Glory- pride of life

Gold- lust of the eyes

Girls- lust of the flesh

The Scripture outlines the evil animal tendencies in the human flesh, categorizing them as: the ‘lust of the flesh’, the ‘lust of the eyes’ and the ‘pride of life’. (I Jn. 2:16) These relate to the three main animal instincts to procreate, to eat (or have sustenance), and to fight/survive, respectively.

Relating to the human soul, the pride of life is centered in the fleshly will. It is the ‘ego’ of man. “I will do it my way”- trusting in self. The lust of the eyes deals with the fleshly mind. Coveting and greed are manifested in this category. Metaphorically, the Bible speaks of the ‘eyes’ as the mind: "If therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light." (Matt. 6:22) The lust of the flesh correlates to the fleshly emotion, the flesh’s lust for pleasure and self-gratification. “If it feels good, do it” is the characteristic here.

The cure, or solution, to these evils can be found in the acceptance of the influence of God’s Kingdom attributes: righteousness (dealing with the pride of life); peace (dealing with the lust of the eyes) and joy (countering the lust of the flesh).

(for more study, see the Trinity Concepts Key)