43 Bible Verses about desires

But the younger widows you must not enrol; for as soon as they begin to chafe against the yoke of Christ, they want to marry,

But I tell you that whoever looks at a woman and cherishes lustful thoughts has already in his heart become guilty with regard to her.

This then is the reason why God gave them up to vile passions. For not only did the women among them exchange the natural use of their bodies for one which is contrary to nature, but the men also,

For this is God's will--your purity of life, that you abstain from fornication; that each man among you shall know how to procure a wife who shall be his own in purity and honour;

For you have given time enough in the past to the doing of the things which the Gentiles delight in-- pursuing, as you did, a course of habitual licence, debauchery, hard drinking, noisy revelry, drunkenness and unholy image-worship.

For this reason, in accordance with their own depraved cravings, God gave them up to uncleanness, allowing them to dishonour their bodies among themselves with impurity.

For, while they pour out their frivolous and arrogant talk, they use earthly cravings--every kind of immorality--as a bait to entrap men who are just escaping from the influence of those who live in error.

Keep on praying for us; for we are sure that we have clear consciences, and we desire to live nobly in every respect.

Sin took advantage of this, and by means of the Commandment stirred up within me every kind of coveting; for apart from Law sin would be dead.

And if you knew what this means, 'It is mercy I desire, not sacrifice', you would not have condemned those who are without guilt.

But people who are determined to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many unwise and pernicious ways which sink mankind in destruction and ruin. For from love of money all sorts of evils arise; and some have so hankered after money as to be led astray from the faith and be pierced through with countless sorrows.

Let no one say when passing through trial, "My temptation is from God;" for God is incapable of being tempted to do evil, and He Himself tempts no one. But when a man is tempted, it is his own passions that carry him away and serve as a bait. Then the passion conceives, and becomes the parent of sin; and sin, when fully matured, gives birth to death.

But go and learn what this means, 'It is mercy that I desire, not sacrifice'; for I did not come to appeal to the righteous, but to sinners."

But, above all, remember that, in the last days, men will come who make a mock at everything--men governed only by their own passions,

And if any one of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask God for it, who gives with open hand to all men, and without upbraiding; and it will be given him.

Among them all of us also formerly passed our lives, governed by the inclinations of our lower natures, indulging the cravings of those natures and of our own thoughts, and were in our original state deserving of anger like all others.

Be eager in your pursuit of this Love, and be earnestly ambitious for spiritual gifts, but let it be chiefly so in order that you may prophesy. For he who speaks in an unknown tongue is not speaking to men, but to God; for no one understands him. Yet in the Spirit he is speaking secret truths. But he who prophesies speaks to men words of edification, encouragement and comfort.read more.
He who speaks in an unknown tongue does good to himself, but he who prophesies does good to the Church. I should be right glad were you all to speak in 'tongues,' but yet more glad were you all to prophesy. And, in fact, the man who prophesies is superior to him who speaks in 'tongues,' except when the latter can interpret in order that the Church may get a blessing.

and especially those who are abandoned to sensuality--craving, as they do, for polluted things, and scorning control. Fool-hardy and self-willed, they do not tremble when speaking evil of glorious beings;

As for you, you are the body of Christ, and individually you are members of it. And by God's appointment there are in the Church--first Apostles, secondly Prophets, thirdly teachers. Then come miraculous powers, and then ability to cure diseases or render loving service, or powers of organization, or varieties of the gift of 'tongues.' Are all Apostles? Are all Prophets? Are all teachers?read more.
Have all miraculous powers? Have all ability to cure diseases? Do all speak in 'tongues'? Do all interpret? But always seek to excel in the greater gifts. And now I will point out to you a way of life which transcends all others.

"Believe me," said Jesus, "the time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship One of whom you know nothing. We worship One whom we know; for salvation comes from the Jews. But a time is coming--nay, has already come--when the true worshippers will worship the Father with true spiritual worship; for indeed the Father desires such worshippers.read more.
God is Spirit; and those who worship Him must bring Him true spiritual worship."

