Desire- In Webster’s 1828 Dictionary desire is defined as an emotion or excitement of the mind, directed to the attainment or possession of an object from which pleasure, sensual, intellectual, or spiritual, is expected. (NAS Bible defines it as appetite)
Emotion, excitement of the mind > directed to the attainment or possession > of that which is
PLEASURABLE
SENSUAL
INTELLECTUAL
SPIRITUAL
PLEASURABLE DESIRE
You get home from work and your wife has just baked your favorite chocolate cake and it’s still warm from the oven and you want a piece “now” not after dinner.
You happen to drive by the Chrysler Automall and see this bright red Crossfire sitting on the lot, and you think “what a hot car” (attention grabber while driving down the road), and even though your credit score when last checked was 425 you remember John D works there and he’s a Christian maybe he’ll give me a great deal(which means give up all his commission) because we are really close friends from the church and stuff.
Wanting to see in person the Buckeyes play Texas in Texas
SENSUAL DESIRE
At work you get your first look at a new female employee walking down the hall with your boss and your mind reels with excitement because she is the embodiment of almost the perfect “10” you have erected in your mind many times in the past. You begin to plan a way to introduce yourself to her asap so you quickly put your wedding ring in your pocket.
You want to make love to your wife so you two plan out the day to make it happen
INTELLECTUAL DESIRE
While looking through the Sunday Dispatch ads you notice Dell Computers has come out with the fastest PC with the capacity of creating and burning your own DVD’s in seconds compared to any other models. You think this would be great to scan in family pictures from this past year and record these great moments to give Grandma and Grandpa for Christmas. I could also take all my most favorite pornographic images and put them on one DVD. What a time saver!
Throughout the day your mind continually wonders off to create new or recreate old fantasies of what it would be like to win the lottery, or devise a way to lure someone whom you are attracted to into conversation that become illicit.
You love new technology, books on philosophy or theology.
SPIRITUAL DESIRE
You’re new to a church and have visited several different home groups but can’t seem to find one that you are able to use your gifting freely or one where the members recognize your insight in the Word.
You are drawn to the spiritual “heads” in the church for acknowledgement, discussion, prayer, and friendship, with the hopes of relationship.
You want to be a better Christian
We know that some desires are bigger than others, some are more important to us than others; some desires are good(For me to desire my Wife) too much desire might be bad for us, some are sinful(For you to desire my wife); some are virtuous (To be a good father)
But desire itself is not sinful because it is God who created us with the capacity to desire, one of the first mentions is in Gen 3:16 “¼your desire shall be for your husband”
So I want to explore the more foundational desires, deeper rooted desires because if we understand them, if we choose to line our life up with them, if we choose to excite our mind about them many of the questionable desires we may have will be easier to discern.
Gerald May in his Book “The Awakened Heart” says about desire...
“ There is a desire within each of us, in the deep center of our selves that we call our heart. We were born with it, it is never completely satisfied, and it never dies. We are often unaware of it, but it is always awake. Our true identity, our reason for being, is to be found in this desire.”
John Eldredge in his book “Journey of Desire” says…
“It is the desire for life as it was meant to be.”
Many of us are like Esau who sold his birth right for food. We have sold off our desire for life as it was meant to be for sexual gratification. We quench our gifting and desire for ministry to pursue more money for bigger and better life comforts’
1. Desiring again- Ps 37:4 this tells us the Lord wants to give us our hearts desires> If we delight ourselves(excite our minds) in Him, Ps 37:4 Trust in Him, Commit our way (desires).
Wrong desire also will be granted. He will also give you over to your desires Rom 1:24
2. Purity- Matt 5:8 “Blessed are those who are pure (Desire purity) of heart they will see God”
“Try me and see if there be any wicked way in me David said to the Lord” Phil 4:7 “Guard your hearts and your minds”
3. Righteousness-Matt 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness”
Matt5:20 “Unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees¼”
4. Humility- James 4:6 “God resists the proud¼”
“He who humbles himself will be exalted” Luke 14:11
5. Discipline –“For those who the Lord loves He disciplines” Heb 12:6
“Your rod and your staff they comfort me.” Ps 23:4
6. A Wife- Matt 19:5 “ A man shall leave his father and mother¼.”
“Be satisfied with the wife of your youth” Prov 5:18
7. Work- “Whatever your hands finds to do, do it with all your might.” Ec 9:10
“If you don’t work you don’t eat” 2Thess 3:10
8. Wisdom/Truth- Ps 51:6 “Surely you desire truth in the inner parts, you teach
Wisdom in the inmost place”
“Get wisdom, get understanding..” Pro 4:5
9. Waiting- “Wait upon the Lord and He will renew your strength”(renew your desire) Is 40:31 Waiting is not the absence of desire, it’s desire at rest. Like a child sleeping on it’s mother’s breast Ps 131:2
