Introduction
The world, under the influence of Satan, offers us many opportunities to
be drawn away from Christ and into sin. We may indeed understand the ways that
the devil uses to bring the soul into captivity, but how should we respond when
temptation is presented to us?
We must be alert
“Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not
ignorant of his devices” (2
Corinthians 2:11).
As Christians we ought to be alert to the fact that Satan, the enemy of
our souls and of God, is very wily. He is quick to gain the advantage over us
the moment we allow ourselves to listen to his lies and tricks. As soldiers of
Christ we should never be caught off guard, instead we must stand our ground
against all of the devil’s crafty schemes. This means that we constantly
remind ourselves that the Lord has commissioned and empowered us to stand firmly
in the faith of Christ. “Thou therefore endure
hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth
himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please Him who hath chosen
him to be a soldier” (2 Timothy 2:3-4) … “Fight
the good fight of faith” (1 Timothy 6:12).
We must anticipate Satan’s attacks
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as
a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist stedfast
in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your
brethren that are in the world” (1
Peter 5:8-9).
The believer should never be taken by surprise by the devil. Being on
guard implies that we are watchful and ready for any and every attack of the
enemy. Surprise attacks only happen when we take our eyes off the Lord and begin
to go about our own business. Would we not be ever looking out for a roaming
lion that has escaped from the zoo? With this lion we do not have to fear, but
resist him in faith.
We must protect our minds
“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve
through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that
is in Christ” (2 Corinthians
11:3).
Here is where the devil usually attacks first. If only he can get us to
remove the “helmet of salvation” (Ephesians
6:17) he can take control of our mind by flooding it with thoughts and unbelief.
Once the mind is taken into bondage it becomes a simple matter for him to
imprison the whole being. Only divine intervention can free the one who has
allowed Satan to ensnare him, “And that they may
recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him
at his will” (2 Timothy 2:26).
We must be serious and thoughtful about our Christian lives (see 1 Peter
5:8-9 above). We must continually (daily) refresh our minds with the cleansing
power of God’s word, “Wherefore gird up the loins of
your mind, be sober” (1 Peter 1:13) … “And
be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your
mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of
God” (Romans 12:2) … “That he might
sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word”
(Ephesians 5:26).
We must know our limitation
“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest
he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but
God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able;
but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to
bear it” (1 Corinthians
10:12-13).
The devil loves those who think they are more than a match for him in the
power of the flesh. These people, who make a big show of fighting Satan, soon
disappear from the scene. We cannot overcome him by willpower or any other human
means, instead we need the weapons and armour supplied by God.
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the
weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling
down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that
exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every
thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5 see also
Ephesians 6:10-18). We must take account of our own limitations and steer clear
of tempting situations, “Abstain from all appearance
of evil. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your
whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:22-23).
We must depend upon the Lord
“For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is
able to succour them that are tempted” (Hebrews 2:18).
The Lord Jesus Christ faced exactly the same attacks and temptations of
the devil as we do (see Matthew 4:1-11). He has provided us with the same
weapons and armour He used to resist those temptations (see Ephesians 6:10-18).
We need to rely upon Him, not only when we are assaulted by the devil, but
throughout our day. This is a part of what James calls ‘submitting to God,’ “Submit
yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James
4:7).
Conclusion
We must see all temptation for what it is; Satan’s attempt to draw us away from Christ, holiness and faith. We have seen that we can resist any of his attacks by the power of the Lord, for He has promised, “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee” (Isaiah 43:1-2).
Page created 11 March 2006