Practicing the Way: Fighting Temptation
Practicing the Way • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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What do I believe God wants us to know? How to fight and get victory over our temptations
Why? Temptations always want to destroy our faith, family, friendships, finanaces, and future
What do I believe God wants us to do? Fight temptation with the Sword of the Spirit
Why? The sword of the spirit destroys our temptatoin
ME/WE
Last week and today we are talking about “how do we get victory against our temptations”
We want to stand TALL and our TEMPTATIONS FALL
SUCH A BIG DESIRE for some of us some of us our FRUSTRATIONS in life is not getting victory over our TEMPTATIONS or some of greatest regrets are tied to a temptation we gave into.
For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.
We want to stop that
WHY? TEMPTATION ITSELF IS NOT A SIN
TEMPTATION WHEN GIVEN INTO LEAD TO DEATH and DESTRUCTION
Lie
Lust
Cheat
Cut corners
Use foul language
Puff yourself full of prideful
DO THINGS YOUR OWN WAY
SHORT TERM
WHEN WE BUY INTO THE LIE OF TEMPTATION IT LEADS TO DEATH
CHOCOLATE COVERD MOTH BALL
BAIT AND HOOK
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.
But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.
Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
Where does TEMPTATION GIVE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION TO
WHERE DOES IT LEAD TO DEATH AND DESTRUCTION
Faith: confidence in God: don’t trust God
Family and friendships: they find out you have been doning __…LIE TO SPOUSE OR PARENT…CHEAT ON THEM
Finances: you lie at work and get caught
Future
SOME OF YOU KNOW THIS
PERSONAL OR EXPERIENCED THIS
SOMEONE GAVE INTO A TEMPTATION AND IT TORE APART YOUR FAMILY, SOMEONE GOT CAUGHT CHEATING AND THEY LOST FINANCES.
We know this from personal experience
SO WHAT DO WE DO???
THE GOOD NEWS IS GOD IS GIVEN US THE ABILITY TO DEFEAT TEMPTATION…we talked about three of things we can do last week?
REVIEW
PRAY, FOR US TO PRAY
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Jesus knows how fickle we can be sometimes
2. FOLLOW THE WAY OUT
Jesus answers our prayers and all promises us a way
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
Follow the way out
3. FLEE
We are not strong enough to withstand the fight
I was reminded of this week with the great men of faith
Solomon, David, Samson…they didn’t flee their temptation and therefore they fell.
Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.
TODAY IS FIGHT
Sometimes we are going to need to fight
Fight how and with what
The SWORD of the SPIRIT to DEFEAT THE present darkness
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
This is what Jesus does in the WILDERNESS WHEN HE BATTLES WITH THE DEVIL
WE ARE GOING TO LEARN HOW TO FIGHT 3 TEMPTATIONS THAT JESUS FACES….WE DON’T FACE THEM IDENTICALLY BUT WE FIGHT the principle behind the attack and these attacks are often the way the enemy attacks us today
LET’S READ
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”
AFTER BEGINNING BAPTIZED…THERE IS CONNECTION TO ISRAEL BEING BAPTIZED IN THE RED SEA AND
and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
If you are the Son of God…if you are who you say you are…is this not what the Devil does…if you are a Christian, if you are a child of God....
If GOD IS GOOD
HE questions our identity and God’s goodness
Then the first temptation
And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”
TEMPTATION TO MEET A LEGITMATE NEED
JESUS IS HUNGRY
come on Jesus
Meet your need
The first temptation is to meet a legitimate need in an illigitmate way, meet a need you have
Enemy says the same thing to us meet that need
Let’s look at one legitimate need we all have: relational INTIMACY and physically intimacy
Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”
- God has wired us to be intimate with another human being....and He was given us a way to meet that need by the covenant of marriage.... God instituted us to be married to another believer and inside that covenant of marriage we are to have intimacy and sex (this is not say it always going to be easy)
Our highest level human intimacy is for marriage and if you are Christian that marriage is to be to another Christian
What does the enemy do?
That whole waiting until your married is so archic and out dated… Have highest level of physical intimacy outside of marriage, you do not need to wait to be married have it now…you deserve it.
or it is ok to look at those image portraying highest level of initimacy that the average 87% of men and 1/3 of woman view it weekly…Jesus says lust in the heart is like doing the real thing
date and marry someone who is not a believer…you have waited a long time
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
What is at stake is your FAITH/confidence in God, family, friendships, future, and finances
I HAVE WITNESS PEOPLE THROW AWAY THEIR FUTURE, THEIR FAITH WITH THE RELATIONSHP ONE MANY PEOPLE FALL AWAY FORM THE FAITH BECAUSE OF WRONG RELATIONSHIP
STOP TRUSTING GOD - STOP OBEYING GOD - STOP BELIEVING
SO WHAT ARE WE DO TO?
What Jesus did…What does Jesus do? He picks up His sword and he goes back to
But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
What Jesus says, Devil, no doubt I am hunger, but man does not live by bread alone, GOD IS MY PROVIDER
We say that same thing, no doubt I have a desire to be married, to have more money, to be fruitful and multiply in every ascpet of life not just having chilrden
but I do not live by me but the WORD OF GOD and living
Many of you know this…that when you were in the wilderness being testing by God and tempted by the Devil it was the Word of God that sustained you, when you were growing weary and faint…and for some you, you need to hear this because you entering the wilderness or are in the wilderness and your LEGITMATE NEED IS RAISING…and what you can say, what I can say is “Devil, man does not live by bread alone, sex alone, relationship alone, money alone....but by the WORD of GOD.
SHARE YOUR STORY, IT BRINGS HOPE
SOME OF YOU ARE STEPPING OUT AND GOD SAYS I AM GOING TO MEET THAT NEED
What is your legitimate need that the enemy comes after you with? We all have one? Bring out that sword to the enemies thoughts…I will live by God’s Word.
2. This temptation is so subtle, so crafty, so sly, that many Christians fall into the trap, many pastors fall into it, as we will see in a moment it is this temptation that lead a very famous pastor to prison..JIM BAKER a famous pastor from the 1980s did accounting fraud
This second temptation is to manipulate or twist what God’s word says to fit what we want..
What the enemy does is he gets smart, and decides to fight with a sword like Jesus, a pretend sword, by quoting scripture to Jesus.
Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple
and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”
He says look it is written Jesus…if you jump off the pinnacle of the temple…God has to send angels to catch for look it says the angels will take of you....
- What is Satan really saying here? You need to test God, not have God test you…you need to flip the script....you need to take a scripture out of context and manipulate and twist the scriptures to say it fit your needs.
HE HAS TO DO
THIS Interaction is like child who has a dad for a lawyer or cop…we can do whatever we want no problem my dad will save us
How often have we done that?
GOD YOU HAVE TO BLESS ME…I AM YOUR CHILD
God you said, Phil 4:19
And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
I can do whatever I want and God is going to protect me…ANYBODY SAID THIS GOD BEFORE????….I can keep sinning
Dad who is a lawyer or cop….I can break the law my dad will get me out of it….with no consequences
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?
Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
What we need to do when we here a manipulation or a twisting of the truth is to bring the sword of the Spirit…The truth of God’s of Word. This is what Jesus did
HAVE THERE BEEN WAYS YOU HAVE BEEN MANIPULATING GOD
BIG ONE IS THE BLESS ME
GOD WILL BLESS ME NO MATTER WHAT
ANYBODY???
JESUS SAYS WAIT, WAIT, WAIT A MINUTE
Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”
3. The last temptation is to believe Satan or in our case (his idols) will give us what we want without the wilderness, with testing, without trials, without hardship.
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”
The Devil goes after Jesus call, HIS DESTANY, and says I will give you the all the kingdoms of the world and their glory (can Satan do that?) No, not without God allowing Him....
You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
I will give it to you Jesus without the testing, without the battle, without the CROSS, just worship me.
THE ENEMY SAYS THE SAME THING TO US…I WILL GIVE YOU YOUR DREAMS
just cut a little corner
just tell some lies
cheat on a few things at work
back stab a few employees just for a moment
BUT THERE IS MORE AS STAKE
YOUR FAITH
FUTURE, FAMILY, FRIENDSHIPS, FUTURE
WHAT DID JESUS DO
Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ”
Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
SOMETIMES WE JUST SAY TO THE DEVIL…GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE
Where you today?
Are you tempted to meet an legitmate need in an illimgite way? Use the sword
But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
Are you tempted to manipulate God
Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”
Are you tempted to follow the enemies ways
Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ”
US
Let’s celebrate the one who defeated the enemy in the wilderness and at the cross