Overcoming Lust and a Circumcission of the Heart

Men compete. Men compete in sports. Men compete in school. Men compete in the work place. Men compete in love. There are rules in sports. There are rules in school. There are rules in the work place. Should there not be rules for love and dating? Overcoming lust may be a shift of perceptions with The Lord Jesus Christ. That is what we are going to work on today.

Young man, he is thirteen or so, and he has been discovering girls and women. They are pretty. His buddies on the playground, they have been dating already. They came back with stories of their exploits. How is the competition building here for love? Our young man was developing how to look at girls. In competition with his buddies, he may have needed to "Get his." He may have needed to "Know that he could." "Dating" may have become a game of conquests. This was driven by The Ego.

We are going to fast forward, and our young man is sixteen. How is he looking at his female classmates? It is healthy to desire a mate. It is healthy to desire a potential wife. The competition for having a wife, it shifted towards sin and debauch. It is good to appreciate beauty. It is bad to be looking at the opposite sex, looking to use them outside of marriage in sin.

Fast Forward another 20 years, and our man is now 36. He has been married for six years, and has two kids. He was a wondering eye. He settled. He had all his excitement in sin, but was tired of it. He started looking for something permanent. He settled for someone. Six years after being married, he had a wondering eye because he was still in competition with his playground buddies from middle school. Maybe he looked at a celebrity like Leonardo DiCaprio and thought, "Why does he get the girls, and why can't I?" His unhealthy competition from Middle School may have shifted to being in competition with celebrities and rock stars.

Given our man started going to Church, and was seeking the Lord Jesus Christ, part of overcoming lusts may be to identity that there was an unhealthy and sinful competition. Our man lets go. He lets go of the competition. He says "I don't care." He stops caring about what other men are doing, and instead, he reflects inward, and looks to make himself a better man in Christ.

God is love. Our thirty six year old married man, he works to forget those past flings, past girlfriends, he drops the competition, and he works to love his wife, and think only of her. This is a good place to be to start listening to God's Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a teacher and a councilor.

Conceptual Bible Study - Heart of Stone vs Circumcision of the Heart​

There are a lot of interesting concepts that run through the Bible, through multiple authors. These concepts are succinct. This could be a long post. I am going to show you some verses, and gives some context.

• I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26)
• For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them. 16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.

God is love. (1 John 4:8) God's love is forever. Young people, they tend to think about marriage a lot, or things associated with marriage....like sex. How do they think about it? It is healthy to appreciate beauty. It is may be healthy to think about marriage and be curious. Given someone was thinking about using people outside of marriage, in sin, that separates someone from God. Someone with a Heart of Stone may have loved and lost....a lot....like someone in hook up culture at college, or someone who had a lot of wicked friends in high school. In the Bible, pagans near Israel were prostituting young girls in Baal Worship. These things may have developed a Heart of Stone.....like the Rolling Stones song by Kabbalist Mick Jagger.

Having Eyes to See and Ears to Hear is a major theme in the Bible. (Ezekiel 12:2)(Proverbs 20:12)(Isaiah 42:7) Have you ever heard that masturbation makes you go blind? For a young man, learning about how to look at girls, given he was lusting after girls, that separates him from God's fatherly love. He may have become blind and deaf in sin.

• Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your hearts, you people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or my wrath will flare up and burn like fire because of the evil you have done— burn with no one to quench it. (Jeremiah 4:4)
• But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. (Romans 2:29)

A man was around 30 years old. He had loved and lost. He had been in hook up culture. Life had been rough in his 20's. He became callused. Said man, he starts seeking God with all his heart and soul and strength and mind. He had been baptized. He loves The Lord Jesus Christ. One day, said man feels suddenly like a New Born child. Stimuli, like tv and movies or music, he had been hardened against, they suddenly affect him like he was a child. He felt like he was experiencing everything for the very first time. He had a circumcision of the heart.
I have highlighted some concepts for you, and given you context for them. There may be a treasure trove of understanding here for someone with God's Holy Spirit. God bless.

Frankj said:

And what of women?

Do they not have to deal with such things?

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Men and women are not equal. Women's issues may need to be addressed in an equitable way.

Were you loving Feminism with your soul that you would make such a reply?

Lamb said:

I think he means that women lust too and in today's modern world, sex is encouraged more among women than it used to be. It used to be a horrible thing to be called easy, but now, no one will use that word because it doesn't matter in today's modern world.

