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\How many from all of you can think about the number one temptation you are fight?
Those who can't are in need of repent right now. The people I want you to hear this:
Temptation is the universal problem. God said we were, we are and we will until Jesus comes. It is something very important you should know. We read from JAMES 1: 2
"My brothers, count it with all joy when you fall into various temptations."
And this is not easy to do. We talk about temptations, we talk about some tough ones and he says: count it with all joy. May I ask you a few more questions:
When temptation comes along your way, do you say to yourself: I can do it, or you still fighting it and try to overcome it. And other question: when temptation comes are you blame others? The
biggest problem with temptations, we blame others not ours. You say, well it's my parent's fault, it's my upbringing, it's why I have these problems. Maybe you blame your friends for your temptations,
maybe you blame God for your temptations. We cannot be free from its sting because we blame others for it.
You know what Adam did, just turn to GENESIS 3: 12 and see how he blame Eve:
"The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate."
And the woman said "The serpent deceived me, and I did eat a fruit."
Nobody wants to take responsibility for your own problem. It is the biggest problem that we can not and will not take the full responsibility for our own respond to sin.
We say: the devil make me do it, or maybe God make me do it, or maybe she make me do it. It is her fault because she gave it to me. Most people sadly blame God and you know why? Well since God make me,
and God knew all about me, why He allowed to me to be tempted when He knew I can't win over it? Because I am so weak in this why He allowed devil to take over me? We blame everybody, don't we? JAMES 1:
2-3 tells
"Brothers, count it all with joy when you fall into various temptations,
knowing that the trials of your faith produces patience."
The word 'temptation' in Greek means: 'parasmas'. It's mean enticement, to entice.
The word 'trials' in Greek means: 'dacumas'. It's mean testing. Let's keep reading:
"But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete."
"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like
a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord." JAMES 1: 4- 8.
"Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been proved, 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 tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone." JAMES 1: 12-13.
In GENESIS 22 God tested Abraham and God will test you but not tempt you.
Why God test us, HEBREWS 12: 10 answers what is His purpose for testing us:
"For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness."
He tested us so we may be partakers of His holiness. God test us all the time to become more holy.
We cover some interesting points in this lesson:
1. We all face temptation and we will fight with temptations all the time in our life.
Most people blame others than themselves, even as Adam and Eve and it is easy thing to do for we pass the blame. We as far as we can even blame ours emotional ups and downs. We also blame our education,
blame our parents or blame our God that we weak and fall into temptation.
2. We can also see that our temptation is universal, but also another thing is universal:
that we blame everybody else except ourselves.
3. We see also that God does not tempt us, He test us for His purposes. JAMES 1: 13
"Let no one say when he is tempted, 'I am tempted by God'; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone." God cannot be tempted.
It is impossible for God to be tempted, but when He become in flesh, he was.
Two thousand years ago, His Son become a man and was tempted in all forms of it.
HEBREWS 4: 15 declares: "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympath-ise with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin."
God cannot be tempted as God but was tempted as a man in human flesh, but the Bible declares that Christ resisted. When we resist against sin , often we fail, you have to admit your failure, that you did
not win every battle against sin. It is why you go to God on daily bases and said: I am sorry, I blow it again, I am sorry Lord. Some said that Jesus doesn't know what I am going through. Jesus not only
felt what you feel, but
He felt what you incabile to feel. Why, because he felt pressure and intensity you've never known. Because pure sin come against pure holiness, and when that happen, the pressure was so great that drops
of blood was formed out of his forehead. Christ Jesus had not only feel the pressure of temptation, but it is in its fullness. But when you are tempted, your resistance is so weak, that just blow
you out so often. But He resisted and never give in. The full force of temptation come on Him,the stronger the resistance
the stronger the force. He experienced the fullness of that force and He won in all point and full intensity of this pressure. All of power of hell came against Him,fulness of that temptation came against
Him. And Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God do not allowed even single evil though came to his mind, even a single second. He was pure, righteous holy. He said: who can convince me that I am sinful or
convince me of sin?
He was perfect. But let's me show you the power or the force of temptation in you.
Sin can jump on you very fast because of your fallen nature loves it. By nature we enjoy the things of the world. Old nature must be crucified and the new nature will rise
We love sin because we were born in it. In sin my mother conceived me and I am a part of it, and I knew it, but a second you were born again, we must say no to sin.
HEBREW 12: 1 declares: "Therefore we also, since we are surround by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with patience
the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endures the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right
hand of the throne."
Let us run with patience the race of faith looking unto Jesus-author and finisher of your faith, who despise the shame and has set down at the right hand of the throne .
People, if you look into your sin, it will knock you down. Look unto Jesus!
HEBREWS 12: 3 declares: "For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and
discouraged in your soul.
