There are many passages of scripture that teach us about how to overcome lust, but Psalms 51 helps us to take a deeper spirit renewing approach. In Psalms 51, we see David’s response after Nathan the prophet calls him out for having an affair with Bathsheba and having her husband killed in 2 Samuel 12. His heart of repentance in Psalms 51 teaches us how to allow God to do a deeper work in us to see him renew our spirit.

To be candid, I have struggled with lust in many forms in my life and am by no means an expert, but I’d like to share a few tools I believe God has given me to remove the eyes of lust and see through his perspective. I will always have to stay on guard against all types of sin, including lust—as should you—this being said. I hope this is helpful in your sanctification process.

How to Beat Lust with Psalms 51

I suggest you read and re-read Psalms 51 and let it get into your heart. There is a lot to learn from the chapter overall. This being said the two most key verses for me are Psalms 51:7 and Psalms 51:10, lets look at them one at a time.

Foreignness of Psalms 51:7

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

– Psalms 51:7

This is David recognizing a need for forgiveness, but not just to be forgiven but to be completely cleaned of his lustful and murderful sin. He is making this request in faith that God will give it. He isn’t asking to keep some of his sin; He is asking to be whiter than snow. This is to be completely clean. How often do we sin but kinda want to keep some of it around? David isn’t trying to keep any lust around and neither should we. We should plead with God to not just forgive but to take away our desire for it—to be sanctified.

Furthermore, David knows if God will grant him purging, he will be clean and whiter than snow. He doesn’t ask with doubting and says “I might be clean” or “I might do this again” he says “I shall be clean”. Are you asking with that type of faith? I know it is hard but be bold and ask God to do what you might not be able to imagine, but God can do more than you can even ask or image according to Ephesians 3:20. Pray this verse with faith and God will set you free in His timing.

Restoring & Cleaning of Psalms 51:10

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right (and steadfast) spirit within me.

– Psalms 51:10

This verse, in my opinion, goes to the root of the problem. We first need the forgiveness of Psalms 51:7, but then we need our heart to be fixed. Here David begs God to create in him a clean heart and a right spirit. I say beg becuase of the use of ‘O God. This shows the desperate and dependent posture David has towards God. This is how we should come to him as our father. A sign of spiritual maturity is more dependance on Him, not more independence. For men, especially, we tend to be prideful and think we can do it on our own. This is not God’s heart for us.

Clean Heart, Right Spirit, and Steadfast Spirit

In the ESV version’s footnotes, we see “right” can also be translated “steadfast”. I think these are both great words to describe how our spirit should be. It should be not only right meaning we choose the right things to do according to God’s will, but right and steadfast meaning, we are steadfast in choosing the right things. Many people choose the right thing most of the time, but you aren’t being steadfast unless you do it all the time.

Having a Clean Heart

Praying for a clean heart or to be forgiven and cleansed of your past mistakes. Ask him to unwire the chains of past sin. Help you to forget lustful memories and thoughts. Ask him to purge you and make you white as snow. Lustful actions stick with us longer than other sin because it is sexual in nature. God meant for sex to bring a husband and wife together, but when it is outside of marriage, it is just as sticky. Pray for God to restore, clean you, and redeem you.

Having a Right Spirit

As discussed before, this is making right or righteous choices that are honoring to God and honoring to other. That every choice would be in God’s will and bringing you a step closer to sanctification.

Having a Steadfast Spirit

Being steadfast is the hard part for most of us. To be steadfast, 99% obedience doesn’t cut it. As Billy Graham said, “99% obedience is 100% disobedience in God’s eyes”.

God doesn’t expect perfection, but He does want us to be dependent on Him. When we are fully dependent on Him, we are 100% obedient, but when we fall out of dependence is when we aren’t steadfast.

Allow God to create in you a steadfast spirit, and God will help you to walk free of lust in His power and timing.

Pray for a Clean Heart, Right Spirit, and Steadfast Spirit

Pray earnestly as David did that God would help you to have a clean heart, right spirit, and steadfast spirit.

This is the root of the problem. You can always have phone filters, and you should do this, but you need to go deeper than behavior modification. Allow God to do a deeper work in you. Allow the Holy Spirit to convict and guide you. Start seeing choices through the eyes of Jesus and not the eyes of lust. Start thinking how can I be right and steadfast.

Other Bible Verses to Fight Lust

There are many other scriptures that are helpful tools to help you take on lust, in addition to the ones from Psalms 51 discussed. Find these other verses in my related article: Key Bible Verses for Overcoming Lust.

To Summarize, How Can I Overcome Lust?

You can’t overcome lust on your own. You need utter dependance on God. Allow him to transform you by first cleaning you and then giving you a renewed spirit that is right and steadfast.

Memorize these verses above and the ones in the related article with more verses. Don’t go into battle without the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17).

Pray these verses over your life and recount them when you feel temptation starting to show its ugly head. Kick the enemy in the teeth every time he attacks. He has no power over you for those in Christ. Through dependence on God, you will preserve.

Value of Accountability and Software

While you need to allow God to do a deeper work in you, I definitely recommend accountability as well. There is no sense in doing this alone. Additionally, I recommend accountability with someone who is ahead of you in life. The more frequent your communication, the better.

Related Article: How to Do Effective Christian Accountability

As for blocking inappropriate content with software, work with your accountability partner to set up parental controls. Greg Groeschel talks about doing whatever is possible to win battles before you are in them in his book Fight: Winning the Battles that Matter Most. Setting up filters on your phone and other devices is a great way to do this.

Most devices have built-in parental controls like Apple’s Screen time, but a platform like Covenant Eyes adds another level of protection and accountability. This is great if you need the added level of support, however it does have a cost, but you are worth the investment. Use the code MATTENSER for a 30-day free Covenant Eyes trial.

A Book to Consider in Your Fight Against Lust

One book that helped me tremendously in my fight against lust is Surfing for God: Discovering the Divine Desire Beneath Sexual Struggle by Michael John Cusick.

My biggest takeaway from this book was identifying the triggers that lead me to temptation or what causes me to give into temptation. We all have different ones, but some are more common. For me, stress can be a big one. The more stressed I am, the more likely I may fall into sin. This tells me if it has been a stressful day or week—which is a trigger—that I need to be extra on guard against sin. On guard means prayer, telling others to hold me accountable, going outside, or just away from places I am more likely to sin. There are many other options, but by recognizing the trigger early on, I can take action.

For other books on the topic of lust, see my article 5 Key Books to Overcome Lust as a Christian.