Sunday, June 3, 2018

The Practicing Christian series #2. The Devil Didn't MAKE You Do Anything


James 1:12(NLT)
James gives us help with understanding why we do what we do, even when we don’t want to do it – and the spiritual strength resources we have to help overcome in our times of temptation.
Consider with me four aspects of the believer’s struggle with temptation:

1.  The Believer’s Warfare 

The Christian life itself is warfare.  The battle songs in our hymnal echo the Biblical posture that we are at odds with a world system that is hostile to Christ.  People that were thrilled with Jesus would not have crucified him!  When it comes to temptation the word warfare is almost too mild.  Let’s dig a little deeper.
THE DEFLECTION OF SIN
And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.”  God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else.   James 1:13(NLT)
Blaming our sinfulness on God is as old as the Garden of Eden.  Adam and Eve fell, and when confronted by God, Adam said, it was Eve, that woman YOU gave me, Lord!  Adam was deflecting the responsibility for his sin onto God’s shoulders.  Now, that’s ultimately the way we get saved; God’s son, Jesus died on the cross so He could take away the sin that condemns each of us.  But we have to confess it first; God never forgave an excuse, and that’s what Adam was offering.
Confession and accepting responsibility for our sin is a hard thing for people in the 21st century to accept.
Deflection for responsibility; that is seen in every walk of life.   To include the imagery from Harry Truman, there doesn’t seem to be a place anymore where the buck stops being passed.
It is important to say that being tempted is not sin.  Temptation is the seed of sin, and Satan plants it.  We cannot control the thoughts that enter our minds.  However, as Martin Luther pointed out, though we cannot prevent the birds from circling over us, we can stop them from nesting in our hair!  Satan may plant the seed as a temptation.  We don’t have to grow it to a bumper crop!
THE DIRECTION TEMPTATION TAKES TO BECOME SIN            
There are dozens of examples in the Bible of this pathway – however, David’s sin with Bathsheba is striking.  Let’s use that as our roadmap to compare it with what James is teaching us about the way sin defeats believers.
a.       Desire
Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 
James 1:14(NLT)
David (2 Samuel 11) saw Bathsheba, a very beautiful, but married woman.  God created desire in us; it’s necessary that we be interested in the opposite sex if our species is to continue.  However, just like fire, which is a good thing – if you handle it in a way God didn’t intend, you will suffer the consequences.  This was the crisis point for David, and that hasn’t changed. 
What you do with the temptation defines whether it will become a sin.  Desire is stimulated by the senses, and generally begins with the eyes.  A little boy was watching his Mom bake some fresh cookies.  She placed them on the counter to cool. The little boy made the comment to his mother about how good the cookies smelled. The mother told him he was not to eat any of the cookies. A few minutes passed, and the mother walked back into the kitchen and caught the little boy eating one of the cookies. She asked for an explanation to which the little boy replied.  "I climbed up on the counter to smell the cookies and my teeth got caught on one."[1]  
Desire happens, but we don’t have to stand there and drool all over it.  Someone once said that lust is what develops with the second look.
b.  Decision
These desires give birth to sinful actions. James 1:15a(NLT)
Once the decision is made in the heart to abandon what is known to be right (that which is approved by God), the line is crossed between Satan’s work, and our receiving sin into our lives.  David saw Bathsheba, and it was only a temptation.  The minute he began inquiring about her, wanting her, (knowing she was married, and therefore outside of God’s approval), the desire was intensified to lust. 
There is a play on words in this verse 13 – “desires” is like the cravings of a pregnant woman.  They are exceedingly strong, as any husband and father who has ever made a 1am trip to Food Lion can tell you!  A woman great with child can exert great control over a man of average intelligence and reasoning. 
It is that way with our God-given desires.  If Satan places a temptation before you – something outside of God’s approval – and if you stay, lingering, wondering, the lure has a hook attached, and you are very close to being reeled-in!  The hand’s disobedience is only a thought removed from the heart’s disobeying!
c.      Disobedience (sinful actions)
“Giving birth” is actually a military word; it means take prisoner.  The long look created lust, the lust carries you away and you are its prisoner; Satan’s work is successful.  He handed off the temptation, you accepted it, and are now running down the field.
Annie was our American Pit bulldog/lab mix.  She was only about 65 pounds, but when the bulldog mentality in her took over, she had the strength of Samson!  Our daughter Carrie and her husband Shannon had a young Rottweiler named Magnum who outweighed Annie by a ton and a half.  Once when Elizabeth and I stayed at their apartment to dog-sit, I was told to walk the dogs.  Just like an unsuspecting child, I accepted the leash from that temptress I’ve lived with for 51 years.  Bulldog and bad-dog in tow, I accepted my temptation….er, assignment.
Once outside, I never saw the lady coming – the one with the two Huskies; the ones Annie really didn’t like!  When she took off after them I was dragged off like a sack of dirty laundry.  Magnum decided to join Annie’s attitude.  I couldn’t have held them back with a brigade of Storm Troopers.
Now, the analogy is clear.  I accepted the leash – it was offered to me.  But once I had the leash it was mine; or so I thought!  Sin is always like that.  You start off thinking,
Man, this is great, I will…
Then, the hook sets, and you get dragged along; you get reeled in, scaled and cooked!  Desire, Decision, Disobedience, and…
d.  Death!
And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.  James 1:15b(NLT)
It’s the payoff!  David’s payoff for his sexual affair was the blowing-apart of his family.  His kids lost respect for him.  The kingdom God entrusted to David’s leadership became divided and a civil war erupted.  It was chaos.  The leash led him to the place he never intended to go! 
Years ago, during the scandal of President Clinton’s sexual sins, Rev. Jesse Jackson counseled the President.  Amid Jackson’s counseling a president, his own scandal broke into the headlines about him having an extra-marital affair and fathering a child.  This is a reminder that no one is immune!  It is war! 
And we don’t have a leg to stand on…The Devil may SUGGEST sin, but he cannot MAKE us sin.  That is our choice.
The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us.
We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant and has a baby: sin!
Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.  James 1:14-15(TMNT)