You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, fighting against sin."
Jesus was fighting against sin and temptation that even in LUKE 22 : 44 declares:
"And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. And His sweat become like great drops of blood falling down to the ground."Now you know what He felt before cross
He know perfectly what we are going through. But you are incapable of feeling what he felt. Your resistance is weak in compare what he went through. He never sinned.
When full sin comes against whole holiness, when pure sin comes against pure righteo-usness there is power, lots of power, but Jesus won this battle with sin and temptation.
He experienced the fullness of this pressure, pressure you never been able to handle.
He handled this pressure for you. When you tempted, Jesus only can help you and won this battle against temptation and sin. It is only one point to be done - look unto Jesus.
The Bible says in HEBREWS 12: 5 - "My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him: For whom the LORD loves he chastens. And scourges
every son whom he receives." Why God test you?
Every time God tests you, He pours the holiness in you. I am stronger against temp-tation. It is exactly what happens. And now what is temptation? It is to entice you to
do evil against God. Temptation comes in three forms. In I JOHN 2: 16 Bible declares:
"For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of Father but is of the world."There three different forms of temptation
The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and pride of life. You know the first thing the enemy did with the women: She saw that the fruit was good for food and make her wise. The first form of
temptation of devil when he come to the Lord, He said to turn the stones into bread and he took him on the high mountain and He show Him the all kingdoms of the earth. These forms did not change, he
still comes to us in this forms.
He didn’t change his forms of attack, so be smart and learns about them fast against devil. When he comes to you and begin to attack area of your flesh that is so weak in you.Your flesh is your biggest
enemy. The lust of the flesh is dealing with the lot of areas. But today we have a power to say - NO to the fleshly temptations.
When it is coming to you, you have only two choices: let it go by or let it lock on it.
When you allow to lock on it, sin will lock on you. Soldier who is wondering into enemy’s territory is capable to be taken as a prisoner. So do not wonder into the enemy's territory, so you can be
capture as a prisoner. You have two choices:
1. You have the power to say - NO and 2. When you lock on him, he will lock on you.
And please understand the way he works. Every form of temptation is the question.
If you are the Son of God?... Have God said?...Watch these questions. The only way to defeat them is by knowing the answer. If you do not know the answer, you sank.
He even knows how to ask the Bible questions. He said to Jesus "It is written".
These questions are a deadly questions. They will knock you down without answer.
You must know the answer. James said that only one is responsible for temptation.
JAMES 1: 14 declares: "By each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is fullgrown, brings
forth death. Do not be deceived, my brothers."
First the thought come to you and it drowns you away. And when you drawn away you sank, so keep your eyes and thoughts on Jesus. So when
we are tempted - when we are drawn away. You are drawn away by your own lust and then you will be enticed. He will not tempt you until he sees you drowning away, but you have ability to keep your eyes on
Jesus. My unrighteousness, my wonderings, and when I wonder, he shows up. The devil shows up when I am drowning from Christ. When Jesus comes the tempters power is broken. But the one who moves is not
the Lord - it is you.
When you said YES to the thought it is when lust is conceived, when you begin to fantasia on that thought. And when lust have conceived it's brings forth sin. As sin when it is finished brings forth
death. Ones more time:
You drawn away because of your own weaknesses of flesh, and when the devil sees it he can easily hook you. Now you entertain that, now you fantasia on it and when it happen sin is conceived and that leads
you to death. JAMES 1: 16 declares:
"Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers." For only good comes from God:
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning."
JAMES 1: 21 declares for us:"Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted Word, which is able to save."
The number one rule is: you want out, then take the full responsibility for actions.
The reason that many of you are you fighting this all of your life is that you have no victory, because you blame everybody else but not yourself. And there is way out.
The devil tempts you every day the same, he comes to you, he tempts you, you fell into it and go to God for forgiveness. Let me ask you three questions:
1. How many of you have given in into this thing and said that you can't fight it?
2. How many of you are still fighting it?
3. How many of you see this as a bondage and want flee from it?
God know the answer because He just heard you responding to these questions.
There are three ways out. The way out number one is:
1. Commit what you did, don't hide like Adam. Go to God and say: Father I am responsible for this and when you do He will act. I CORINTHIANS 10: 13 says:
"No temptation has overtaken you except such is common to man; but God is faith-full, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the
way of escape, that you may be able to bear it."
When you admit: Lord, I have a problem, He makes you the way of escape. You can not escape until you admit who is responsible. And the best advice I can give you:
"Pray that you can not enter into temptation." Prayer keeps temptation away!
LUKE 22: 46 "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."
We have to pray and when we do we do not yelled into temptations. Jesus said that temptation will come but you just not yelled to them when you pray. There on your way, but you say NO to them. So who is
responsible - YOU.
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