James 4:7, “…Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
The word “resist” means “to oppose, withstand, or strive against.” If we resist the devil, we are opposing the sin that the devil wants us to do. We are not giving in to his wiles and trickery. The power of God working in our lives will cause the devil to flee from us. We need His help to strengthen our lives so that we can defeat any temptation.
“Temptation” means “the state of being enticed to something, especially something evil.”
For example, if you are playing a video game, you might not be able to defeat a certain level. You might meet a character that you need to defeat in order to progress forward. You might not be able to defeat it the first time. Sometimes you might have to put on different armor or upgrade your character. Eventually you will get stronger and learn how to defeat it. Later on in the game, you might encounter a different challenge, and fail. You then learn how to defeat that one too.
That’s just like temptation. When we are tempted, we might fail the first time, or times after that. But eventually we get stronger in our faith, and we learn how to defeat it. We upgrade our lives by putting on the armor of God, and with that we will defeat any temptation that comes our way. We need to take the shield of faith, and with it we will quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.(Ephesians 6:16)
Ephesians 6:11, “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
If you play video games then you might know that in some of them the game will not allow higher ranks of enemies to attack you. It only allows those enemies who are around your level to try to defeat you. The Lord also won’t allow us to be tempted by something that is more than we can resist and defeat. We can have comfort in this knowing that when we are tempted, we can and we will be able to defeat it.
1 Corinthians 10:13, “There hath no temptation taken you but such is as common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
The devil will try to tempt us where we are the weakest. If someone has trouble with stealing things, then he will try to put something in your path to try to get you to sin. Whatever your weakness, we can go to Jesus for help so that we can become stronger, and with His Spirit inside us, there is no temptation that can’t be overcome.
Jesus shows us how to defeat temptation. Matthew 4:1-11, “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.”
The devil even tried to tempt Jesus! After 40 days without eating, the devil tried to tempt our Lord where he thought Jesus would be the weakest. But the power in Christ is great, and He overcame. Jesus overcame when He was tempted, and He is able to deliver us as well.
Hebrews 2:18, “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.”
Whenever you feel tempted to do something that you know is wrong, you have the opportunity to do what is right. When you are tempted, remember that with Christ, there is nothing that can overcome us!
James 1:12, “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.”
In Christ,
Andrew
Teufer Lake King James Bible Church 