2.  The Believer’s Weaknesses 

So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. James 1:16(NLT)
We all make mistakes; we do that with sin.  But often we try to trivialize it to the point of saying, and believing, it’s no big thing, I can handle it. 
We can’t!
There are several ways that our weakness shows-up when it comes to temptation. 
a.  Underestimated Strength
Ø  We underestimate our strength to resist temptation…
Some drug dealers went to the captain of an oil tanker that regularly made trips from South America to Los Angeles.  They offered him $10,000 if he would bring in a load of cocaine.  He refused.  They came back again and upped the ante to $50,000 for just one load.  He again refused.
Finally, they came and offered $150,000.  This time he said he would think about it, but he called the FBI.  The sting caught the bad guys.  One of the federal agents asked the captain why he waited until they offered $150 grand before he called them.  His answer:  They were getting pretty close to my price, and I was scared![2] 
It is always that way with our strength.  You have a price!  That’s why the Lord Jesus had to die.  Everyone’s got a price.  Don’t underestimate your strength – it is just strong enough to fail when the right price is reached.
Ø  We also underestimate Satan’s strength to convince…
Ø  We underestimate the strength of the lure itself…
A man was in the Indianapolis airport checking on tickets to Chicago.  He was not aware of the time difference. 
The ticket agent said, this flight leaves at 1pm and arrives at 1:01pm.  Do you want to make a reservation? 
The man replied, no…but I think I’ll just hang around and watch that thing take off![3]
Hanging around is a good way to describe what gives the lure time to make a pretty good connection with your appetite!  Sin may be fascinating – but don’t underestimate what it can do to you – remember the end is death!  Underestimated strength, and…
b.  Unguarded Moments
“Unguarded moments” describes what happened to King David on the rooftop.  He should have been about king-stuff.  He was unguarded, and he underestimated the lure of sin.  There are also…
c.  Unsuspected Blind spots
We all have ‘em…we never see it coming.  Sometimes it is
Ø  people we thought we could trust, or count on;
Ø  places we thought weren’t so bad
Ø  things we thought wouldn’t take over our life.
In slaughterhouses they know sheep will follow.  The sheep mill around nervously.  Then, a trained goat is introduced.  He walks up the gangway towards the slaughter room.  He stops mid-way, turns and looks to the sheep.  They begin to follow.  He continues.  At the last second the goat turns left into an open gate, where he will be fed for his work, and live to “work” another day. 
The sheep, however, must go right – and they walk right to the butchers.  They call the leader a Judas goat; how appropriate!
Our weaknesses in the warfare…Underestimated strength, unguarded moments and unsuspected blindsides.  That’s where temptation turns to sin.  It’s where we “err”.
Sin sounds so invincible.  Is there anything we can do?  Oh yes, we have…

