It’s the secret sin that most male pastors are ashamed of, but it’s done because no one knows. Or so you thought.
Sexual immorality, especially with porn, is without question the stronghold of strongholds.
What’s the driving factor?
Lust in the heart. The desire to look at someone with lust.
The Lord Jesus revealed why men commit adultery.
Matthew 5:27-28 (NKJV) “You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
The word “lust” from Strong’s Dictionary of Biblical Words mean…..g1937. ἐπιθυμέω epithymeō; from 1909 and 2372; to set the heart upon, i.e. long for (rightfully or otherwise): — covet, desire, would fain, lust (after).
To set the heart upon, to long for.
It takes less than a second for a man or woman to set their eyes on someone that they see.
The sexual attraction is so strong that if we’re not careful, looking to admire quickly deepens into look with the intent to lust, to set your heart upon the object.
To long to have him or her sexually.
2 Samuel 11:1-5 (NKJV) “It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah.
But David remained at Jerusalem.
Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house.
And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold.
So David sent and inquired about the woman.
And someone said, “Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”
Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house.
And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”
So what really happened?
James 1:14-15 (NKJV) “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”
David did one thing. He stayed in Jerusalem. There’s a convincing reason that David stayed in Jerusalem.
Is it possible that David saw her and wanted to see her again? Only this time, to fulfill his lusts?
Is it possible that he knew that Bathsheba would be there? Is it possible that his timing was so perfect, that he knew? He had a bird’s eye view of where she would be.
Now Uriah was doing battle. How convenient.
At this point, David had five wives.
Proverbs 27:20 (NKJV) “Hell and Destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.”
David had lust in his heart. He set his heart upon the body of Bathsheba. He longed for the body of Bathsheba. He coveted Bathsheba’s body.
Long story short, David did exactly what the Lord Jesus said not to do.
“…But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
David committed adultery with her in his heart and set his possible preconceived plan in motion. Lust in his heart overwhelmed him. He slew Goliath, but lust in David’s heart was stronger than Goliath.
Here’s the reason.
According to Dr. Struthers, porn hijacks the brain.
Looking at women to lust after them hijacks the brain. When the man allows himself to be completely obsessed with lust, it’s for the purpose of self gratification.
The sexual “juices flow” where you must fulfill that lust in orgasmic pleasure. Where there is no fulfillment in orgasm, the lust is unfulfilled.
Within the confines of marriage, there’s no lust. Within the confines of marriage, orgasmic pleasure was designed by God, and commanded to be done in marriage.
Sex in marriage between one biological male one biological female is perfectly legal.
It’s when you have shifted your eyes in lust that sin is committed.
The conscience is pricked, but a man and woman knows how to suppress the conviction of sin.
Lust took David to a place where it cost him more that he’s willing to pay. Took him further than he’s willing to go.
Three sins were committed.
- Lust.
- Murder.
Exodus 20:13-14 (NKJV) “You shall not murder. “You shall not commit adultery.
3. You shall not covet.
Exodus 20:17 (NKJV) “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
Then the news.
Bathsheba was pregnant with David’s child. David thought about Uriah. If he could get Uriah to have sex with his wife, then all is covered. But Uriah was so loyal to David that he refused to even go home.
That didn’t work out so well for David.
Then David put Uriah on the frontline of the hottest battle where he knew Uriah couldn’t stay alive. The servant broke the news that Uriah died in battle. David thought he would be home free. He took Bathsheba in and all is covered.
Deep down, you kinda knew that God saw this before the world began.
It took Nathan the prophet to uncover the plot.
Psalm 51 is the “Adulterer’s Psalm.”
The addiction comes out of lust.
2 Samuel 12:9 (NKJV) “Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in His sight?”
To sin against God is to despise the commandment of the Lord.
To despise means to de-esteem, to ignore, regard with contempt.
A man after God’s own heart, ignored the commandment of the Lord in his heart.
David paid for his sin.
2 Samuel 12:11-15 (NKJV) “Thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.
For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.'”
So David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”
And Nathan said to David, “The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die. However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die.” Then Nathan departed to his house.“
Did it take all that for David to recognized that he had sinned against the Lord?
Yes. The self delusion was that deep.
Pastor. If you don’t catch yourself, it’s just a matter of time.
As a deflective argument, people will accuse God of killing a child because David was the one that sinned against God. Why take it out on the child?
God is God. He does as it pleases Him.
But look at what happened.
The enemies heard that God was with David and David blew his testimony.
The enemies can now say that David and Israel isn’t as righteous as they claim to be.
Doesn’t this sound like today when a pastor commits adultery? The world brings a serious accusation against God and His people. Everyone is blamed. And then when we try to share the gospel to them, they reject it because we’ve disdained the very commandment that we claim to live by.
Plus, the child would have been viewed as an endorsement for such behavior.
Was Bathsheba raped? Did she resist? Did she fight off David and his men? Did she cry in the streets that what David had done was wrong? Because David is the king, could it be that she willingly submitted to the king to avoid making a scene? Or because she may not have known the law that both the male and female committing adultery are to be put to death?
Leviticus 20:10 (NKJV) “The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death.”
It would be understandable if some of the women that had sexual immorality with these men also be exposed. Sadly, women are taken against their will. Deceived by men claiming to be of God. Then there’s women that will use it to their advantage and sue the sinning pastors for child support.
The Word is clear that pornography is lust. So why are you addicted?
Uncontrolled lust in the heart. Lust must be crucified and it was crucified on the cross when God laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Then we have to choose to crucify the lust in our heart. Paul said…….
Colossians 3:5-7 (NKJV) “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.”
Romans 6:12-14 (NKJV) “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
Stop allowing porn to run your life. Do not let lust in your heart have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace.
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