Temptation 101

John 10:10
The thief does not come xcept to steal,and to kill,and to destroy......

I've been parked in Matthew 4 for a while. It's the address for the "Temptation of Jesus".  Pretty strange passage....almost reads like a morality play. The ultimate good vs. the ultimate evil...But the weird part in this is that it happened. It wasn't some play. It didn't hinge on who had the greatest power. It wasn't two titans locked in mortal combat. It was the Son of God allowing himself to be in the presence and influence of the very one who swept up humanity into a life of sin. The funny part in this (if there is anything funny) is that the battle or temptation was one of "Who has the greatest truth". It was a truth battle, not a war of might or strength.  That should clue us in on what really is important if we want to walk out this new life with Christ. Such battles will come to us.....believe you me, you don't have to go looking for them. Temptation will find us. 

Here is something important to remember: It's not a sin to be tempted. The human mind, along with the influence of the devil, wants us to believe that we have sinned when we are tempted. If he can put that thought into our minds, then we will allow the temptation to give way to the sin. Have enough of those kind of Temptation Thought's and you'll simply surrender because in your mind, you are a terrible person. Not so. And here is another weird thing about coming under temptation. God will use whatever the temptation is to reveal areas of our heart that we need to be aware of. Areas that are literally open doors for the enemy to invade and do his work.

Another thing to consider if you read of Jesus' temptation in Matthew 4: Jesus was alone when He was tempted. He was not hit with this fierce attack while in the company of others. Scripture warns us to expect such temptation when we isolate ourselves. I Peter 5:8-9 - Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers (and sisters) throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

So why does the devil use temptation?
What is the design and makeup of temptation?
Temptation is designed to get us to sin against God. To make us think we have disqualified ourselves from all that God is making available to us. 
Here is another way of putting this....
Every temptation we encounter by the enemy of our souls happens in hopes that we will disobey God. Satan's plan for us is to cause us to give in and disobey rather than to resist and turn even more to God for help. 

In Matthew 4:3, the devil said to Jesus: IF you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus responds by quoting Scripture, "It is written, 'man does not live on bread along.'" Do you see how the devil attempts to cast doubt on who Jesus is? Causing him to doubt about His own identity and relationship with His Father. The devil told Jesus to "Tell these stones to become bread." He dis not say, "Pray to Your Father in heaven and ask Him for bread." Bottom line is that the devil was suggesting to Jesus to "Take matters into your own hands and provide for your own needs." 

The devil hates anything that causes us to humble ourselves before God. He hates it when we are totally dependent on God for our provision. Satan's chief aim in bringing temptation is to overthrow our relation to God as our Father. He wants to cut off our dependence on Him.

Such is why Step # 3 of the Twelve Steps reads that "We made a decision to turn our will and life over to the care of God as we understood Him." With this decision, God becomes our sole source and provision for everything we need to survive. Is that cool or what ?

I will leave you with this final verse.
I Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful , he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

God on you....
mbb