HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 329
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Satan’s favorite strategy is to make that which is sinful appear to be desirable and good. In
contrast, he also tries to make good look evil. If he can make evil look good and good look
evil, then giving in to temptation appears right instead of wrong. You must constantly be
aware of the confusion he desires to create in you.
• 1 K I NG S 1 1 :1 -3 | Solomon loved many foreign women. . . . And in fact, they did turn his
heart away from the Lord.
Often temptation begins in seemingly harmless pleasure, soon gets out of control, and
then progresses to full-blown idolatry. But the reality is that the kind of pleasure that leads
to sin is never harmless. Before you give in to something that seems innocent, take a
look at God’s Word to see what it says. If Solomon had done this, he would have been
reminded that his “pleasure” was really sin.
• MAT T H E W 4 :3 -9 | During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of
God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”. . . Next the devil took him to the peak of
a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will
give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”
Temptation often offers short-term attractive benefits but comes with destructive—even
deadly—long-term consequences. Temptation is often convincingly seasoned with partial
truths twisted into lies.
Ask yourself if your conscience still has a strong voice inside you. When your conscience
tells you no and your desire tells you yes, can you still hear and follow your conscience?
In this case, Delilah’s beauty and the promise of sexual pleasure completely convinced
Samson that she was sincere. What had happened to Samson’s conscience? When you
make a practice of not listening to your conscience, you will soon hardly hear it. Then you
are extremely vulnerable to temptation. Don’t put yourself in a position where you can no
longer hear or follow your conscience.
• A C T S 1 7 :1 1 | They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were
teaching the truth.
• 2 SA MU E L 1 3 :4 -5 | So Amnon told him, “I am in love with Tamar. . . .” “Well,” Jonadab
said, “I’ll tell you what to do. Go back to bed and pretend you are ill.”
If someone is trying to convince you to do something that contradicts Scripture, you can
be assured it is wrong. Know the Bible well enough to discern when someone is telling you
something false.
• G E NE SI S 3 :6 | Its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her.
• 2 SA MU E L 1 1 :8 | Then [David] told Uriah, “Go on home and relax.” David even sent a gift
to Uriah . . .
If something seems too good to be true, ask yourself if you are being deceived. Sometimes you are wildly blessed and it is for real. But often if it sounds too good to be true,
it probably is.
• PR O VE R B S 1 4 :7 | Stay away from fools, for you won’t find knowledge on their lips.
How often we ignore obvious truths. Stay away from deceitful people if you want to keep
from being deceived.
Do I have the power to resist temptation?
• MAT T H E W 4 :1 -1 1 | But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say . . .” Jesus responded, “The
Scriptures also say . . .” “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say . . .”
• J A ME S 4 :7 | Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
The devil has less power than you think. The devil can tempt you, but he cannot coerce
you. He can dangle the bait in front of you, but he cannot force you to take it. You can
resist the devil as Jesus did: by responding to the lies of temptation with the truth of
God’s Word.
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• J U DG E S 1 6 :6 | So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes you so strong and
what it would take to tie you up securely.”
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How can I know when I’m being deceived?