The story is told about a young boy who was being cared for by a nanny. He saw a beautiful vase in the china cabinet, and he wanted it. When he was refused, he began screaming, kicking, and crying. His mother, hearing the fuss, came into the room to find out what the problem was.

Picking up the child, she said to him, “What do you want, darling?” He pointed to the vase, so she gave it to him. But that didn’t satisfy him and soon he began crying again. “Now what does my little darling want?” the mother asked. “I want . . . I want,” said the boy between sobs, and then he blurted out, “I want what I can’t have!”

The desire for what is off-limits is not confined to spoiled children. It reflects a tendency in all of us that goes back to the beginning of human history. The fruit of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” was forbidden (Genesis 2:17), a fact that very likely enhanced its appeal.

The Bible teaches us that many practices and attitudes in today’s society are forbidden. But that often fuels the flame of desire. So it’s important that we know God’s will, identify evil allurements, and resist temptation. We must beware of the appeal of the forbidden!