By Dr. Don Dunlap
Pastoral Counselor
God dwells within His children. Our impure thoughts defile God’s dwelling place.
Family Counseling Ministries -
Satan poses as an angel of light and he offers God’s children glamorous, temporal pleasures in exchange for the destruction of their souls. God knows that our natural inclinations often betray us and we must have a strategy to conquer the enemies of the flesh, the world and the devil. In the 4th part of a seven-article series on conquering impure thoughts, Dr. Don Dunlap advises Believers to memorize specific passages of Scripture.
Our battle against impure thoughts is far more than a mere mental or physical struggle. It is spiritual warfare. We read in Ephesians 6:12,
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Satan poses as an angel of light and he offers God’s children glamorous, temporal pleasures in exchange for the destruction of their souls.
God knows that our natural inclinations easily betray us, and He wants us to conquer our enemies—the flesh, the world, and the devil. We can accomplish this only as we memorize Scripture so that we may use His holy Word as a weapon of warfare.
The writer of Ephesians 6:17 instructs us,
Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
Our victory depends not only on resisting the onslaught of sexual temptation, but on preparing ourselves between temptations. A Christian should commit to memory at least ten very helpful scripture passages if he or she intends to conquer the sin of impure thoughts.
1. Our body is the dwelling place of the Lord and impure thoughts defile it.
Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple. 1 Corinthians 3:16,17
2. Other people face the same temptations that we do. We must bring every thought under Christ’s control.
So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. 1 Corinthians 10:12,13
3. No one and nothing can entice us to sin until our own lust draws us away.
When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone, but each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. James 1:13,14
4. Self-gratification diminishes the scope of our consciences and our awareness of how we hurt others.
Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God…For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you His Holy Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 4:1,7,8
5. We can transform the same energy that we use for sensuality, into spiritual power as a weapon for God.
Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness. Romans 6:12,13
In the next article, we continue to consider various scripture passages that are helpful as we wage spiritual warfare against the defilement of impure thoughts.
Dr. Don Dunlap, a pioneer in the placement of Pastoral Counselors in the offices of Christian physicians, has conducted over twenty thousand appointments during his ministerial career. His counseling practice includes adults, children and families in crisis. Dr. Dunlap is committed to facilitating a network of telephone counselors. His goal is to provide help for the many people unable to meet face to face with a competent Bible-based counselor. For a complete library of Dr. Dunlap’s articles, indexed by topic, go to Family Counseling Ministries. You may also make an appointment for personal telephone counseling by clicking on Family Counseling Ministries. Family Counseling Ministries is a Christianity.com ministry Partner.
