"Do not love the world or anything in the world... For everything in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever." — 1 John 2:15–17
Three Doors the Enemy Always Uses
If you have ever felt like you are fighting the same battle over and over — different day, different temptation, but somehow the same fight — there is a reason. Every temptation you will ever face comes through one of three doors.
The Apostle John names them: "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life" (1 John 2:16). That is the whole catalog. Every advertisement, every craving, every compromise, every quiet slide away from God fits into one of those three categories. The enemy is not nearly as creative as we think. He has three tools, and he has been using the same three since the very beginning.
This is Part 2 of our study on the universal struggle about sin. And the best way to understand these three doors is to watch them open in two very different gardens — one where humanity fell, and one where our Lord stood firm.
The First Garden — Where Humanity Fell
Go back to the beginning. "Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, 'Did God really say, "You must not eat from any tree in the garden"?'" (Genesis 3:1–3).
Notice how the enemy starts. Not with a command, but with a question — Did God really say? He does not begin by denying God's word; he begins by making Eve doubt it. And once the doubt is planted, the lie comes quickly: "You will not certainly die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:4–6).
Then watch the fall happen, and watch how all three doors open at once: "When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it."
Read that sentence slowly, because it is the blueprint for every temptation since.
Good for food — that is the lust of the flesh, the craving of the body. Pleasing to the eye — that is the lust of the eyes, the pull of what we see and want. Desirable for gaining wisdom — that is the pride of life, the hunger to be like God, to be wise on our own terms, to be in charge. The serpent did not need three different schemes. He opened all three doors with one piece of fruit, and humanity walked through every one of them.
The Second Garden — Where Jesus Stood Firm
Now watch the same three doors opened on a very different person, in a very different place — the wilderness.
"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.' Jesus answered, 'It is written: "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God"'" (Matthew 4:1–4).
There is the first door — the lust of the flesh. A hungry man, forty days without food, told to satisfy His own body on His own terms. Where Adam and Eve reached for the food, Jesus answered with the Word of God.
"Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 'If you are the Son of God,' he said, 'throw yourself down...' Jesus answered him, 'It is also written: "Do not put the Lord your God to the test"'" (Matthew 4:5–7).
There is the pride of life — the temptation to prove Himself, to make a spectacle, to force God's hand and be exalted in front of everyone. Where Adam and Eve reached for godlikeness, Jesus refused to test God.
"Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me.' Jesus said to him, 'Away from me, Satan! For it is written: "Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only."' Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him" (Matthew 4:8–11).
There is the lust of the eyes — every kingdom, every splendor, laid out to be seen and desired. Where Adam and Eve saw and took, Jesus saw and worshiped God alone.
Same three doors. Opposite outcomes. The first Adam fell at every one; the last Adam, Jesus, stood firm at every one — and He did it the same way each time: it is written. The Word of God in the mouth of the Son of God shut every door the enemy opened.
How Can We Overcome Sin?
So the question becomes intensely practical. If these are the three doors, how do we keep them shut? The sermon gives three weapons — one for each struggle.
1. Change the Heart's Desires — to Defeat Pride
Jesus said, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven... For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:19–21).
Pride is, at its root, a treasure problem. It says my reputation, my achievement, my control are the things worth storing up. And the way you dismantle pride is not by gritting your teeth and trying to be humble — it is by moving your treasure. When your treasure is in heaven, your heart follows it there, and pride loses its grip.
And the most practical way to move your treasure is prayer. Here is the uncomfortable truth: "I am busy" is the most common excuse we give for not praying. But think about what prayer actually is. Prayer is a declaration — to God and to the entire spiritual world — that I need help. I cannot do this alone. That is the exact opposite of pride. Pride says I've got this. Prayer says I don't, and I need You. Every time you pray, you are stepping off the throne of your own life. Prayer also signifies something tender: that your heart actually desires time with God. You cannot be proud and prayerful at the same time. So we defeat pride on our knees.
2. Keep Healthy Eyes — to Defeat the Lust of the Eyes
"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" (Matthew 6:22–23).
Jesus is using the eye as a picture of focus. A healthy eye, in this passage, represents a singular focus on honoring God. When your primary focus is on God's kingdom, your whole life is flooded with light — guided by truth, wisdom, and clarity. But a bad eye represents selfishness, greed, and obsession with earthly possessions. It creates a kind of spiritual double vision — trying to look at God and at money at the same time — and that double vision eventually blinds the soul.
This is the cure for the lust of the eyes. We do not defeat it by never seeing anything desirable; we defeat it by fixing our focus. Seek first the kingdom of God. When God's kingdom is your single priority, your eyes are healthy, and the endless wanting that comes from the lust of the eyes loses its power. You cannot serve two masters, and you cannot focus on two kingdoms. Pick one, and let it fill your whole body with light.
3. Crucify the Flesh — to Defeat the Lust of the Flesh
"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit" (Galatians 5:22–25).
Notice the strong word — crucified. Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions. The flesh is not negotiated with; it is put to death. And one of the most practical, ancient ways the church has done this is through fasting.
Fasting puts your fleshly desires back in their proper place. It reminds the body that it is a servant, not a master. There is a sentence worth carving into the heart: Christianity is not about self-discovery; it is about self-denial. The world tells you to look inward and find yourself. Jesus tells you to deny yourself and follow Him. When you fast, you remove yourself from the throne, place the flesh under crucifixion — and there, in that surrender, you find the new you. Not the self you discover by indulging every craving, but the self God remakes when the cravings are no longer in charge.
The Solution — Walk by the Spirit
All three weapons point to one underlying solution. "So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other" (Galatians 5:16–17).
There is a war inside every believer — the flesh pulling one way, the Spirit pulling the other. And the instruction is not try harder in your own strength. It is walk by the Spirit. When you walk in step with the Spirit, you simply will not gratify the desires of the flesh — not because you are strong, but because you are walking with Someone who is.
And this is possible because of who you now are. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ... not counting men's sins against them" (2 Corinthians 5:17–19).
You are not the old self fighting a losing battle. If you are in Christ, you are a new creation. The old has gone. The new has come. You fight the three struggles not as a slave hoping to be free, but as a free person learning to live like it — reconciled to God, your sins no longer counted against you, the Spirit of God living inside you.
Challenge
This week, take the three weapons and aim each one at a real target.
Find the place where pride is loudest — the reputation you are protecting, the control you will not release — and meet it with prayer. Stop saying I'm busy. Get on your knees and declare, out loud, I need help. I cannot do this alone.
Find the place where the lust of the eyes is pulling — the wanting that never stops, the comparison, the obsession with what you can see and acquire — and meet it by seeking God's kingdom first. Fix your focus on one kingdom until your vision clears.
Find the place where the flesh is ruling — the craving you keep feeding — and meet it with self-denial, even a season of fasting. Step off the throne. Put the flesh under crucifixion. And let God show you the new you.
You are not fighting to become a new creation. In Christ, you already are one. So walk this week in step with the Spirit who lives in you — and watch the three doors that brought down the first Adam stay shut, because the last Adam already won.
Whoever does the will of God lives forever.
