Scripture is extremely clear that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of evil who stand against God's people in any way possible (Ephesians 6:11-12). The enemy is intelligent, has a will and knows the human race better than we know ourselves. A major goal of the enemy is to tempt believers with sin so that when Christians choose to sin, they will become enslaved to sin and in bondage to the works of the devil. I am not downplaying our sinful nature, which I believe permeates our entire being, but I think the Western worldview hides the biblical reality of how much these spiritual forces are at work in humanity today.
Jesus faced the full force of the devil's tempting power and ability in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-10). Satan, a real and active being, presented Jesus with three temptations that were alluring, tailored to Him and were ultimately rooted in lies. After fasting forty days, Jesus was exhausted, weak and at His most vulnerable point. This is when Satan showed up, at just the right time. Satan challenged Jesus' identity, If you are the Son of God... The very foundation of Jesus' life and mission rested upon the truth that He was the Son of God. Satan hit Him with the temptation to misuse his power by circumventing God's provision for the necessary subsistence to live. Jesus responded with the Word of God. Satan came back again with more vigor. He took Jesus to the top of the temple. If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down... Jesus again responded with His knowledge of the Scriptures to combat the temptation. Satan had enough. He called for the highest sin against God and what would have been a shortcut (and a lie) for Jesus' mission. Bow down and worship me... Jesus yet again responded with Scripture, putting Satan in his place, commanding him to leave and withstanding the onslaught of indescribable temptation. Jesus guarded against the devil, weathering the storm of temptation.
Just like Jesus, we are tempted by Satan's demonic forces. Consider the following perspectives on temptation.
Temptation is Alluring
The temptation Satan places in our path will be something we long to take. Our flesh will pull so hard against the Spirit to see who will win out. And the temptation Satan places before you might not have a big sign saying, "THIS IS SIN" but might even be masked as what is still okay to draw you in. Many times, our flesh will get a little taste of the alluring temptation to draw us away from Christ toward our sinful nature and Satan's spiritual bondages. But we must always remember that temptation will almost always be alluring, otherwise we would not want anything to do with it. Who wants to naturally eat out of a garbage can? We need to be on our guard to recognize the alluring temptations of the devil so we do not fall into his trap.
Temptation is Tailored Specifically for You
Satan is smart. We must not underestimate his ability to outwit us. Most temptations that come your way from the devil will be tailored specifically for you. The devil knows most everything about you and has been in the work of temptation for quite a long time. He probably has some manual that shows the tricks that have worked for centuries on most humans. His tactics have not changed, but what changes is how he tempts each person individually. For example, I am not often tempted to steal (for various reasons), but I am very susceptible to judging other people. Satan knows this. As a result, he will probably not spend too much time getting me to steal something from the store. Instead he focus more of his temptations on my thoughts and attitudes toward people or situations. Similarly, Satan will tailor your temptation specifically to you. It is our responsibility as Christians to recognize our specific brokenness, weaknesses and spiritual DNA that we have inherited from our family line that makes us vulnerable to certain temptations. Remember, your temptations are specifically tailored to you. Know yourself well and guard against the devil.
Temptation is Always a Lie
No matter how much your flesh longs to be satisfied or how you or the enemy rationalize away the sin, temptation is always a lie. Sin will never produce life, it will always produce death (Galatians 6:8). So no matter how temptation presents itself, it is meant to pull you away from Jesus and produce death in every area of your life. Satan is out to do all that he can to steal, kill and destroy in your life (John 10:10). What we must do as Christians is choose to believe the truth that temptation is always a lie and that it will only ruin our lives and relationship with God because of it. We must guard against temptation.
You Must Master Sin
We are not defenseless. We are not left to be a punching bag for sin and be tossed around like a rag doll in Satan's hands. Because of Jesus' life, death, resurrection and ascension, He has defeated Satan, death and sin's power over our lives (Colossians 2:15, Revelation 1:18, Romans 6:5-7). We overcome sin by the blood of Jesus and through the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We must submit ourselves to God and fight to the death in our battle against sin. Really. We need to take every action possible to uproot sin from our lives and give it no ground. God told this to Cain, "If you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door; it desires to have you, but you must master it" (Genesis 4:7). I believe God is still speaking this to the Church today. Do what is right! Sin is ready to overtake you. But through Me you can overcome sin by what I have already accomplished for you through Jesus.
Memorize these verses. Write Scripture on the tablet of your heart, just as Jesus did. These verses are invaluable in our battle against Satan and temptation. Choose to believe the truth of God's Word.
No temptation has seized you except what is common to humanity. And God is faithful: he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. 1 Corinthians 10:13
For we do not have a high priest [Jesus] who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrew 4:15-16
Be self-controlled and alert. You enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith... 1 Peter 5:8-9a
Submit yourself to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. James 4:7
_____
A final note. If you have done everything possible to resist temptation and for some reason you cannot break an addiction or habit, then you might possibly have a spiritual foothold or stronghold in your life. This is when the enemy is able to gain ground in an area of your life and control which can only be broken by gaining freedom in Christ. If this is the case, I would encourage you to read the book Bondage Breaker, by Neil Anderson. This will start you on your journey to freedom.
_____
Jesus, as we guard against the devil and temptation, would you give us the grace and vigor to do all that we can to stand against sin by your blood and the power of the Holy Spirit. Would you enable us to find freedom from our spiritual bondages by your work on the cross and the power of the resurrection. We submit to you, giving ourselves fully to your ownership. Amen.
Recommended resources to guard against the devil and temptation:
- Bondage Break, Neil Anderson
- A Way of Escape, Neil Anderson
- Invisible War, Chip Ingram
- When the Enemy Strikes, Charles Stanley
- The Battle is the Lord's, Tony Evans
- Praying on the Armor of God (blog)
No comments:
Post a Comment