2007-06-22
Good Morning Dear Ones,
I'm led to continue to write about temptation, prompted by Christ's own Sermon on the Mount words, from MT 6: 22-23, "The eyes are the lamp for the body." If the your eyes are sound, your whole body is full of light; but if your eyes are no good, your body will be in darkness. So if the light in you is darkness, how terribly dark it will be!" One example of this is in the life of David from 2 SAM 11. Most of us know the story of how David watched Bathsheba bathing from his palace roof. She was the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite. What his eyes beheld led to temptation, which led to ungodly action. He wanted her and had sexual relations with her, disregarding the bonds of marriage or the moral issue before him. She became pregnant, and David's desire for her led to him hatching a plot to have Uriah, her soldier husband, killed. David gave the order that Uriah should be put in the front line, where the fighting against the enemy would be the heaviest. His officers, under his nephew, Joab, were ordered to then retreat, leaving Uriah to be slaughtered [2 SAM 11: 14]. 2 SAM 11: 17, "The enemy troops came out of the city and fought Joab's forces; some of David's officers were killed, and so was Uriah. Giving in to temptation is never good, but that of a leader with influence over many people is especially evil. One view of Bathsheba's beauty led to both adultery and murder!
In discussing the cases of Achan, the soldier under Joshua who took loot from Jericho against God's instructions, and David, who gave in to his temptation with Bathsheba, we can see stark examples of giving in to the fleshly self. We can see the darkness in the human spirit inherited from the original sin of Adam and Eve [GN 3: 1-6]. 1 JN 2: 16, "Everything that that sinful self desires, what people see and want, and everything in this world of which people are proud—none of this comes from the Father; it all comes from the world." We have not only seen this as a part of ancient history, but in the more recent past and in our own present time. Thirst for power is one of the devil's evil strongholds in some people. Just look at the case of Adolph Hitler. His evil fleshly desires lead to six million Jews being summarily exterminated in the Holocaust- a number of them from my own family. All of us can name people who let their flesh determine their decisions and actions. The temptation for material gain has led a number of upper level managers and company officers to lead their corporations and those working under them to financial ruin. Those at Enron serve as an example. The explanation for what is seen here comes in GA 5: 17, "For what our human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our human nature wants. These two are enemies, and this means that you cannot do what you want do."
EX 20: 17, "Thou shalt not covet," must be brought up in any discussion of temptation. This is the one sin that leads to all the others. Coveting is desiring something or someone that belongs to another. This leads to the question: Given what has been said, can we who believe choose not to sin? This question is answered in RO 6: 9-11, "For we know that Christ has been raised from death and will never die again-death will no longer rules over Him. And so, because He died sin has no power over Him; and now He lives His life in fellowship with God. In the same way you are to think of yourselves as dead, so far as sin is concerned, but living in fellowship with God through Christ Jesus." Remember, COL 3: 3-4, "For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Your real life is Christ and when He appears, then you too will appear with Him and share His glory." We are told not to let sin rule in our mortal bodies, forcing us to obey our natural desires. And going on to RO 6: 13-14, "Nor must you surrender any part of yourselves to sin to be used for wicked purposes. Instead, give yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life, and surrender your whole being to Him to be used for righteous purposes. Sin must not be your master; for you do not live under law but under God's grace." Each godly message from the Scriptures has its foundation. Note EPH 2: 8-10, "For it is by God's grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about it. God has made us what are, and in our union with Christ Jesus, He has created us for a life of good deeds, which He has already prepared for us to do." This may seem like a lot of Scripture all at once, but God deserves for us to think through what He has said and let it sink into our hearts, becoming our beliefs. The answer to the question is: Yes, indeed we can choose not to sin. God never promised us that choice would be easy, but we can and should make it.
PRAYER: O Lord, You are an amazing God, Who stands by to protect Your own. There are many temptations with which the devil besets mankind. He is cunning and knows how to find the areas where each of us is vulnerable. Peter tells us in, 1 PET 5: 8, "Be alert, be on watch! Your enemy the devil, roams around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour." However, just before that, Peter writes in 1PET 5: 6-7, "Humble yourselves, then, under God's mighty hand, so that He will lift you up in His own good time. Leave all your worries with Him, because he cares for you." What we see here is Your compassion and protection available for us when we are tempted. Our emotions and physical desires often get in the way of our seeing this. Yet You love us enough to remain patient with us. Dearest Abba, we are trying to keep our eyes focused on You, because it is the only way we will be victorious over the evil one. We only conquer him in battles, because of Christ's death on the cross and Your love for us. We cannot do it alone. The adversary is the deceiver, "the father of all lies" [JN 8: 44]. Our way to know the truth comes straight to us from You. We derive discernment through reading the Scriptures, and we get direction though prayer. The latter comes to us only when we are willing to quiet our spirit to listen and let You speak first. Our heads are bowed, our knees bent in reverence for You. PS 34: 8-9 tells us about Your mercy. "See for yourself the way His mercies shower down on all who trust in Him. If you belong to the Lord, have reverence for Him; for everyone who does this has everything he needs." Yes, Lord, we acknowledge that we must put our trust in You. You have told us in EPH 1: 18-20 that, through Christ, You have given us the same power You used to raise Him from death to life eternal to battle the evil one to victory in Christ's name. We must believe that and use that power to overcome the bevy of temptations he puts in our path. We pray PS 31: 3-5, "You are my Refuge and Defense; guide me and lead me as You have promised. Keep me safe from the snare that has been set for me; shelter me from danger. I place myself in Your care. You will save me, Lord; You are a faithful God." We yield to Your superior wisdom, power, and goodness. We place our trust in You, that You will "lead us from temptation, deliver us from evil" [MT 6: 13]. We offer You our adoration, worship, praise, and thanks forever. In Christ's holy name, we pray. Amen.
Next week, the Holy Spirit leads me to continue writing about temptation, looking at how God protects true believers from making the wrong responses to it. At the very heart of handling temptation is our willingness to trust God and submit to Him. When Christ died on the cross, He took on the world's sins. He made it possible for sinners like us to be saved and to receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit [JN 3: 16; RO 3: 24-25; JN 14: 16-18]. It is the Holy Spirit Who is our consciences; it is He Who leads us to wrestle with how to respond to the visual and audio temptations that the evil one sends. I'm willing to go out on a limb enough to say that today's parents need to pay attention to things like clothing sellers who design body-hugging, revealing garments for preteen and teenaged girls, or recording artists who spew out filthy language and thoughts in the lyrics to loud rock music for our young people. And that's only the beginning. Availability of tobacco, drugs, alcohol to our young people is greater than ever. Lewd body tattoos and jewelry send the messages the evil one wants to convey. This has been detested by God right from the beginning of His establishment of the Jewish people. [See LV 19: 28 for an example]. Our Lord loves us enough to be willing to help us make right decisions for ourselves, our children, and our grandchildren. PS 32: 8, "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with Mine eye." God will protect us when we are in trouble. PS 91: 14-16, "God says, 'I will save those who love Me and will protect those who know Me as Lord. When they call to Me, I will answer them, when they are in trouble I will be with them. I will rescue them and honor them. I will reward them with long life; I will save them." Praise be to the Lord!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn