In the pursuit of a holy life, believers are called to resist the temptations of worldly desires and instead seek satisfaction in their relationship with God. The apostle Paul warns against the dangers of sinful gratification in Colossians 3:5, urging Christians to put to death worldly lusts. According to 1 Corinthians 10:13 and Galatians 5:19-21, God provides a way of escape from temptation and the fruit of the Spirit is the opposite of the works of the flesh. Jesus teaches in Matthew 5:28 that even looking at someone with lust can be a form of adultery, and 1 Corinthians 6:18 reminds believers to flee from immorality, highlighting the importance of self-control in the Christian life.
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Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.
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 an escape, so that you can stand up under it.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.
Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul.