Temptation TKO

When fighting the good fight of faith, you’ll experience adversaries such as the flesh, Satan, and your lust. It seems that no matter how many times you resist their tempting calls, they continue to attack. Like a boomerang, they return with tempting thoughts, gestures, or situations again and again. Now, if you’re not careful, you’ll fall for their subtle calls to give in. However, in Christ Jesus, there is victory because HE is the great overcomer (Hebrews 12:1-4).

1. Being tempted does not mean you sinned. Your response to temptation determines whether you will give birth to sin or to continue living righteously before God. Jesus lived without sin and was tempted by Satan (see Matthew 4:1-11). He overcame using the Word of God.

2. The ‘fight’ against temptation is not a one-time deal. Many of us consider our life against temptation like a boxing match or a football game. At the end of time, if you have the most points (or outlasted the opponent), you win. And with the win, you expect never to face that opponent again. However, temptation doesn’t work like that.

3. You flesh and lust are constantly looking for ways to satisfy itself. Your flesh, Satan, or your lust cannot make you sin. They need your approval. So they will continuously find opportune times ‘poke and pry’ at you to give into temptation. They don’t care whether you go to hell or not. They will keep coming at you, and your answer (to resist) must be the same.

4. The flesh (and Satan) will wait for opportune times to fight you. Peter wrote about the devil being as a roaring lion that seeks whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). He’ll wait for the most beneficial times to plant thoughts of temptation. You have to know yourself, your surroundings, and when temptation abounds.

5. The ‘fight’ continues. Saying NO to temptation at 10am is different at 5pm. You have to say NO to temptation at both times. Many times you’ll pat yourself on the back for overcoming at 10am, but set yourself up for a fall when you’re tempted with the exact same thing at 5pm (Proverbs 16:18). Overcoming temptation at 10am doesn’t give you a pass or any type of advantage at 5pm. (However it does help you because you know HOW to overcome.) Your flesh, Satan, and lust are still coming at you, and you’ll still need to turn from its ways.

6. Know when to flee…AND FLEE! Many times you fall into sin because you remain far too long in temptation’s and lust’s camp. You think about it, meditate on it, and even remain in lengthy (and multiple) conversations without addressing it with the Word of God.

Paul states it best when giving this advice to Timothy:

2 Timothy 2:22 – Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

You don’t fight temptation, you run from it! You must run away for the sake of your own soul salvation. No amount of guilt, pressure, or association should keep you in the company of temptation and lust. Though there may be some hard decisions and choices to make, you do so to remain pure in the sight of God.

7. Remain in the company of those who want to live right. As Paul describes above, you seek relationships that bring you closer to righteousness. Sometimes this may mean separating yourself from those that do not want to live right (Psalm 1:1-3).

Proverbs 22:24-25 – Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.

1 Corinthians 15:33 – Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.

If friendships with angry people and evil communicators can corrupt you, what do you think will happen with those that tempt you in other ways?

8. The ‘fight’ is ON! Don’t be weary in well doing (Galatians 6:9) and continue to fight the good fight of faith (1 Timothy 6:12). The rewards for faithfulness is far beyond ANYTHING you can receive in the flesh. The rewards of the flesh, Satan, and your lust are temporary and come with a heavy cost in the end. The lust of our flesh will bring us death through sin (James 1:13-15), but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ (Romans 6:23). Jesus has overcome the world, and through Him, we can be victorious…one fight at a time!

^{Photo courtesy of Stock.XCHNG.com/vierdrie}