Temptation Management-101—IV—Luke 4:1-13
A Texan wanted to go ice fishingRead up on Ice Fishing/Bought all the equipment/
Set out for the nearest frozen lake.
Began to drill a hole in the ice.
Suddenly ---from the sky--- a voice boomed, "THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE! DO NOT DRILL INTO THE ICE!"/ Startled & moved further down the ice/Began to cut yet another hole.
Again, from the heavens, the voice bellowed, "THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE!" DO NOT DRILL INTO THE ICE!
The Texan, now quite worried, moved in the opposite direction /& tried again to cut his hole. The voice came once more: "THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE! DO NOT DRILL INTO THE ICE!”
He stopped, looked skyward, & said, " Is that you LORD?"
The voice replied, "No, I’m the Ice-Arena Manager!" DO NOT DRILL INTO THE ICE! WE’VE GOT A HOCKEY GAME TONIGHT!’
The Ice Arena manager shouldn’t have allowed the Texan onto the arena in the first place.
God’s people must be good managers of temptation.
We must control personal temptation to prevent falling into... Sexual/Drug/Alcohol/Food/ Social-Relationship & Financial, etc... sin, thus freeing God to work in our lives.
Jesus was able manage temptation so that it never became sin.
God’s people must know how to manage temptation...
...because the way we handle temptation is crucial to the effectiveness of our witness.
How are we supposed to manage temptation(effectively)?
But First,
Why should we be concerned about temptation management?...2 verses:
1Cor. 10:13—“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; & God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.”
Jas. 1:12-15—“Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, & He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away & enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; & when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.”
13 secrets to temptation management follow.
10 of these are...
1. FULL(:1)of the Spirit
2. CURRENT/MOVING(:1)Beyond the Mountaintop
3. COMPLIANT(:1)Allow the Spirit to Lead
4. OPEN(:1)To anywhere(even the painful) the Spirit leads
5. DILIGENT(:2)Stick with God
6. ENEMIES(:2)Distinguish right from wrong
7. HUMBLE(:2)Vulnerable in Christ, Not arrogant
8. ALERT(:2-3)
9. In The WORD(:4,8, 12)
10. BALANCED(:3-4)
11—A Secret to temptation management is
Keep LOYAL(:5-8)
Explanation:(:5-8)
:5—“Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.”
:6—“And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.”
“Domain/Power”—exousia— authority/power/jurisdiction.
“Glory”—Worldly system
Eph. 2:1-2—“And you were dead in your trespasses & sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.”—Prince of the power of the air—As flies are in the air—Beelzebub-bul
A Temptation of ‘Ultimate’ Power/Authority/Sovereignty
Devil’s sovereignty is Limited whereas Jesus’ is temporary & unlimited.
:7—““Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.””
:8—“And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’””
WORSHIP—Expression of God’s worth to me. His awesomeness. Unless you are providentially hindered you will seek to worship God with like-minded believers.
SERVICE—Expression of God’s worth to me.
Rom. 12:1—“I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living & holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”
Argumentation:
Prov. 21:21—“He who pursues righteousness & loyalty Finds life, righteousness & honor.”
1Kgs. 8:54-62—“And so it was, when Solomon had finished praying all this prayer & supplication to the LORD, that he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven. Then he stood & blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying: “Blessed be the LORD, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised through His servant Moses. “May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers. May He not leave us nor forsake us, that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways, & to keep His commandments & His statutes & His judgments, which He commanded our fathers. And may these words of mine, with which I have made supplication before the LORD, be near the LORD our God day & night, that He may maintain the cause of His servant & the cause of His people Israel, as each day may require, that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God; there is no other. Let your heart therefore be loyal to the LORD our God, to walk in His statutes & keep His commandments, as at this day.” Then the king & all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the LORD.”
Hos. 6;4-6—“What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning cloud, And like the dew which goes away early. Therefore I have hewn them in pieces by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of My mouth; And the judgments on you are like the light that goes forth. For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”
Mk. 12:30—“‘And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, & with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.”