Even in Christian homes where chastity is spoken about, sin can grab hold of the hormonal youth, both men and women.

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In 1960, the average age of marriage was 19 for women, and 21 for men. That takes care of a lot of problems.

A lot has changed since 1960. There was prayer in schools in 1960. A lot changed and a lot of Christians have been slow to understand the changes.

A widowed women.....or a single mom in a Church....she may have been causing trouble. The Church is The Body of Christ, and The Body of Christ is a society, a community. To be Holy means to be separate. Christians should be building their own communities, around a Church, where someone lives close enough to the place of congregation where children may ride their bikes there. Were Christians part of The World, or were they rejecting the world, and working to build The Kingdom of God? The Body of Christ is a community, a society. The Body of Christ should be separate from non-Christians. Someone is Christian or other.

In the Body of Christ, Christians value virgin brides. We are not concerned about what the pagans, the atheists, the luke-warm, we are not concerned with what they are doing. They are wrong. We are separate. Christian societies value virgin brides. Given there was an unmarried women below a certain age, she should be married within the community.

11 As for younger widows, do not put them on such a list. For when their sensual desires overcome their dedication to Christ, they want to marry. 12 Thus they bring judgment on themselves, because they have broken their first pledge. 13 Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also busybodies who talk nonsense, saying things they ought not to. 14 So I counsel younger widows to marry, to have children, to manage their homes and to give the enemy no opportunity for slander. 15 Some have in fact already turned away to follow Satan. (1 Timothy 5:11-15)

There should not be single moms in a Church........given a Christian society that has been around for hundreds of years. We are in fallen Christianity.

Harlot is a word in the Bible. Was your society more of a virgin Israel or a harlot Ezekiel 23?

The following is an exert from a Wiki on the city of Baalbek

The town became a battleground upon the rise of Christianity.[82][h] Early Christian writers such as Eusebius (from nearby Caesarea) repeatedly execrated the practices of the local pagans in their worship of the Heliopolitan Venus. In AD 297, the actor Gelasinus converted in the middle of a scene mocking baptism; his public profession of faith provoked the audience to drag him from the theater and stone him to death.[82][3] In the early 4th century, the deacon Cyril defaced many of the idols in Heliopolis; he was killed and (allegedly) cannibalised.[82] Around the same time, Constantine, though not yet a Christian, demolished the goddess' temple, raised a basilica in its place, and outlawed the locals' ancient custom of prostituting women before marriage.[82] Bar Hebraeus also credited him with ending the locals' continued practice of polygamy.[88] The enraged locals responded by raping and torturing Christian virgins.[82] They reacted violently again under the freedom permitted to them by Julian the Apostate.[3] The city was so noted for its hostility to the Christians that Alexandrians were banished to it as a special punishment. (Baalbek - Wikipedia)

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The powers that be, the rulers of this world more associated with people from the World Ecconomic Forum from Davios, they have been working to rebuild a Baalbek. Was your society more of a Virgin Israel or Drinking a Harlot's Wine? (Revelations 17)

Frankj said:

No, where does Feminism come into it?

Consider that as the young boys begin to notice the young girls and start competing for their affection the young girls also start dressing, wearing makeup and acting in such a manner as to attract their attention, competing among themselves for male attention.

So effectively both the men and the women are indulging in the same mating desire based behavior and encouraging one another to do so, in competition with the others of their sex, to become the most successful at it.

This is actually pretty standard behavior in most animals, and people have an animal nature driving them as well as a spiritual one, the internal struggle between the two for dominance is where our battle lies, one or the other will reign supreme and either bring us closer to God or build a barrier between ourselves and him.

Much can be discussed about this, much can be learned from such a discussion.

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For girls, what are their expectations?

A 16 year old girl, she probably has a plan. She has been thinking about marriage and her wedding day. How did she think about it?

At a public high school in the suburbs, your average sixteen year old girl, who may have been popular, what was her plan? Her plan may have been to go to college, and graduate. Her plan may have been to be married by age 25. What she was doing between 16-25.....she could have been ok with being in all types of sins, and shrugged her shoulders about it. Given she lost her cellphone, that would harder for her to deal with than loosing her virginity. In fact, she may have looked to lose her virginity on purpose to be receiving attentions.

