Living in the Spiritنموونە

OVERCOMING THE TEMPTATION OF SIN

INTRODUCTION 

We know that sin separates man and God. What is sin? Sin is a violation of God's word. The first sin happened in the Garden of Eden when Eve ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3). Since then, the seeds of sin have been in human life, and humans have become slaves to sin. If someone becomes the "victim of sin," there must be someone else who becomes the "mastermind" of sin - that causes the sin to happen. In the Book of Genesis 3, it is written that the devil's temptation caused Eve to fall into sin. The devil tempted Eve by arousing her curiosity about the secret behind the forbidden fruit. Eve saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye and desirable for gaining wisdom, so she took some and ate it. (verse 6).

The tactic that the devil used on Eve was "temptation." The Greek word for temptation is "peirazo," which means to try or to test someone's faith, virtue, or character with a temptation to sin. In Indonesian, "temptation" also means to invite (the tug at the heart) to make someone sin or do evil.

Once the devil tempted Joseph through Potiphar's wife, but Joseph won. He tempted David through Bathsheba, and David lost. He also tempted Lord Jesus during His fast in the wilderness, but Lord Jesus won. The devil's way of "tempting" becomes his powerful weapon to make people, including the children of God, fall into a life of sin.

The devil's temptations fall into three categories, namely WEALTH, THRONE, and SEX. These three temptations cause humans (including the children of God) to fall into sins of greed, pride, immorality, or other types of sins.

SHARING

How can we overcome the devil's "temptation"? Apostle Paul teaches us to use God's three weapons that are written in Ephesians 6:11-18.

1. The shield of faith (verse 16). 

Apostle Paul reminds us that we must use the shield of faith in all situations to extinguish the fiery arrows of the evil one: the "temptations" of wealth, throne, and sex that can weaken our faith.

For example, when there is a tempting position offer in a company that requires you to do a lot of fraud and lies. What is our attitude? Are we still willing to accept that job offer? Maybe we are tempted, but if we use our shield of faith, then we will reject this offer because it does not align with our Christian faith, which teaches us to live in righteousness and holiness.

The shield of faith refers to living in fear of God, loving God, relying on God, and keeping our lives holy. Wear the shield of faith every day. We are so grateful to be given this weapon; therefore, we use the shield of faith firmly in facing every "temptation" of the devil in our lives, whether in our family, business, work, school, or other places. Let us not tarnish our faith by falling into the devil's "temptations," which will cause us to be entangled in a life of sin.

2. The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (verse 17)

Lord Jesus had given us an example of how to overcome the devil's "temptation" by using the sword of the Spirit, namely the Word of God, when He was tempted in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11). Why is God's word so powerful that the devil can be defeated? The reason is that the word of God is God (John 1:1) and the truth itself (John 17:17b).

The devil tempted Eve by perverting the truth. He will also use the same method to "tempt" us by twisting the truth of the word of God. If we are not full of the word of God, then it is easy for us to fall into the devil's trap.

The devil can use many things and situations to tempt us to fall into sin, be it a matter in our family relationships, finance, work, ministry, etc. Don't let the temptation come to us. Instead, use the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, to resist every temptation of the evil one. Tell the devil; it is written, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." It is written, "'You shall not tempt the LORD your God." It is written, "You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"

3. Prayer (verse 18). 

Apostle Paul advised the church in Ephesians to "praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints."

We are asked to pray at all times in the Spirit because sometimes we don't know how to pray for the situations and conditions we face. When we pray in the Spirit, the Holy Spirit will help us pray, as mentioned in Romans 8:26. Use this weapon of prayer to resist every "temptation" of the devil. Be watchful in our prayers because the devil never rests. He is always looking for the right opportunity to bring us down through his temptations. Therefore, keep on praying and being watchful.

CLOSING

As long as we are alive in this world, the temptations of the devil will continue to come to us in various forms and ways. Maybe the devil will say, "Look, you have tried to be faithful, live righteously, and do no corruption, yet you don't even have a house" or "You have served the Lord faithfully, but your life problems are always there, and you even get more and more problems." or "You have so many needs, why do you have to give money to the church?" or "Why do you have to go to the church or prayer meeting? You can relax at home with your family", etc. The devil's temptation will not stop but will continue hounding us until we fall and lose.

We cannot overcome these temptations with our strength; however, we can overcome these with the help of the power of faith, the word of God, and prayer. Do not waste the weapons God has given us. Let us imitate the life of Lord Jesus on how He overcame the devil's temptations. Even though He is the Son of God, He does not rely on His ability, wisdom, and human intelligence to overcome the devil's "temptations." Lord Jesus used the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Let us not be defeated by the devil's "temptation." Let us defeat him with three weapons of God, namely FAITH, THE WORD OF GOD, and PRAYER.

DISCUSSION

• Mention the temptations you have experienced and how you could overcome those temptations and come out victorious.

• Pray for one another that we will be free from every temptation of the devil in every area of our lives.