*Mat. 6:24—““No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one & love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one & despise the other. You cannot serve God & mammon.”
Illustration:
Untethered pet dog/Free to roam/Where does it return?—its master’s house/Keep LOYAL
In Granite Quarry, NC its East Rowan Mustangs—In Cordele, GA its the Crisp County Cougars— In Cairo, GA its the Cairo Syrupmakers— In Dade City, FL its the Pasco Pirates/Team loyalties/Keep LOYAL
Spouse—Marriage covenant/Family/Job/Church—READ Church covenant/Keep LOYAL
Application:
?You Keep LOYAL when faced with Temptation?
?Are you Managing the Temptations you face?
12—A Secret to temptation management is
Keep CONTEXTUAL(:9-12)
Explanation: (:9-12)Satisfied
:9—“Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, & said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.”
“Throw Yourself down”—
To whom is Jesus proving this?—Devil devised test
Devil wants to know & he wants us to look outside relationship to God.
?Must we prove ourselves to the devil?
:10—“For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you , ”
From Ps. 91:11
:11—“&, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”
From Ps. 91:12
Satan pulls Scripture out of context. Scripture out of context is Scripture out of reality & placed in our own derived context/reality. Satan’s ‘context’ is that he sees himself as sovereign god.
The devil quoted Ps. 91:11-12(correspond to :10& 11) which deals with the security the believer has thru God’s protection.
Satan sought to have the Son test His Father’s supposed monolithic promise of protection. Satan presents God’s ‘promises’ as unqualified by any other portion of Scripture.
*It is our duty as Christians(God’s people) to know the contexts & thereby the specific concepts of the quoted word. These are the source of the greatest debates in Christendom.
1Cor. 11:17-19—“Now in giving these instructions I do not praise you, since you come together not for the better but for the worse. For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, & in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you.”
Satan attempted to plant in Jesus’ mind the idea that Ps. 91 was an absolute unqualified & untempered promise made to either the Messiah specifically or to believers in general.
Here the devil himself pulls Scripture, very convincingly(as do some), out of context. To the uninitiated his statement would be cause for minimal reflection.
**I too relate Scripture for you every Sunday, BUT for very different reasons!
My purpose is that you might realize more fully that God’s word is an integral whole & that God does speak unhesitatingly.
In its proper context, Scripture is life-changing, because everything God speaks changes lives.
*However, the devil has a divisive agenda—pulling you away from your Lord— & is trying to misdirect you toward serving fleshly ends!
Example: Snake handlers in worship base it on Mk. 16:17-18.
Mk. 16:17-18—“And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; & if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, & they will recover.””
*Its interesting to note that these who speak in tongues & hold serpents never purposefully drink poisons. Neither are their healing services conclusively of God.
*These are presumptive in their engagements & dishonor God!
Num. 15:28-31—“‘So the priest shall make atonement for the person who sins unintentionally, when he sins unintentionally before the LORD, to make atonement for him; & it shall be forgiven him. ‘You shall have one law for him who sins unintentionally, for him who is native-born among the children of Israel & for the stranger who dwells among them. ‘But the person who does anything presumptuously, whether he is native-born or a stranger, that one brings reproach on the LORD, & he shall be cut off from among his people. ‘Because he has despised the word of the LORD, & has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt shall be upon him.’””
:12—“And Jesus answered & said to him, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’””
From Deut. 6:16—““You shall not tempt the LORD your God as you tempted Him in Massah.”—a reminder of the previous failure of Israel who presumed upon their deliverance from Egypt as a relativistic economic windfall.
At Massah, Israel grumbled against Moses that they had been led into the wilderness only to die of thirst.
Ex. 17:3—“But the people thirsted there for water; & they grumbled against Moses & said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us & our children & our livestock with thirst?”
The comment on their complaint is :7—“And he named the place Massah[Tempt/Test] & Meribah[Contention] because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, & because they tempted/tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us, or not?”