With girls, the answer may be shifting their priorities and perceptions. Being a "Relationship girl," like a long term prostitute, that wasn't love. Taking walks of shame, that wasn't love. Those are things that develop of Heart of Stone. A sorority girl with a heart of stone, who took too many walks of shame, should may have become a District Attorney or something. Having a heart of stone, and not knowing love, she may have been doing wicked things to people in her private life.....and her professional life.

• 48 As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did what you and your daughters have done. 49 “‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen. 51 Samaria did not commit half the sins you did. You have done more detestable things than they, and have made your sisters seem righteous by all these things you have done. 52 Bear your disgrace, for you have furnished some justification for your sisters. Because your sins were more vile than theirs, they appear more righteous than you. So then, be ashamed and bear your disgrace, for you have made your sisters appear righteous. (Ezekiel 16:48-52)

Having a heart of stone, was someone arrrogant, overfed and unconcerned, doing wicked things to people?

Some people did not know love. God is love. (1 John 4:8) God's love is forever.

Frankj said:

What would you say caused this change since earlier times in our country, and how was it accomplished? What was the method the world (define it for yourself) used to produce this change?

Without recognizing this and understanding how it works, we cannot take an effective stand against it as Christians and separate ourselves and our children from it.

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Progressivism was something that came from Christian Churches. Progress is the Kingdom of God, a "City Upon a Hill" John Winthrop. In the 1800's, progress may have been helping the widows and the orphans. Someone like Teddy Roosevelt was progressive.

Progressive may have been something God blessed. Progressivism may have something in the Spiritual or Principalitiles. Satan shangaied progressivism.

One of the most Far Left Progressives may have been Green Party Candidate Ralph Nader. Progress to him was creating consumer protections. That wasn't bad. Progress became men in girl's bathrooms. Satan Shangaied Progressivism.

Around 1900 or so, there were some particular feminists. These feminists were wicked females, who looked at some of the worst men in society and asked "Why can't I be like that?" This may be associated with Bohemianism....like Bohemian Grove in San Francisco.

Bohemians were associated with unorthodox or anti-establishment political or social viewpoints expressed through free love, frugality, and—in some cases—simple living, van dwelling or voluntary poverty. A more economically privileged, wealthy, or even aristocratic bohemian circle is sometimes referred to as haute bohème[1] (literally "Upper Bohemian").[2] (Bohemianism - Wikipedia)

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Bohemians, coming from Catholic France, in Paris, were anti-Establishment......they were Luciferians believing God was the dark, and man or something else was the light. They stole concepts they liked from Christinainity and Christians. Fast Forward, to 1919, and women received the vote. Said Feminists and Bohemians, they were distraught that women were voting with their husbands. They believed that voting would emancipate women from "Christian Slavery" in marriage. Said Bohemians were Harlots.

During the last election there was a Kamala Harris comericial where it was implied that wives should secretly vote for Kamala in secert, behind their husbands backs. That would be Bohemians....the same types of feminists, the same movement.

Article: 'My wife and I are one': Conservative men lose it over ad suggesting their wives could vote Harris in secret

My son, pay attention to my wisdom;
[a]Lend your ear to my understanding,
2 That you may [b]preserve discretion,
And your lips may keep knowledge.
3 For the lips of [c]an immoral woman drip honey,
And her mouth is smoother than oil;
4 But in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
Sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death,
Her steps lay hold of [d]hell.
6 Lest you ponder her path of life—
Her ways are unstable;
You do not know them. (Proverbs 5:1-6)

Frankj said:

I think that as men we should probably be seeking input from women on this.

It seems that men's and women's minds use different operating systems and men cannot really understand the way women think or why they think that way.

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Are you an authority in your household? In the Kingdom of God, a man may be King of his Castle.

You are espousing a feminist idea.

A woman in sin has been made a liar. Did you believe her lies?

Jesus Christ is a Fisher of Men. The Bible is the Patriarchy, Jesus Christ the head Patriarch. (1 Timothy 2:5) Are you looking to be instructed by a woman due to your lack of thumos and andreia?

Frankj said:

That's a good timeline and explanation of what happened to us (Christians) and you're better at that than I am.

From my thoughts I find myself more interested in the 'how' of it happening, the actual tools, the methods. Satan has used to deceive us into accepting and even approving of these things without our even realizing that is what we were (and still are) doing. If nothing else, Satan is subtle and crafty about how he goes about his work.