That is why, when He comes into the world, He says, "Sacrifice and offering Thou has not desired, but a body Thou hast prepared for Me. In whole burnt-offerings and in sin-offerings Thou hast taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'I have come--in the roll of the book it is written concerning Me--to do Thy will, O God.'"read more.
After saying the words I have just quoted, "Sacrifices and offerings or whole burnt-offerings and sin-offerings Thou hast not desired or taken pleasure in" --all such being offered in obedience to the Law-- He then adds, "I have come to do Thy will." He does away with the first in order to establish the second. It is through that divine will that we have been set free from sin, through the offering of Jesus Christ as our sacrifice once for all. And while every priest stands ministering, day after day, and constantly offering the same sacrifices--though such can never rid us of our sins-- this Priest, on the contrary, after offering for sins a single sacrifice of perpetual efficacy, took His seat at God's right hand, waiting from that time onward until His enemies be put as a footstool under His feet. For by a single offering He has for ever completed the blessing for those whom He is setting free from sin.

Faithful is the saying, "If any one is eager to have the oversight of a Church, he desires a noble work."

Against such things as these there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their lower nature with its passions and appetites.

For if men are controlled by their earthly natures, they give their minds to earthly things. If they are controlled by their spiritual natures, they give their minds to spiritual things. Because for the mind to be given up to earthly things means death; but for it to be given up to spiritual things means Life and peace. Abandonment to earthly things is a state of enmity to God. Such a mind does not submit to God's Law, and indeed cannot do so.read more.
And those whose hearts are absorbed in earthly things cannot please God. You, however, are not devoted to earthly, but to spiritual things, if the Spirit of God is really dwelling in you; whereas if any man has not the Spirit of Christ, such a one does not belong to Him. But if Christ is in you, though your body must die because of sin, yet your spirit has Life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised up Jesus from the dead is dwelling in you, He who raised up Christ from the dead will give Life also to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, it is not to our lower natures that we are under obligation that we should live by their rule. For if you so live, death is near; but if, through being under the sway of the spirit, you are putting your old bodily habits to death, you will live. For those who are led by God's Spirit are, all of them, God's sons.

Carry out these injunctions because you know the critical period at which we are living, and that it is now high time, to rouse yourselves from sleep; for salvation is now nearer to us than when we first became believers. The night is far advanced, and day is about to dawn. We must therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness, and clothe ourselves with the armour of Light. Living as we do in broad daylight, let us conduct ourselves becomingly, not indulging in revelry and drunkenness, nor in lust and debauchery, nor in quarrelling and jealousy.read more.
On the contrary, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for gratifying your earthly cravings.

You know this, my dearly-loved brethren. But let every one be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to be angry. For a man's anger does not lead to action which God regards as righteous.

to put away, in regard to your former mode of life, your original evil nature which is doomed to perish as befits its misleading impulses, and to get yourselves renewed in the temper of your minds and clothe yourselves with that new and better self which has been created to resemble God in the righteousness and holiness which come from the truth.

Therefore put to death your earthward inclinations--fornication, impurity, sensual passion, unholy desire, and all greed, for that is a form of idolatry.

Keep a strong curb, however, on your youthful cravings; and strive for integrity, good faith, love, peace, in company with all who pray to the Lord with pure hearts.

And, since you delight in obedience, do not shape your lives by the cravings which used to dominate you in the time of your ignorance, but--in imitation of the holy One who has called you--you also must be holy in all your habits of life.

Dear friends, I entreat you as pilgrims and foreigners not to indulge the cravings of your lower natures: for all such cravings wage war upon the soul.

Since, then, Christ has suffered in the flesh, you also must arm yourselves with a determination to do the same--because he who has suffered in the flesh has done with sin-- that in future you may spend the rest of your earthly lives, governed not by human passions, but by the will of God. For you have given time enough in the past to the doing of the things which the Gentiles delight in-- pursuing, as you did, a course of habitual licence, debauchery, hard drinking, noisy revelry, drunkenness and unholy image-worship.read more.
At this they are astonished--that you do not run into the same excess of profligacy as they do; and they speak abusively of you. But they will have to give account to Him who stands ready to pronounce judgement on the living and the dead.

This then is what I mean. Let your lives be guided by the Spirit, and then you will certainly not indulge the cravings of your lower natures. For the cravings of the lower nature are opposed to those of the Spirit, and the cravings of the Spirit are opposed to those of the lower nature; because these are antagonistic to each other, so that you cannot do everything to which you are inclined.

For I know that in me, that is, in my lower self, nothing good has its home; for while the will to do right is present with me, the power to carry it out is not.

What causes wars and contentions among you? Is it not the cravings which are ever at war within you for various pleasures?