"Not Even a Hint" Joshua Harris (Chapter One Study)

   

"Not Even a Hint" (Chapter One Study)

In Joshua Harris' book "Not Even a Hint," we read about the problem of lust. This book is not specifically aimed at an audience of men, or women, as lust is a human issue. "Not Even a Hint" teaches us about God's standard for our sexuality, and that sex is not an evil thing when we subtract lust from the equation. In this article, I will be touching on several of this book's main points and reviewing the book overall. I would also like to put a disclaimer: One sin is not worse than the other. Adultery is no worse than lying, it is all sin, though different sins may end in worse consequences, you get my point. God does not see one strayed sheep as further off than the next, he simply sees that you have strayed. This article and these words can be applied to any type of lust, but I will be focusing on sexual lust since this is the theme of “Not Even a Hint.”  

Why can’t we seem to beat lust? 

   Why can't we seem to beat lust? First, let's define lust. Lust is to feel a powerful desire for something; to put something above God. Therefore, the issue of lust does not solely apply to sexuality, humans' lust after many different things. As Harris puts it, “lust wants to go outside God’s guidelines to find satisfaction.” Lust eats away at you, leaving you with feelings of guilt and shame, but this is not at all what God intended for our sexualities! So, how do we get back to God’s original plan? 

What are we doing wrong? 

Harris submits to us that we go into the fight with the wrong standard of holiness, source of power, and motive to change. The standard of holiness is not “works-based,” it is grace-based. We cannot place our hope in our own willpower, we need grace. A selfish motive will not get us anywhere. We are asking the wrong questions. Instead of asking “how far is too far?” we need to ask, “how close can I stay to God’s will?” Do not fall into the “a little won’t hurt” mentality.  

The Man on the Fence – A Parable (Author Unknown) 

There was a large group of people gathered. On one side of the group stood a man, Jesus. On the other side stood another, Satan. Separating them was a fence running through the group. Both Jesus and Satan began calling to people in the group. One by one, each having made up his or her own mind, went to either Jesus or Satan. This kept going for a time. Soon enough, Jesus had gathered around him, a group of people from the larger crowd, as did Satan. One man joined neither group. He climbed the fence that was there and sat on it. Jesus and his people left and disappeared, and so too did Satan and his people. The man on the fence sat alone. As this man sat, Satan came back, looking for something which he appeared to have lost. The man said, “Have you lost something?” Satan looked straight at him and replied, “No, come with me.” The man said, “But I sat on the fence. I chose neither you nor him.” Satan said, “That’s okay; I own the fence.” Moral of the story: When you are not living for God, you are living against God and for Satan. It’s just that simple! Jesus said, “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.” Matthew 12:30 (NIV) 

Is the snare of lust escapable? 

God’s standard swiftly leads me to the end of my own efforts. I cannot beat lust alone, it is impossible. Our willpower only gets us so far, and it does not get us extremely far, it gets us through a few weeks at best before we crumble. We need a savior, we need the blood of Jesus, we need the grace that he so selflessly gave his life for. He already paid for our struggles; it has already been done! It is now our turn to humble ourselves and admit that we need help, and lots of it! Harris states “despair or pride won’t work either. Only the motive of grace---trust in the undeserved favor off God---can inspire us to pursue holiness free from fear and shame.” 

Works Cited 

Burt, Tim. “The Man on the Fence.” Timothy Burt, 17 Mar. 2023, timburt.org/tag/the-man-on-the-fence/. Accessed 7 Oct. 2023.

Harris, Joshua. Not Even a Hint. Multnomah Publishers, 2003.