Jesus taught in parable about the sewing of seeds that grow into grain that has large yields.

I say that everything God (Jesus) does the devil also does as a counterfeit of it.

So what were the seeds he planted among us that has led to our current pursuit of unsound doctrine in the Church and how did he do it without our noticing until after the crop had grown and multiplied in numbers?

( I could argue that this applies not only to Christians but to humanity as a whole, the spreading of evil, but that would be inappropriate at this point. Just something to keep somewhere in mind)

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Intersectionalism.

In 1960, a lot of men understood "Bad Company Corrupts Good Character." (1 Corinthians 15:33)

There was a counter culture influenced by Aleister Crowley and Karl Marx in the 1960's. In the 1970's, that counter culture was mainstreamed into mainstream culture with sex drugs and rock and roll.

In the 1970's, there was a band called Bad Company singing the song "Bad Company." In 2025, when people hear the term "Bad Company" do they think of the Bible verse or the song or band? There was Intersectionalism, where people's perceptions changed. This is part of how Satan has worked. There is a whole philosophy around it that has been called "Black Magic Satanism." Intersectionalism is part of how things have been Occulted.

Humanism came from Christian Theologicans. Secular Humanism via the Rights of Man would be a corruption of.

Awake is something particular in the Bible. Awake may be like The First Martyr Stephen, before he died, seeing Jesus Christ at the right hand of God. Woke would be a corruption of, coming from people like false Shepherd Rev Jesse Jackson and his Rainbow Coalition.

Intersectionalism was the answer to your question. When we see Professors talking about Intersectionalism in particular ways, it may be a sign of something. All it takes is name dropping Aleister Crowley, or asking some probing questions, or making some probing comments, to figure out if they were part of the problem.

Frankj said:

You are right to point out music as one of the ways the devil plants that seed of deception in us.

When I was young back in the 50's and Rock and roll Roll first started I remember my parents generation condemning it saying things like it is jungle music and would corrupt the morals of the younger generation. Dismissed by us as being a ridiculously old fashioned nonsense, but guess what? They were right. This was a seed planted in my generation that actually did lead to total moral decline that is now continuing on an accelerating basis in today's young people.

Listen to songs like Mississippi John Hurt singing Lonesome Valley or maybe the Kingston Trio singing Desert Pete and then to about anything by currently popular songs by, say, The Beatles, Katy Perry or Taylor Swift and look at yourself introspectively as you do to see where they lead your thinking, what they lead you to accept. What message do they deliver to your unconscious mind that later on directs your thinking and actions in life without your even realizing it is doing so?

Music is one media that can do this and be used for Satan's purposes, but there are many others as well. It is what we are subtly pre-conditioned to accept that becomes the true values that direct our lives without our even realizing they have been placed in us from outside unconsciously, not originating within ourselves as we perceive them to be.

People tend to believe their thoughts, beliefs and values originate from themselves, but how many people ever try to look to inside themselves to see where they actually came from?

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A thought is like a seed. Someone thinks about something too much, they may have given root to something.

God is long suffering. Our trials bring us closer to God. It may be that black Americans in the 1910's or so, they were given something by God. Satan was a liar and a thief. A lot of Rock and Roll like Elvis Presley or Led Zeppelin, it was stealing things from Black Gospel Music and Blues.

You can tell a lot about what has been going on, spiritually, in ugly backwards ways, by what Satan was doing.

There are a lot of interesting things in Gospel Music.

(Psalms 1:1-4)

How much of what was in Gospel music ended up in Popular Music and Why?

Frankj said:

It's like that (probably not really) old oriental saying about a young monk approaching his teacher and describing his inner turmoil as being like a white dog and a black dog fighting with each other and wondering which would win, The answer he received was it would be the one he feeds.

Watering and nourishing a seed, feeding a dog, listening to music, watching television shows and movies, they all do things to us unconsciously that lead us in a direction we might not want to be going as Christians, a wide road and narrow road sort of thing.

I wonder what sorts of things the early Christians faced that would be the same thing in nature, and how they handled it?

They were far closer in time to Jesus then than we are now and would probably have had more of his true influence in their thoughts and actions.

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You are clearly in danger. A big part of spiritual warfare has been a war of words, a war of thoughts. (2 Corinthians 10:5)

I don't care how old you are, or how special you think you are. You should choose your next words carefully or say nothing at all.