Chapter 6: Just Lust

Have you ever wanted something really, really badly? Can you think of what it was that you wanted? I bet it was something that you liked, something that was pleasing to you. Something that brought you great happiness or pleasure. I bet it was something you thought you just had to have. Am I right?

Do you remember how you felt not having that thing? Like your life was just terrible without it, like it had no meaning unless you got that thing that you were wanting? Why do we feel this way as humans? Why do we greatly desire things that we know deep down are no good for us? I bet after you got that thing, you realized it really wasn’t what it was all made up to be in your mind. I bet after the initial feeling of happiness or pleasure you still felt empty inside. I bet you started longing for something new to fill that void. Am I right?

This roller coaster that we take a ride on is at first scary, then exciting, and then we would say it’s fun. But then it’s over, and we are right back to where we started from. Searching for that next thrill ride to engage in, because the one we just got off of wasn’t good enough. This search for the next ride distracts us from the bigger picture of what’s really going on. 

This ride is called sin and it’s ruining our lives every time we ride it. It seems completely harmless and “fun” but in reality it’s destroying our spiritual life and tearing away our moral fibers that hold us together as people. You think I’m lying? Look at this in Proverbs chapter fourteen and verse twelve.

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, But the end thereof are the ways of death.” – Proverbs‬ ‭14‬:‭12‬ ‭KJV‬‬

You see? It seems right in your mind for you to have that thing that you are desiring to have so badly. You tell yourself that you deserve it! You’ve worked hard for this! This is what I want! But you are so very wrong. You have not yet understood; as the saying goes “not everything that glitters is made of gold.” Did you know that a person can justify anything in their mind if they allow themselves to think about it long enough? Don’t believe me? Let’s start with a Bible verse and then I’ll give you some examples that you will be familiar with.

“There are many devices in a man’s heart; Nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand.” – Proverbs‬ ‭19‬:‭21‬ KJV

There was a man who lived back in the mid nineteen-hundreds; he had a funny little mustache and an extreme hatred for Israel and the Jewish people. This man had literally convinced himself that he was doing the work of God on the Earth. He was doing the work of God by attempting to exterminate all of God’s chosen people? How in the world does that make any sense? Well it is actually rather quite simple really. This man had deceived himself and many others into believing that he was correct in his ideology. He obviously was incorrect because if he would have been correct then his evil plan would have worked. He would have eradicated the entire Earth from having the presence of any Israelites and Jewish people upon it. This obviously did not happen, because God was obviously not behind this scheme of death. Obviously, it was the devil, who had convinced this man to believe in a lie. Am I right?

You see if God had been a supporter of this plan to murder every Jew, then he would have succeeded. Remember, when God says it: it happens. Now, we stated that this man had been deceived. What does it mean to be deceived? I’m glad you asked. The definition of deceived is this, “(of a person) cause (someone) to believe something that is not true, typically in order to gain some personal advantage.” Simply put, when one is deceived, they believe a lie to be the truth. Obviously, this man believed very strongly in his viewpoint as history teaches us. In fact, so strongly that he was able to convince others to believe it as well. He deceived them, by first being himself deceived. Strange how that works isn’t it?

You see, he did not start off with this belief; no, he was not born with it, neither were his followers. He had begun to slowly become a believer in his “God given providence” by spending time dwelling on this thought. Over time he became more and more convinced that what he was thinking was the truth. And to him it was. It truly was his truth. The problem he had was that this belief he held was truly a lie. He eventually found this out to be the truth. Albeit, too late to change his mind. At that point it no longer mattered for him, he became as one of his many followers who had died believing in a lie.

The question of the ages is easy to ask. Yet, not so easy to answer. Who deceived him? Was it the devil or did he deceive himself? Many have wondered in amazement at how it was possible for one person to so passionately hate so many others. Does this sound like anyone you know? It sounds a lot like Satan. In fact, that’s exactly how Satan is, that very name means “adversary.” The word adversary means “one’s opponent in a contest, conflict, or dispute.” Am I right?

We know that one whom is deceived is able to deceive others, obviously it worked for this man. So, to solve this riddle of who got who deceived, it’s actually pretty easy to determine the origin. Ask yourself this, who deceived Satan? We know it was not God because God cannot tell a lie. See here in Titus, chapter one, and verse two.

