Definition of Lust According To The Bible
www.ExamineTheTruth.com
Question:
Mr. Ahmed, regarding the
sexual contact, how do you understand the following verse:
Mt
5:28
But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust
after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Response:
First, I would encourage everyone to
download the following debate on Life
within the limits of Biblical and Islamic Morality:
http://www.examinethetruth.com/ahmed_beaumont_debate.htm
now let me address the question.
According to the Greek New Testament, lust is defined as follows:
|
Definition |
|
Lust is defined as a desire for what is forbidden. If this is the case, we must
ask the question, what exactly does the Bible forbid? The answer to this
question is that the New Testament only forbids sexual intercourse (Col 3:5, 1 Thessalonians 4:3, Mark 7:20-23, Galatians 5:19-21,1 Corinthians 7:2, Matthew 15:19-20, 1 Corinthians 5:1-2, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, 1 Corinthians 6:16 - 20, Ephesians 5:3-5, Colossians 3:5-6, REV 14:4). The New Testament
does not forbid any other kind of intimate contact between man and woman.
Therefore, lust is ONLY the desire to
have sexual intercourse with women.
This means that to look at a woman and to have other types of sexual
thoughts is not considered lust. Therefore it is permissible to do so according
to the Bible. But once you think of sexual intercourse with a woman, then it
becomes lust.
Now, one may say the definition of
lust is simply to desire a woman who does not belong to him, or
"lust" simply means to have desire for a woman. If this is the cause,
then it does not necessarily have to be ONLY a sexual desire. But this
definition is false , as it contradicts the Bible, because God incited lust (Song of Solomon 8:1 – 3, 8:8 – 10, 4:5), and Prophets
also engaged in lust. The Bible tells us in 2 Timothy 3:16 that all
scripture is profitable Therefore, having this type of lust must be ok and
profitable.
But there are more problems with this second definition. For example, if a man
meets a woman and decides they have a lot in common, and she would be a great
companion to share his life with, then that man has committed "lust".
The only type of male which do not desire woman are homosexuals. All
heterosexual males desire woman. This can happen at the mall, school or simply
watching TV. Therefore, to properly understand this verse, all it is saying, is
that all heterosexual men have committed adultery in their hearts. Nothing more
than this should be inferred. Therefore, we should understand the following:
lust = heterosexuality
Furthermore, according to Mt. 5:28, the only way possible for Christians
to get married is the ancient Hindu tradition of arranged marriages, in which
the groom and the bride are forbidden to meet each other till the actual
marriage day. It is only on the actual marriage day, when the groom and the
bride see each other for the first time. If the man and woman were allowed to
see or talk to each other before marriage, there is no doubt, that to certain
extent, some desire ("lust") for the other will occur. For example,
the man may appreciate the woman’s good looks and vice versa, and therefore,
some form of desire or "lust" may take place.
But to the best of my knowledge, Christians do not practice this form of
courtship. Rather, they practice "dating". The entire system of
dating is founded upon desire, or "lust". You have to like
("lust") the person you date. There has to be a certain amount of
attraction ("lust") that each are suppose to have for the other. Can
you imagine a Christian man saying to his girlfriend, "I have no desire
for you….lets get married, we were meant to be together".
It should be clear from this second definition (which is not correct),
that there is no difference between a kind woman giving an exhausted emergency
flood aid worker a warm cup of hot chocolate and Britney Spears bumping and
grinding. Both actions have the potential of causing heterosexual men to
"desire" them. Therefore, it does not matter whether the desire is
sexual, spiritual, or plutonic; it all falls under the category of Biblical
lust. But Christians have distorted the meaning of this word to ONLY mean a
deep sexual desire. We of course know that this is a bogus definition.