For the next few weeks, our Monday morning devotionals will focus on the Biblical concept of desire. The mysteries of human desire are a puzzle filled with seeds of potentially devastating outcomes on one hand, and the glorious purposes of God on the other. Desires are a risky yet essential part of human nature, encompassing the core of what it means to be human and influencing how we live as children of God.
Desires, in and of themselves, are not inherently evil. They are part of the beauty of the human experience. But it is how we navigate those seas of our heart’s desires that determines the nature of our life – peace or frustration, contentment or bitterness, light or darkness.
The word ‘desire’ appears over 100 times in the Bible (109 in the King James Version). In the Old Testament, desire is often (though not always) associated with wickedness and sin. There, stories and guidance warn how people frequently let the sinful desires of their hearts take control of their lives. Assuming that liberty, those desires, rooted in a fallen and sinful human nature, can override God’s will and preferences.
How many times have we seen this reality unfold in our own lives or in those of others we care about? Follow your dreams! Be true to yourself! Live your best life! These familiar phrases dominate a culture of self-will where everyone does what is right in their own eyes and fails to consider God’s preferences. We show the dominance of the self in our modern age by pursuing selfish desires, no matter the cost. So, while some chase their dreams at any price, we often end up with broken families and corrupted lifestyles in their wake.
But once again, desires are not inherently evil. This is a crucial point for us to acknowledge, and we will certainly explore the positive aspects of desire in future installments of this series. We must control our desires. God’s design never intended personal desires to run unchecked and uncontrolled. The role of desire in our lives is key to a spiritually healthy and functional life.
Hiding within the lines of the verses in Genesis 3, we can see this role of desire in the fall of man.
She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. Genesis 3:6
The word “desire” is not explicitly mentioned, but we can sense the inner desire lurking within, a prey set for the enemy’s trap of deception. The object of desire looked delicious. The object of desire would bring with it untold benefits. In the end, however, the object of desire was just a door for the enemy to trap and imprison the woman and the man, along with all their future descendants, in a trap of darkness.
Our desires are not inherently evil, but the enemy can exploit those desires to lead us into evil. In his epistle, the apostle James warned that no one should ever think that God tempts us. That is not how it works.
For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. James 1:13-15
The word that always stands out when I read this verse is ‘conceived.‘ Two parties or forces are necessary for something to be conceived, whether we are talking about the conception of a baby or the conception and birth of sin. In the case of sin, the two parties are our own evil desire and the enemy’s temptation. The desire itself is not evil, and the temptation of evil does not hold power over us. But when desire and temptation combine, they have the potential to unleash nearly unlimited consequences. My desire, when partnered with the enemy’s temptation, gives birth to sin! That should give us all great pause.
Observe the lives of those who have boldly chased their dreams. Notice the chaotic landscape of our world and this generation, where desire is easily tempted by darkness. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). When desire goes unmanaged and ungoverned, that is the true outcome – sin and death.
Desires can be a gateway to great fulfillment in life, as we will explore in future devotionals. But before we can experience that, we must first establish a governing framework for our desires.
As believers, we should all seek to understand better and navigate the world we live in today. From our interactions with technology to the media and even our responses to political leaders and influencers, if we want to be people of strength, the salt of the earth, and light of the world, we would do well to correctly establish these roots of desire in our personal operating systems.
This article was initially published as our Monday Morning Devotional.