3.  The Believer’s Weapons 

Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.  He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.  He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word.  And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.  James 1:17-18(NLT)
There are at least four great weapons at our disposal with which we can fight temptation…
a.  Truth
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. 
Philippians 1:6(NLT)
This is the truth of the Father’s purpose in you.  You know how Satan works.  He hasn’t changed methodology in 6,000 years! 
So, apply the truth to temptation…
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. 
1 Corinthians 10:13(NLT)
Satan can plant a temptation in your heart, but he cannot MAKE you sin.  That’s the truth!  Keep that truth ever before you!
A second weapon is
b.  God’s Word
Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path…I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.  Psalm 119:105, 11(NLT)
I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your law is written on my heart. 
Psalm 40:8(NLT)
The fact is true that Satan can plant a temptation.  But it is also true, that while he can plant, we also have the Word of God resident…and we can apply the Word of God like a holy Weed-Be-Gone killer.  Sin happens when we nurse the temptation in our hearts.  The Word of God in your heart is a weapon against the weeds Satan plants. 
In the account of Jesus’ tempting, note that neither Jesus nor Satan ever raised any question as to the authority of the Word of God.  All three phases of the temptation in the wilderness were Satan’s attempts to place a seed of doubt.  He (Satan) always began with “IF”.  All temptation begins with a subtle doubt that what God said and promises is not true.  Jesus used the Word of God to rebuke Satan and crush the doubt before it had a chance to take hold!
The Word of God is your weapon!  Keep yourself in the Word of God!  Hide it in your heart.  Truth, the Word, and another weapon…
c.  Prayer
Teach me to do your will, for you are my God.  May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.  Psalm 143.10(NLT)
We need a firm footing!  Prayer is the ground floor of firm footing.  Prayer is the essence of a current relationship with God.  Are you up to date with Him? 
Scripture tells us that every time Jesus prepared to launch another phase of his earthly ministry, he spent concentrated time with God the Father in prayer.  However, you will also note that it was Jesus’ custom to always be in prayer.
A recent survey of believers indicates that most Christians find that temptations were more damaging when they had …neglected their time with God (81%) and when they were physically tired (57%).[4]   Truth, Word, Prayer, and one more…
d.  Fellow Christians
Make this your common practice:
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed.  James 5.16(TMNT)
I could not stand without my brothers and sisters in Christ who help me, and hold me accountable.  There is something about belonging to a church family – where you know your failure will hurt others.  It is like disappointing your Grandmother.
The great Redwood trees grow into the clouds.  They are magnificent.  However, you will never see one of them alone.  They have no deep root, and so are dependent on the trees next to them to give them the strength to stand.  God created us like that.  Your weapon against temptation is your relationship to the others in this room.
A 7-year old girl was drawing a picture of her church.  There was the building, steeple and cross.  She drew the front door, wide open, with the preacher standing there, welcoming the folks in.  They walked in line, all stooped over, like they were carrying a heavy weight.  On the other side, the door was open, and the folks were filing out, bigger, standing straight, with smiles.  That’s the support!
If you are one who has no church family, but are a believer – don’t wait – find yourself a church home now…at the end of this service, come and join us.  We support each other by the roots! 
Ø  It’s a war – everyone needs support. 
Ø  We have weaknesses – everyone needs weapons
But, don’t forget that in this war, if we faint not – we will receive…

4.  The Believer’s Wages

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation.  Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.  
James 1:12(NLT)
Everything pays its wages.  Paul told us (Romans 6.23) that the wages of sin is death.  But there is a second half to that verse – the gift of God is eternal life.
But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise is in store…a whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way!
The payday now for those who fight and win over temptation has wages that are really simple, and simply wonderful. 
·      You get to be respected by others (including your Grandmother). 
·      And you get your own respect.
There’s a lot of talk these days about poor self-image, and low self-esteem.  I’ve got a prescription for your problem here:  Endure temptation and trials – that crown of life is the respect of Jesus! 
Ø  Be a person who loves his family. 
Ø  Be a decent, clean young person who saves his or her greatest expression of intimacy for that one lifetime partner.
Ø  Be a godly neighbor who dismisses the idea of coveting anything that belongs to his neighbor.
That’s how to create great self-image, proper self-esteem.
And in the end, there will be another payday.  It will be the moment you’re ushered into the kingdom, welcomed by the Master himself…Well done, thou good and faithful servant!  I’ll settle for that wage, any day!
If you’re going to make decisions today against temptation, and for putting God’s strength to work in your life, I can think of no better place than at the Lord’s Table, where there is strength given in exchange for our weakness, and the grace of forgiveness that chases Satan into the next county!
Let the church say “Amen”!

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[1]Quoted from a sermon by Jim Mooney How To Conquer Temptation SermonCentral.com
[2] An old story I recalled, source unknown
[3] United Methodists Today, Quoted in Reader’s Digest
[4] Discipleship Journal, 11/12/92. To Verify, Leadership

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