a while, then it will take months, maybe longer to practice victory. Remember, you are already victorious! Christ has won. Just “live” it! Peace, Chris
hello I just queried Christian fight against Lust and I arrived at a list of sights including yours
I would like to know if you can suggest how I gain strength against Lust as I do not have a functional relationship
to speak of so even though I try to occupy my time constructively transgression is an issue
I am a Christian Writer and have tried for several years to get my work reviewed Durance publishing validated my work but there are always fees that I do not have the financial ability to address as I am partially disabled
if their is any advice how I can climb out of this situation please share it thanks
Thanks so much for the comment. Your issue is addressed in a video we just released this week. Consider what James 1 says about the cycle of temptation. He says we are lured away of our own desires and enticed. Those desires can be wanting to escape, wanting to indulge, wanting to seek revenge, etc. They can also be good desires that we overdo. One of the strategies that we will give in the coming weeks is to speak God’s Word when you feel you are approaching temptation. It can either be Scripture itself or phrases like “I will not lust after this because my body is the temple of God.” In the coming weeks, we will release more videos addressing the various stages of the cycle of temptation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agS_RjexEkY
In the meantime, please read this article about three biblical strategies for fighting lust. https://www.covenanteyes.com/2010/05/13/3-biblical-strategies-for-fighting-lust/
Hi. I am just coming in a crisis moment, where I just fell in sin again and have the feeling of frustration that comes every time I fail God. I know that Christ is always there for me and that is why I think He brought me here. He knows of the heavy weight I bearing on my shoulders and I just want to quit. So please, now one of the greatest things you can do for me is pray, pray for me to surrender to Gods will because I know I can fight this stuff for myself anymore. Thanks
thanks..continue changing lives…
Some excellent comments.
I am intrigued by those who appear to be in settled marital relationships who still struggle with lust, even though the scriptures tell us that the marriage bed is honourable and undefiled.
This demonstrates a lack of intimacy in these relationships, probably because the partners are playing out their roles in marriage based on wrong-headed preconceptions and need to discover the BIBLICAL model for their relationship and implement every new revelation.
As for me, I am single and have been at war with my flesh for over 20 years.
There have been victories and defeats in this war against lust, yet even when I fail I thank God that He has given me the victory in Christ and this war drives me to my knees and reminds me how desperately I need Christ directing and guiding my thought life every minute of every day.
He could remove this struggle with a single command, yet He allows it to protect my humility and total dependence on His strength.
We can never stop resisting but let us never use this weakness as an excuse to quit.
Pray for all people caught up in the sex industry that they may be delivered and, of course, for each other.
God bless you all. I believe for the humility it takes to be open here, some grace is released and our Father will show mercy continuously. But it is important to know that in some cases, a spirit of lust may be attached to a christian and may keep harrassing you till you rebuke it with the authority of Jesus or get someone to pray for you. There is a spirit realm and demons can work on afflicting us at times.
You will lose nothing to find and declare the scripture over yourself including, Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.” “All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world.” “I am more than a conqueror through Christ Jesus who loved me and gave His life for me.” Just an example. If you write all such statements from the scripture and read and declare them till they are stuck in your memory, it amounts to swinging the sword of the Spirit as spelt out in Eph.6:10
God bless us all.
I av bin battling with lust too and i find ur blog really helpful…Am a new convert and am kinda confused on sum issues. Is it okay as a christian to be in a relationship wit sumone who has a belief different from urs?
Hi Fortune,
Good question. First, I highly recommend you get involved in a local church (if you aren’t already) and find a mature Christian person who can really mentor you through these sorts of questions.
I believe this largely depends on how different the beliefs are. The goal of any dating relationship is to really get to know someone to see if marriage is a possible future, and you need to consider what it will be like living with and raising children with this person. If the belief differences are small enough that this won’t present a problem, differences of opinion are alright. If you think the differences are major, this will not be the best for the furtherance of your faith. For instance, my wife and I disagree on relatively minor matters of faith (how to interpret different Bible verses), but we both wholeheartedly believe what the gospel message is and the kind of church we want to be involved with.
The Bible says that we should not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. Which type of belief are you actually taking about, if you are talking about another belief on a whole, then the Bible says it might be a hindrance to your faith. Christianity is the truth, and if that person is not a Christian (does not believe in Christ), you have to tell the person about the truth. The truth is Jesus, anyone who denies him is referred to as the antichrist.
My advice is be sure about the person’s belief, if this person does not believe in Jesus yet, then you have to reach out to the person with the truth, if the person doesn’t still believe, seek God’s help and tell Him to open her eyes to see.
thank you for that comment ,im always in my own world and fantasy and your answer is making me realise that my real relationships with people are horrible ,i dnt have friends if i do i cant keep one …i think thats the problem …i feel rejected and love self pity im afraid of approaching people and always by my own