“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;” – Titus 1:2 KJV

We also know that the ability to deceive comes along with a position of authority, or at least a position of assumed authority when viewed through the eyes of the victim. We can see that this is what happened to all of this man’s followers. Who else do we know that convinced their followers to follow them into battle based on deception? Oh yeah, Satan did that too. Take a look here at Revelation, chapter twelve, and verse four.

“And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.” – Revelation 12:4 KJV

The dragon is Satan, and the stars are angels in this verse. Satan obviously had a position of authority over a third of all of the angels in Heaven, because they went with him whenever he was kicked out of Heaven to the Earth. See here in Isaiah, chapter fourteen, verse twelve; as well as in Luke, chapter ten, and verse eighteen.

“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!” – Isaiah 14:12 KJV

“And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” – Luke 10:18 KJV

So, if all the good angels remained in Heaven with God: and all the evil angels followed Satan’s leadership and were also cast out of Heaven; then who would that leave to be the one who originally deceived Satan himself? Himself, Satan is who deceived Satan himself. Am I right?

Can a mind deceive its own self? The answer is definitely and emphatically, yes. Yes, it can deceive itself into believing a lie to be the truth. Look at these following verses to prove this to be true.

“Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;” – Deuteronomy 11:16 KJV

“For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.” – Galatians 6:3 KJV

“Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.” – 1 Corinthians 3:18 KJV

“And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” – 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 KJV

“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” – 1 John 1:8 KJV

“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” – James 1:22 KJV

So, obviously it is completely and utterly possible for one to deceive them own selves. Is this what happened to the Jew hating man? Perhaps, perhaps not. It does not matter whether it was himself or Satan which convinced him to believe the lie. Either one is possible. What matters is that he, through his own lust, believed it. Remember that lust means “to feel a strong desire for something.”

Remember reading this verse earlier?

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, But the end thereof are the ways of death.” – Proverbs‬ ‭14‬:‭12‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The way that seems right unto the man is actually evil at its core. Our lusts will always, no matter what, never end up leading us anywhere besides death in all actuality. Read this verse here in Ecclesiastes, chapter nine, and verse three.

“This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.” – Ecclesiastes 9:3 KJV

See, if we are left to our own devices we will most definitely perish in eternal death. Doesn’t sound too exciting, does it? Doesn’t sound too fun, does it? That actually sounds very scary. Am I right?

Lust is what will land you there. Nothing more, just lust. If left unchecked and allowed to roam freely in your mind, lust will send you to default. Default for man is death. You have to actively, consciously, and purposefully choose to do something different. You must choose to think for yourself and yourself must choose what to think. See here in John, chapter eight, and verse forty-four.

“Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” – John 8:44 KJV

The man with the funny little mustache did not choose for himself what to think, he instead allowed his mind to think on its own and this is what began the inevitable path to death for him. This is currently what is happening in anyone and everyone’s minds that have not been rooted and seeded in Christ Jesus, which is the Word of God. That’s why he told us this in Second Corinthians, chapter ten, and verse five.

“Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” – 2 Corinthians 10:5 KJV

This is what MUST be done by us, otherwise we naturally WILL follow Satan. We will follow him straight into the pit of hell if we are not diligent in making a difference in what we think about. Don’t believe me? Check this out in Proverbs, chapter twenty-three, and verse seven.

“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.” – Proverbs 23:7 KJV

What we think about we bring about. Be very careful what it is that you allow your mind to dwell on. For what you think is who you are; and who you are is what you think. You see, the devil does not have to deceive you; he knows that without the truth you will deceive yourself. Remember who the adversary really is, or rather who can really become the adversary. Do not allow yourself to become your own opponent. The possibility of such a situation sounds crazy, doesn’t it? That’s because it is. The man with the funny little mustache was widely believed to be schizophrenic. Interesting, isn’t it? Remember these things in the following verses.

“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” – Romans 12:3 KJV

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” – 1 Peter 5:8 KJV

To be sober and to think soberly means this, “in a serious, sensible, and solemn manner”, and also this “with moderation or self-restraint; temperately.”

Never forget this. The devil is a liar, a thief, and the destroyer. Don’t become like him by allowing your mind to control you; you control your mind.

“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” – John 10:10 KJV

If you think that your mind might be playing tricks on you, read the next chapter and finish this book. I think you can do it. I think it will help you. I think you will then understand.