—A statement by Jesus that to wilfully /arrogantly to never repeat the obvious unbelief & distrust which Israel acted out at Massah.
—They not only questioned whether God was really in their midst but they doubted that God was there at all.
A person can use or misuse Scripture to prove nearly anything they want to prove, whether its true or not!
Ps. 19:13-14—[of David]—“Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth & the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength & my Redeemer.”
Argumentation:
2Pet. 1:19-21—“And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns & the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”
Deut. 13:1-3—““If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, & he gives you a sign or a wonder, “& the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods’--which you have not known--‘& let us serve them,’ “you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart & with all your soul.”
Jeremiah’s prophecies regarding the length of exile—70yrs. vs. few—were debated by those who would not examine the context of Jeremiah’s vs. other’s lives.
*This is how we have our Bible today. God’s people have examined the context of the prophecies first-hand...God, providentially giving Himself glory in it.
Mat. 24:23-25—““Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. “See, I have told you beforehand.”
Rev. 13:11-17—“Then I saw another beast[false prophet] coming up out of the earth, & he had two horns like a lamb & spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, & causes the earth & those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword & lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak & cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small & great, rich & poor, free & slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, & that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”
If we Keep CONTEXTUAL we will NOT be awed & wooed by that which dishonors God.
Ps. 63:5—“Because Thy lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise Thee. So I will bless Thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Thy name. My soul is satisfied as with marrow & fatness, And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips.”
Php. 4:11-14—“Not that I speak from want; for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, & I also know how to live in prosperity; in any & every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled & going hungry, both of having abundance & suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction.”
Illustration:
Opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China/Very impressive indeed!/Beautiful impeccable coordination by many hundreds of actors/But let us not forget that a Communist government(despises Christianity) forged that impressive array/Keep CONTEXTUAL
Dubai, United Arab Emirates/A mall with indoor skiing!/Huge sky-scrapers/Built their own penninsula which justs ot into the Red Sea/Amazing engineering feats & expenditures of money intended to woo the rich merchants of free nations/Let us not forget that Shairah Law(Muslim)(despises Christianity) awaits just outside the city limits!/Keep CONTEXTUAL
Application:
?You Keep CONTEXTUAL when faced with Temptation?
?Are you Managing the Temptations you face?
13—A Secret to temptation management is
Keep DISTANT(:13)
Explanation:(:13) At Bay/Checked/Aware
“And when the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.”
“Opportune time/Season”—Time w/nuance of Time-ing.
When is the devil’s time?—Weakest hour
There came a point where the devil withdrew from his onslaught.
Jas. 4:7-8—“Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil & he will flee from you. Draw near to God & He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; & purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
When we draw close to God, the devil cannot make headway & will thus back down. However he does not wish to remain in this secondary position. He will return when he can seize any opportunity—any weakness in our relationship with God.
The devil waits until we are desperate. Then our sin/fallen nature more easily pushes God’s Spirit down to satisfy self. Jesus was at this point not physically ‘experiencing’ the fulfillment of His real possessions.
2 Directions we can take:
1) Closeness to God
Result: In-creased distance from the Devil/Evil(sin).
2) Separation from God
Result: De-creased Distance from the Devil /Evil(sin)
“Devil”(See :2, 3, 5, 6)—diabolov—1) Prone to slander, slanderous, accusing falsely—1a) A calumniator, false accuser, slanderer; 2) metaph. Applied to a man who, by opposing the cause of God, may be said to act the part of the devil or to side with him. Strong—A traducer; specially, Satan.
“Departed”—afisthmi—V.—1) To make stand off, cause to withdraw, to remove—1a) To excite to revolt; 2) To stand off, to stand aloof. Strong—To remove, i.e. (actively) Instigate to revolt; usually (reflexively) To desist, desert, etc.
“Opportune Time”—kairov—1) Due measure; 2) A measure of time, a larger or smaller portion of time, hence:—2a) A fixed & definite time, the time when things are brought to crisis, the decisive epoch waited for, 2b) Opportune or seasonable time, 2c) The right time, 2d) A limited period of time, 2e) To what time brings, the state of the times, the things & events of time. A definitely limited portion of time with the added notion of suitableness. Strong—Set or proper time.
Argumentation:
Js. 4:7-8—“Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil & he will flee from you. Draw near to God & He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; & purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
Eph. 4:26-27—“Be angry, & do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.”
2Cor. 2:10-11—“But whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ, in order that no advantage be taken of us by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his schemes.”
Eph. 6:10-18—“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord & in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh & blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, & having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, & having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, & the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer & supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance & supplication for all the saints--”
2Kgs. 1:2-15—“Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria, and was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury.” But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ “Now therefore, thus says the LORD: ‘You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” So Elijah departed. And when the messengers returned to him, he said to them, “Why have you come back?” So they said to him, “A man came up to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go, return to the king who sent you, and say to him, “Thus says the LORD: ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’”’” Then he said to them, “What kind of man was it who came up to meet you and told you these words?” So they answered him, “A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.” Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. So he went up to him; and there he was, sitting on the top of a hill. And he spoke to him: “Man of God, the king has said, ‘Come down!’” So Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty. Then he sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty men. And he answered and said to him: “Man of God, thus has the king said, ‘Come down quickly!’” So Elijah answered and said to them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty. Again, he sent a third captain of fifty with his fifty men. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and pleaded with him, and said to him: “Man of God, please let my life and the life of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. “Look, fire has come down from heaven and burned up the first two captains of fifties with their fifties. But let my life now be precious in your sight.” And the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king.”
Unlike the 1st 2 captains, the 3rd captain distanced himself from the previous captains. He was sympathetic to God’s working thru Elijah & God used him to have Elijah safely face king Ahaziah.
Illustration:
TV’s Call of the Wild Man/A Kentucky redneck who removes wild animals, by hand from dangerous situations near humans/Began by removing snapping turtles from farm ponds/A snapping turtle must be handled correctly or it will maim you/Keep DISTANT
Ellinor/Stranger/hug Momma or Daddy’s leg/Clams up & listens/Draws close to us but far from stranger/Devil should be treated likewise/Keep DISTANT
At John & Laura’s July 4th get-together/I was shocked when Luke Nettles(3yrs.?) runs over to me & hugs my leg instead of his dad’s(Karl)/He then looks up at my face, sensing something was wrong & darts away!/Karl & I obviously both have lilly-white legs, a belly, & hawaiian shirts/Not paying full attention, Luke would have been really disappointed had he stayed with me very long/Keep DISTANT
The ATM machine at our bank/Need to get close to transact business thru your car window/Some park far enough away to actually exit their car/There are numerous scrapes on the ATM drive thru/The drivers didn’t judge their distance properly & the side-view mirrors scraped the machine/Keep DISTANT
Application:
?You Keep The Devil DISTANT when faced with Temptation?
?Are you Managing the Temptations you face?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
*Temptation Management allows us to keep our Confession & Guilt to a minimum & our Intercession & Service to a maximum!
Some Secrets to temptation management are to Keep...
11. LOYAL(:5-8)
12. CONTEXTUAL(:9-12)
13. DISTANT(:13)
1. FULL(:1)of the Spirit
2. CURRENT/MOVING(:1)Beyond the Mountaintop
3. COMPLIANT(:1)Allow the Spirit to Lead
4. OPEN(:1)To anywhere(even the painful) the Spirit leads
5. DILIGENT(:2)Stick with God
6. ENEMIES(:2)Distinguish right from wrong
7. HUMBLE(:2)Vulnerable in Christ, Not arrogant
8. ALERT(:2-3)
9. In The WORD(:4,8, 12)
10. BALANCED(:3-4)
Presented 08/05/2012pm to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Needmore Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
Presented 04/22/01am to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Road
Whigham, GA 31797
