Shun The Bait Rather Than Struggle On The Hook Proverbs 6:27-28 1 Peter 5:8-9 Ephesians 6:10-13 1 Corinthians 10:6-13 Luke 22:31-34 Mark 14:37-38 2 Timothy 2:22-26 James 4:7 10.21.20

SHUN THE BAIT RATHER THAN STRUGGLE ON THE HOOK

BREAD

²⁷ Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? ²⁸ Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched?  Proverbs 6:27-28 (NIV)

 

⁸ Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.  1 Peter 5:8-9 (NIV)

 

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.  Ephesians 6:10-13 (NIV)

 

⁶ Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. ⁷ Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.” ⁸ We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did--and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. ⁹ We should not test the Lord, as some of them did--and were killed by snakes. ¹⁰ And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel. ¹¹ These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. ¹² So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! ¹³ No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.  1 Corinthians 10:6-13 (NIV)

 

³¹ “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. ³² But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”  ³³ But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”  ³⁴ Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”  Luke 22:31-34 (NIV)

 

³⁷ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? ³⁸ Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”  Mark 14:37-38 (NIV)

 

²² Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. ²³ Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. ²⁴ And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. ²⁵ Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, ²⁶ and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.   2 Timothy 2:22-26 (NIV)

 

⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  James 4:7 (NIV)

 

BUTTER

“Temptations will come to every Christian, but Samson’s story teaches us that it’s better to shun the bait than to struggle on the hook. Every temptation is an opportunity to flee to God.”  Greg Laurie

“I have lived long enough to know that choosing to live faithfully surpasses any fleeting pleasure I might obtain by yielding to temptation.  What I have discovered over the years is that God’s desire for me to be faithful is an expression of His love for me.”  Cynthia Heald

“All temptation would be harmless, of course, if sin promised no pleasure — if the net offered no meal, and the hook no worm. So the devil takes what fleeting pleasures there are in sin and makes them feel, for the moment at least, sweeter than the pleasures at God’s right hand.  Under the force of Satan’s temptation, Cain feels the thrill of revenge; Achan, the glory of wealth; David, the delight of adultery. We too may find ourselves fixed on a certain sin with an overwhelming sense of necessity: if we don’t click here, buy this, drink that, how will we be happy? How will we endure our sufferings or our boredom? Perhaps we would repress some essential part of us. Perhaps, having gone this far, we have no choice but to plunge headlong.  All the while, the light of God’s face grows dimmer, the narrow way squeezes, and the commandments of God, which once brought so much freedom, fall upon us with a weight we cannot bear.”  Scott Hubbard

“It is much easier and delightful to build rather than to mend people.  Do-overs in a life always carry with it such icky consequences that most don’t factor in until  it is too late and they are face to face with them.  Also, don’t arrogantly think for a minute that you will not ever need a voice of wisdom and reason either.  Do your part to help others on their way, to strengthen the saint and to help them to stand.  We do this through His power and always for His glory and our good.”  BHY 

“There is no cure for an earthly mind, but by presenting far greater matters to the mind.  If a man were given the sight of heaven and hell, he would consider the world less than he did before.  If he heard the joyful praises of the saints or woeful lamentation of the damned, but one hour, he would seek after greater goals than scraping together a heap of wealth.  Look to heaven, man, there is your home and hope.  O blinded mortals that love to dwell on the earth like worms!  You are immortal souls, made for God Himself, to admire Him, love Him, serve Him and enjoy Him.  O beg of God a heavenly light and mind to look often into heaven, and worldliness will vanish away to shame.”    Richard Baxter  

“Temptation will darken the mind, so that a man will not be able to make a right judgment of things as he did before he entered into it.  Temptation can darken the mind by a sad entangling of the affections.  When the affections are engaged, they have a strong influence in blinding the mind and darkening the understanding.  Affections set at liberty by temptation will run on in madness.”  John Owen 

“Believers need to be careful in their lives for the credit of Christ is at stake.”  Thomas Manton

“We judge things by their present appearance; but the Lord sees them in their consequences.  If we could do the same we would be perfectly of His mind; but since we can’t, it is an unspeakable mercy that He will manage for us, whether we are pleased with His management or not; and it is regarded as one of His heaviest judgments when He gives any person up to the way of their own hearts, and to walk according to their own wisdom.”  John Newton

“Just as there are always blessings to obedience, conversely there will always be consequences to sin.  Every sin carries with it a death sentence – death to trust, death to relationship, death to freedom, etc. etc.  We do not sin merely as unto ourselves either, sin’s tentacles are far reaching and devastating – like a ripple in the water when you cast in a stone.  We get to choose to sin or not but God chooses the consequence.  Just read about what happened to King David after his encounter with Bathsheba and how it affected the rest of his life.  God is severe in His judgments because He knows what sin does to a life and the lives of others.  This is not a winking, joking matter with Him.  It cost Him the life of His Son.  He doesn’t want us to go there (to say the least) – He has far greater, pleasing and perfect plans for us than that.  Also, it is all too important to note, that while a believer in Jesus is forgiven for sin that does not mean there will not be consequences.  Just saying….”  BHY

“A man lead to execution scarce looks at the shops in the street as he passes by.  How little do the wealth and honours of the world concern a soul that is going into another world.  Look up to God, and remember that you are wholly in His hands.  Seek now that which will be important in the end, when you will have full experience to make you wiser.”  Richard Baxter

“Every temptation is an opportunity not only to reject the fleeting pleasures of sin, but also to embrace the surpassing worth of Christ.  Every temptation offers a chance to shame the devil, not by mere self-denial, but by a better satisfaction:  Christ himself, who promises pleasure we can scarcely imagine — and who never lies.”   Scott Hubbard

HEART SAVOR

·         We are to resist temptation through God’s power for His glory and our good.

·         God has promised to provide a door of escape in every temptation.  Look for it.

      ·         Follow out our actions to the end to see if they will bring about the results we desire.   God is very clear in His Word regarding His ways.  Be aware of them.