The following extract was taken from an article published on The Gospel Coalition which I thought was one of the very few pieces capable of grasping the Augustinian doctrine of concupiscence and original sin and apply it masterfully to the topic of sanctification and sexual temptation. Do take some time to read it through.

Dear Joe,

I hope this letter finds you well.

I met your pastor last week, and he was very upset. He told me you mentioned giving up faith in Christ and leaving the church because, even five years after your conversion, you continue to experience same-sex attraction. He also told me that Rita, your wife, has suffered a lot, though you’ve been honest with her and haven’t been unfaithful.

As you know, your pastor was my student in seminary. He asked me to write you since I helped you in the first days after your conversion. I hope this letter will be used by God to encourage you amid your struggle and to remind you of your unshakeable status in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Remember when I warned you that trusting in Christ doesn’t mean immediate liberty from all spiritual, psychological, and mental consequences? Sin—homosexual or otherwise—leaves deep scars in our lives, branding our consciousness with images, impressions, experiences, tastes, and desires that often take many years to overcome.

Your pastor told me you’ve been reading books that claim homosexuals, once converted, are radically free not only from same-sex relationships but also from same-sex attraction. I don’t doubt in some cases this can happen; in fact, I know a few specific cases where it has. But this is not always the case. Please understand, Joe, that continuing homosexual desire post-conversion neither renders your conversion illegitimate nor suggests the Lord has failed you.

I fear you’re forgetting something basic about the Christian life, my friend: the distinction between sin and temptation. Same-sex attraction isn’t the same thing as same-sex relations. The first is temptation; the second is sin. Every believer this side of heaven has a heart corrupted by sin, a sinful nature at war with the presence of the Spirit of God. Our hearts daily stir up carnal and corrupt desires, leading us to dwell on godless thoughts and intentions. These temptations happen within ourselves, not to mention those brought about by the world, by others, and by Satan himself.

Every day, married Christian men are tempted to look a second time at women who aren’t their wife. But being tempted isn’t the same as fantasizing about these relationships or having them in reality. Joe, true Christians repress these desires, saying “no” over and over and over again. They think about their wife, their kids, and especially their God who hates adultery and their Savior who died for sin. Every resistance in the face of temptation, then, is a momentous occasion of victory and liberation.

The same applies to every sinful desire in the heart of a Christian. Joe, conversion to Jesus doesn’t mean perfection, and it doesn’t mean the absence of temptation. This you must understand…