“Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT EAT of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, LEST YOU DIE (a spiritual death).’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and YOU WILL BE LIKE GOD, knowing good and evil.” So, when the woman saw that the tree was GOOD for food, and that it was a DELIGHT to the eyes, and that the tree was to be DESIRED to make one wise, she took of its fruit AND ATE, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and HE ATE. Then the eyes of both WERE OPENED (to good and evil), and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.” (Genesis 3:1-7)
Because of Adam and Eve’s yielding to Satan’s original temptation, the human race was plunged into sin. Since then every person has struggled with temptation. Becoming a Christian and even walking with God for many years does not eliminate or even minimize the dangers of temptation. “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). There is within us all a strong desire for the forbidden fruit. Someone astutely observed, “Most people want to be delivered from temptation, but they would like it to keep in touch what is before them.” As Christians who want to please God, we must understand how temptation works so that we can learn how to resist it. Our text is a classic case study of the process of temptation. “By understanding how temptation works we can devise a strategy for victory over it.”
To be forewarned of Satan’s strategy is to be forearmed. His pattern for tempting Eve is essentially the same approach he uses today. By studying and learning to recognize that pattern, we will NOT BE IGNORANT OF HIS SCHEMES “I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for Jesus. Another reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that SATAN MIGHT NOT OUTWIT US. FOR WE ARE NOT UNAWARE OF HIS SCHEMES.” (2 Corinthians 2:8-11) and thus CAN RESIST THEM.
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham