T Is For Temptation Series

Introduction

1. Keys...

These are my keys (explain what my different keys do...focusing on unlocking things)

Keys are very important...

They unlock other things...

Cars...trucks...motorcycles...homes...sheds...

Safety deposit boxes and much more...

In fact, the word KEY means among other things...

“of paramount or crucial importance”

2. As we continue to study our Biblical ABCs...

we come to the letter T...

T is for Temptation...

Temptation is a fact of life for everyone...

Christians and non-Christians alike face temptation...

As Christians, we must be able to overcome temptation...

temptation itself is not sin...

But yielding to temptation is a sin...

And, if we are going to live a victorious Christian life...

if we are going to successfully pursue our quest of a lifetime of growing closer to the Lord...by the power of the Holy Spirit...

we, as Christians, have got to find a way to overcome temptation...

thankfully, God’s word is not silent on this issue...

Throughout the Bible, we have some very practical advice on how we can overcome temptation...

3. Standing before us, are 3 locked doors...

blocking us from enjoying true spiritual victory...

and God’s Word has given us 3 keys to unlocking those doors...

and, if we will unlock all 3 doors...

we will find that we are able to enter in to a victorious Christian life...

that doesn’t mean that we will never face temptation again...

But, God has given us the KEYS to OVERCOMING temptation as it occurs in our lives.

Read Text: Psalm 141:1-10

3 Keys to Overcoming Temptation

1. The First Key to Overcoming Temptation...is to maintain consistent spiritual Discipline. vv. 1-2

A. One very important spiritual discipline is prayer.

Psalm 141:1-2a

“O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to me.

Hear my voice when I call to you.

May my prayer be set before you like incense”

We find prayer to be of utmost importance in overcoming temptation...

In Matthew 26:14, Jesus says "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak."

As Christians, what we do when temptation comes...

has a powerful impact on our ability to either withstand temptation...

or whether we succumb to temptation...

If we flirt with temptation...

if we allow our eyes to dwell on that thing that tempts us...

if we allow our hearts to become filled with desire for that thing that tempts us...

then we are much more likely to succumb to temptation...

However, when temptation comes...

if we will bow in prayer...

if we will ask God to empower us by His Holy Spirit...

if we cry out to the Lord in our times of temptation...

we are must more likely to withstand that temptation...

and continue on in spiritual victory.

B. Another important spiritual discipline is corporate worship.

Psalm 141:2b

“May the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice”

The picture that David is painting here...

is the picture of the priest in the Temple offering the sacrifice for the sins of the people...

As God’s people make their way to, in David’s day, it was the Temple...

In our day, it is the Church...

then we come into the presence of God...

as we worship the Lord together with our brothers and sisters in Christ...

we can gain the power we need to overcome temptation...

on the other hand...

if you have a Christian who only make half-hearted attempts to attend church...

if you have a Christian who allows unimportant things to enter in and take the place of attending church...

then you will have a Christian who is unable to successfully withstand the power of tempation...

and it won’t be long before they are overcome by that temptation...

and then, they aren’t a Christian no longer...

But David found that entering in to God’s house...

worshipping the Lord together with fellow believers...

gave him power to overcome temptation...

C. There are other spiritual disciplines that help us too...

Fasting, when added to prayer, gives us more strength to overcome temptation...

One of the major temptations that people face is in the area of how they use their money...

1 Timothy 6:9 says, “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.”

Christians who do not tithe...

are in great danger of falling into temptation...

As a pastor...when I see people who do not tithe regularly...

I often see people who struggle spiritually...

and they don’t seem to be able to live a life of spiritual victory...

and the reason is because they have robbed God in the area of tithes and offerings.

D. As Christians, if we want to overcome temptation...

we must maintain consistent spiritual disciplines...

specifically, prayer, attending church, fasting, and tithing...