Temptation

Temptation
By: Emma~Grace

                  I want you guys to think of common sins that people deal with. Some that pop into my mind are lying, stealing and slander. Think about the sins that you have personally faced in your life. I want you to think of the temptation that led up to making that decision. Think about if you tried to fight it, or just went along. How did you commit that sin? Did you think about how it was wrong, or did you just do it?

                Read... Genesis 3:1-5

This section is like a front row seat in the movie theater. You have watched it a hundred times, you know the story line, yet you still hope that Eve will say no to the fruit. Let's dig into the tactics of the devil and what he uses trying to get you to sin.

QUESTIONS GOD'S SPECIFIC WORDS

The Devil knows what the Bible says. He comprehends what it means. He knows the Word of God, but he uses it against you. He questioned God's words to Eve. God had said, not to eat any tree in the garden. So what did Satan say? He said, "Did God really say that you can't eat any tree in the garden?" He sneakily chose to use God's words and twist them into a lie. No, God said that they could eat all the trees in the Garden except for one. 

Temptation always starts with a distortion of God's Word.

QUESTIONS GOD'S RIGHTEOUSNESS

After Satan had Eve involved in the conversation, he contradicted God. He said, " You will surely not die." He was telling Eve, "Yeah, of course God said that, but pff, he doesn't know what he's talking about." In modern days some examples include, "Your friends do it." "Your friends are having sex, and they are doing fine." "God's rules are outdated" Satan targets you and tells you lies, and tells you how God is wrong, and he is right. God is the King of the world, and to get you to sin, the devil brushes that off, and makes God seem lower than he really is. 

QUESTIONS GOD'S GOODNESS

Another thing the devil whispers in your ear, is that "God is wrong, and he is also keeping something good from you." This occurs when he says "Sex is fine, God is outdated, and God just wants to keep you from having fun." When you believe that all God's purpose is, is to be an old grumpy man with a long beard, and all he says is, "Don't do that, don't touch that, you have to do this.", we fell confined in a box. We want to break the walls and do everything he says not to do, and think why would I want to love a God like that? But the truth is, is that God is SO much more than that! He gives us rules, not to confine us, but to guard us from consequences. God is an amazing person, and he actually cares about each individual person in the world! So how can we fight temptation?

UNDERSTAND GOD'S WORD

Actually understand what God's word really says, not what the devil says that it says. Reading the Bible, and falsely understanding it, it's like looking at the world through a broken lens. 2 Timothy 2:15, tells us to rightly know the word of God. Actually dig into his word and ask questions. Be prepared to have the devil mess with your mind in what God's word REALLY says. 

BELIEVE WHAT GOD SAYS IS RIGHT

Believe that what God says, is true and is what is best for you. Because, it is! He gives us rules because he LOVES US! I actually found 3 verses that tell us this, Deuteronomy 10:13, Psalm 145:8-9, 1 John 5:3. When we start by believing those simple, yet powerful truths, we have a firmer ground on which we stand. Then, we become harder to deceive.