Defeating Temptation

Hello everyone,

Sorry I haven't written in a while. Lazy I guess. I want to share a few points that we will be covering in this evening's Bible Study. Have you ever felt that a temptation is too overpowering for you to bear? One thing you should understand. The one who causes the temptation is Satan and he is a liar. God has promised never to allow more on you than He puts within you to handle it. He will not permit any temptation that you could not overcome.

Rick Warren, from his book The Purpose Driven Life, shares four biblical principles to help defeat temptation:

1. Refocus your attention on something else. Since temptation begins with a thought, the quickest wayk to defeat it is to turn your attention to something else. The battle for sin is won or lost in your mind. Whatever gets your attention will get you. Job said, "I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust upon a young woman." When a temptation enters your mind, do whatever it takes to refocus on something else.

2. Reveal your struggle to a Christian friend. Find at least one Christian friend you can share your struggles with. Ecclesiastes 4: 9-10 tells us that you are better off to have a friend than to be all alone, because if you fall, your friend can help you up. But if you fall without having a friend nearby, you are really in trouble.

3. Resist the Devil. James 4: 7b says, "Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you." We are not to sit down and take his garbage he throws on us. How do we resist? First, accept Christ as your personal Savior is you are not already saved. You can't fight Satan alone and win. Second, use the Word of God as your weapon. Memorize Scripture so that when temptation comes you can use the Word to hit the Devil. He is not afraid of much but he is fearful of the Word.

4. Realize your vulnerability. Given the right circumstances, any of us are capable of any sin. Don't let down your guard and think you are beyond certain tempations. Don't get over confident. Jeremiah 17: 9 says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" That means we are good at fooling ourselves.

Don't carelessly place yourself in tempting situations. Remember that it is easier to stay out of temptation than to get out of it.

Have a blessed day,

Pastor Gary