Lust of the Flesh & Eyes

Introduction

New Series

Porn. Politics. & Protein

PG-13

Tension

There is one thing that each one of us has today…

Every one of us is born with an appetite

Appetite - is the hunger of the heart.

We hunger for purpose, love, intimacy, meaning, belonging

The space inside us that only God was meant to fill, but that we often try to satisfy with temporary things.

The problem isn’t that we’re hungry…

it’s that we keep running to things that can’t satisfy

Porn offers connection but gives isolation.

Politics offers control without peace.

Protein — our obsession with physical health, fitness, and appearance — offers strength without surrender.

The truth is, your appetite is spiritual

It’s always reaching for something beyond the surface

more pleasure, more possessions, more approval

And if we’re not careful, we’ll spend our whole lives feeding on what can never fill us

The message of the World is clear 

If it feels good, do it.

Nobody’s gonna know viral YouTube/tiktok

But when desire takes the driver’s seat, it always steers us off course

We’ve learned to satisfy every craving instantly, yet few stop to ask

Is this shaping me into who Jesus wants me to be?

Truth

We can all agree: what you feed grows, and what you starve dies.

The next two weeks we will dissect…

1 John 2:15–17 “Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.”

This week we will tackle the first two cravings that destroy us from the inside out  

Craving for physical pleasure:

The lust of the flesh says: I deserve to feel good, no matter the cost

These cravings start in the senses but end in the soul

Pornography feeds the lust of the flesh

It promises

intimacy without relationship

pleasure without commitment and

escape without healing

It objectifies people made in God’s image and trains our hearts to consume instead of connect

Porn destroys our view of others and rewires how we define love

Story

I love building fires in the fireplace. There’s nothing like the glow of a fire on a cold night. It warms your home. It draws people close. It creates a sense of comfort and safety. When fire is in the fireplace, it’s a beautiful thing.

But one wrong spark outside the fireplace changes everything. A spark on the carpet. A log that rolls out. An ember that lands in the wrong place.

Suddenly that same fire becomes destructive. The warmth becomes a threat. What once brought comfort now brings chaos.

Sexual desire is a God-given fire. It’s meant to warm a marriage, deepen intimacy, and draw two hearts together. But pornography throws that fire everywhere except where God designed it to burn. It takes something holy and lets it loose in places it was never meant to go.

Porn burns trust. It burns connection. It burns the ability to see people the way God sees them.

Listen — the fire itself isn’t the enemy. Desire isn’t the problem. It’s where we place the fire that matters.

And here’s the hope: Jesus doesn’t just put fires out — He rebuilds fireplaces. He restores intimacy. He heals the places that have been burned. And He teaches us how to tend the flame in a way that brings life, not destruction.

When we give our desires back to God, He turns destructive fires into holy ones.”

Craving for everything we see: Lust of the eyes

The lust of the eyes says: If I can see it, I should have it

News/Politics feeds the lust of the eyes

Politics become destructive when they feed our appetites more than our faith.

When we crave being right more than being righteous. When we hunger for power more than for God’s presence. When our identity is anchored in a party instead of in a Person.

Politics isn’t the problem — it’s our appetite for what politics promises.

Control.

Certainty.

Superiority.

Security.

Identity.

But Jesus didn’t come to take sides — He came to take over. He came to rewire our appetites. He came to teach us a better way — to love even when we disagree, to listen before we speak, and to treat people like image-bearers before we treat them like opponents.

Because at the end of the day… What you feed will grow. And if we keep feeding the political dog inside of us, it will drown out the voice of the Holy Spirit every single time.

So let’s let Jesus retrain our appetites. Let’s crave His Kingdom more than our preferences. Let’s hunger for His truth more than our opinions. Let’s be a church known not for how loudly we argue… but how deeply we love.

Both are symptoms of misplaced appetite

a hunger that seeks fulfillment in what can never satisfy

James exposes the outcome

James 4:2 “You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it.”

Unchecked appetites/desire leads to destruction

it fractures relationships, fuels discontent, and distances us from God.

Pauls offers us some help

Romans 13:12–14 “The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.”

Paul isn’t saying don’t feel desire

he’s saying dress your desires in Jesus 

When we clothe ourselves with Christ, our appetites begin to align with His.

Porn and Politics aren't the issue

They’re just mirrors revealing what’s happening inside us

They show us how easily we trade eternal joy for temporary satisfaction

And how quickly our appetites drift from worshiping God to worshiping self

But here’s the truth: what you feed grows, and what you starve dies.

When you stop feeding your flesh and start feeding your faith, your appetite begins to change.

Application

Will power alone cannot free us from the cravings of this world

We must do what we can do…

Make space to surrender to God via the practices of Jesus,

so God can do what we can’t do

Heal - Liberate - and Transform us.

Filter what feeds you

Ask daily: Is what I’m consuming feeding my spirit or fueling my flesh?

Change the diet of your eyes and mind

remove what weakens your walk.

Fast to refocus

Choose one thing to abstain from this week

social media

late-night scrolling

certain shows

Every time you crave it, pray instead

Let hunger drive you back to God.

Fix your eyes

Memorize Psalm 119:37 “Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word.”

Extra Thoughts (if time allows)

Ask for Help

Psalm 107:14 “He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom; he snapped their chains.”

Psalm 107:28 ““Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.”

You can’t control what catches your eye, but you can control what captures your heart

Freedom begins when you stop feeding what’s killing you and start feasting on the One who can heal you