2002-10-17
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
I am led to write about another of Satan’s fiery arrows, temptation. God has had a lot to say about this that helps us to build our faith and sustain it. The most obvious example of temptation to me is that worked on Eve and Adam in GN 3: 1-5. “Now the serpent was the most cunning animal that the Lord God had made. The serpent asked the woman, ‘Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?’ ‘We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden,’ the woman answered, ‘except the tree in the middle of it. God told us not to eat the fruit of that tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die.’ The serpent replied, ‘That is not true; you will not die. God said that because he knows that when you eat it, you will be like God and know what is good and what is bad.’” Dr. Tom Tripp of Concordia University in St. Paul, MN, has a way of describing the Garden of Eden as it is discussed in GN. He says it is like heaven, only with a limitation. The latter, of course, is the manifestation of God giving mankind a choice to make as to whether they will obey His commands or not. With the serpent [the form that Satan takes here], we see temptation not to obey God and thus, to separate oneself from Him. The heaven we will occupy as our permanent home once we have been obedient and endured in our faith will no longer have or need that limitation. It’s inhabitants will have already made the decision not to separate themselves from God.
We all know that Eve and Adam gave in to the serpent’s temptation and believed his outrageous lie, “you will be like God.” It’s the same lie that Isaiah reports led Satan in IS 14: 14 he would climb to the tops of the clouds and be like the Almighty. The net result to Adam and Eve is their choice to hide from God, because of their nakedness. And even with that, God clothed them with animal skins before casting them out of the Garden of Eden in GN 3: 21-24. The significance of this is that a blood sacrifice of the animal had to be made first. We can take this as another evidence of God’s promise to eventually provide a way to forgiveness for mankind in the sacrifice of His Son on the cross. Remember LV 17: 11 and HE 9: 22, which both reveal the need for blood to be shed for there to be forgiveness.
God reveals to us how to handle temptation in GN 4: 7 [God speaking to Cain], “If you had done the right thing, you would be smiling, but because you have done evil, sin is crouching at your door. It wants to rule you, but you must overcome it.” This is exactly what Joseph did in GN 39: 6-10 when Potifphar turned over the leadership of his household to him. “Joseph was well-built and good looking, and after a while his master’s wife began to desire Joseph and asked him to got to bed with her. He refused and said to her, ‘Look, my master does not does not have to concern himself with anything in the house, because I am here. He has put me in charge of everything he has. I have as much authority in this house as he has , and he has not kept back anything from me except you. How then could I do such an immoral thing and sin against God?’ Although she asked Joseph day after day, he would not go to bed with her.” What a difference there is between how Cain and Joseph handled temptation! One rejected God, and the other had faith in Him. If we note what happened to each of them, we can see the importance of faith. Cain ended up marked by God and living in a land called “Wandering,” east of Eden. His eventual fate must have been spiritual death and permanent separation from God’s presence. Joseph, I believe, is in heaven enjoying eternal life with the Father.
Temptation is playing with fire. PR 6: 27-28 asks us compelling questions. “Can you carry fire against your chest without burning your clothes? Can you walk on hot coals without burning your feet?” These metaphorical questions cause us to consider the consequences of giving into temptation. If I sound like a nag, then so be it. The only way we can discern what is right and what is ungodly is through daily study of the word and an active prayer life where God gets to speak first. That way when we are faced with temptation, we will know what our choices are and stop to consider their consequences before making the foolish choice. There are some of us who don’t realize that we are stronger than Satan, even when he does a good job of tempting us. That’s because the God Who loves each of us profoundly has given us the power to make the righteous choice and resist evil temptation. Believe it, because it’s true! LK 17: 1 actually defines temptation and tells us the fate of the tempter. “Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Things that make people fall into sin are bound to happen, but how terrible for the one who makes them happen!’” If we look carefully, we can see the Lord’s love all over this. He is warning us to be on the alert for temptation and not to give into it or to tempt someone else to sin. Why? Because, He wants as many people as possible to be able to enter His permanent Kingdom once it is established. We need to examine our own lives and take that advice. I know I want eternal life, and each of us must decide how important that is to him.
PRAYER: O Lord, Satan is always at his work, providing temptations which are challenges to our faith in You. We stand before You dedicated to remaining in close contact with You through study and prayer. In the face of temptations, our desire is to turn to You first for Your guidance and direction. Through David in PS 32: 8, You have given us a message we need to hear at these times. “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with Mine eye.” You give us comfort too. PS 16: 8, “I have set the Lord always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.” You have told us that whatever test we face won’t be beyond our ability to overcome in 1 COR 10: 13. Your Son made it possible for us to die to sin. RO 6: 6-7, “And we know that our old being has been put to death with Christ on His cross, in order that the power of the sinful self might be destroyed, so that we should no longer be the slaves of sin. For when a person dies, he is set free from the power of sin.” EPH 4: 7 is an advise-gift to us from You through Paul. “Do not give the devil a chance.” It’s so clear what we must do. If You didn’t love us so much, such advice would never have been made available. Long ago, You gave the Jews the Law, knowing full well that if they lived up to it, they would eventually prosper. The lure of the golden calf was too powerful for them, but still You forgave them for giving into this sinful temptation. We acknowledge that You can’t always forgive people who make a habit of sin; otherwise, You would not be able to demonstrate Your righteousness [RO 3: 26]. Dearest Abba, we know that temptation is around us and ask You to give us the strength and faith in You to reject it. PHIL 4: 13, “I have the strength to face all conditions by the power that Christ gives me.” JER 29: 11-13 tells us that Your plan is for us to prosper, not to face disaster. We offer You utmost thanks and praise for loving us so much. We pledge to turn to You to humbly confess our sins, to seek Your wisdom and guidance, to obey and trust You, to give You honor and glory, to be diligent and loyal to You, and to adore and worship You. In Christ’s holy name, we pray. Amen.
The next fiery dart of Satan’s I am led to discuss is concern for the future. God has words to say about that which can comfort and encourage us. They help to banish our fear and worrying. This will be the subject of tomorrow’s message. As I pray my way through writing these messages, God is bringing me to some subjects pretty close to home. Concern for the future is one of them. He never does these things to people to upset them and make them miserable. Instead, His love is the foundation for everything He does. He wants us to face issues that are difficult and painful to us at times, because He knows that dealing with them righteously and learning His perspective on them furthers our sanctification. The process by which we are perfected and made ready to join Him in His Kingdom eternally is not always an easy path, but it’s the one He knows His children need to take. That kind of unconditional [agape] love shines with His dazzling light! It’s directed at us, so we should always praise and thank Him. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn