Randall Caselman
Bella Vista Church of Christ
4/13/97 pm
Anatomy of Temptation
Reading — Genesis 3.1-6
Our study today has been on Satan and how he works in our lives. Tonight, we consider the Anatomy of Temptation, as we examine a case study in how Satan temps us to sin.
Picture with me now a man entering the Texas State penitentiary. The iron gates close behind him as he walks down the long corridor. He is in for up to 20 years for attempted rape. The man is a Christian... A preacher... A graduate of a Christian college. He had served as the minister for two churches since college and both of them were very successful ministries in human terms. He had demonstrated a fantastic ability in the field of evangelism.... Indeed a great teacher.
Several men had testified at the trial that he had changed their lives by motivating them toward a deeper commitment in discipleship. Others spoke of being led to Christ by him and of his apparent sincerity. They said that, as he preached one could sense the power and presence of God. This man had left his print upon:
• The congregation.
• The community.
• All those that he had touched.
And now he is in a Texas penitentiary.
In one dark moment of temptation he fell into the abyss of sin.
• Ruined his reputation.
• Destroyed his ministry.
• Hurt the church.
• Left an ugly stain on the testimony of Jesus Christ.
What is it... What happens in a person’s life that would cause one to do such a thing? What do you suppose went through his mind? What is it that causes one to pay such a high price for a moment of sin’s pleasure? What is it that leads a person to such destruction? As we consider these questions, we realize we not just asking about this preacher, but about ourselves. As Christian people temptation dogs us at every turn. Satan never gives up. No, our sin may not be as open to the public as this preacher who fell, but it is just as soul damning. Satan never quits. Have you ever said I know this is wrong... I know this is a sin, but I want it anyway? So, we do it! What is it that brings us to such a decision.
Let’s go now to our text where we have a case study in temptation. I want you to watch the way Satan comes to Eve, we recognize that while this story comes to us out of the ancient past.
• It is as up to date as the temptation you and I may be facing tonight.
• The temptation we failed last night.
• Or last week in the preacher’s study
• In your office,
• At home,
• Or in your personal ministry.
You see, the scene, the names, and places have changed; but the methodology has not. Satan still uses this time tested pattern. I mean why give it up? It works so well. Let’s see what we can learn about Satan and how he works in our lives.
FIRST, HE COMES IN DISGUISE.
As we review the text, one of the first things we discover, is that when Satan comes, he comes to us in disguise. Moses as the author of Genesis says that the serpent was more crafty, more cunning than the other animals. The King James says, subtle. This word could be translated smoothness. Moses is saying that, when the serpent came to Eve he didn’t come in his ugliness.
Remember this scene occurs before the curse. Before he is destined to crawl on the ground. There are no warning rattlers. Nothing to cause Eve to be cautious or alarmed by the approaching poison. When Satan comes to us,
• He does not come in the form of a coiled snake,
• Not with the roar of a lion,
• Or the wail of a siren.
• He doesn’t wave a red flag saying, HERE I COME.
Satan slides into our life. He comes and easing in as a comfortable concerned companion. Sin feels good. There seems to be nothing about him that we would dread or fear. The New Testament tells us that he often comes as:
• An angel of light,
• A minister of righteousness.
• He resembles God.
One thing we can always count on, when Satan comes he will be disguised;
• Perhaps a beautiful blue-eyed blond.
• As a new business opportunity.
• Perhaps he will come in a bottle.
• In a book or magazine or video.
And we won’t know: who he is, or what his real intentions are, until he has us by the throat. You see, not only is he disguised in person, he is disguised in his purpose.
When he came to Eve he didn’t say, “I came to tempt you... I CAME TO KILL YOU.” He seems to have come, to have a religious discussion. Satan wants to talk theology; he doesn’t want to talk sin! He begins by saying, Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden? Nothing wrong with that is there? I mean Satan is interested in religion too. He seem to be saying, I just want to be sure of the exegesis here. Just want to see if I understand correctly what God said.
You see Satan is a religious devil. He doesn’t come kicking down the door of life and soul saying, Pardon me, Madame, give me half an hour of your life and I’ll damn your soul - Destroy you. No, all he wants to do is talk a bit... Talk about theology, talk about religion. Now, we must know that it is possible to discuss theology to our own peril. This very thing happened to the Christians in Rome.
• They were big on grace,
• Strong on Christian liberty,
• They knew the freedom we all have in Christ, as sons of God.
• They could debate this with anybody and win.
But every man or woman who has turned liberty into license has done it on a theological basis. We can come to the point where we reason like this, even when we sin more, God’s grace abounds more and more and more. The more we sin the more he forgives. So, we can come to the conclusion that we need to sin more so that we can experience God’s grace more. Satan had lured the Roman Christians into believing that they could do anything they wanted... Anytime they wanted... With anyone they wanted. No restrictions, no hang-ups. They were free! They knew about God’s grace. Paul said God forbid that we swallow that kind of theology. We died to sin how can we live in it any longer. We have crucified the old man of sin, buried him in the act of New Testament baptism. Now, we are to become instruments of God, slaves to righteousness, living sacrifices. Romans chapter 6 & 12 Read it again!
Here is another. We are big on the sovereign nature of God. Everybody knows that, Right? God is sovereign over the affairs of men and nations. God’s eye and hand are over all mankind in all of history. His eye and hand are on my life and yours. Carry this theology TOO FAR and before long, we might conclude that God is so sovereign that we are no longer responsible for our own thoughts and actions. After all, in a sense, all the world is a stage and we are acting out the part... God given parts. Before long we have God being responsible for everything, even our sin. Out of such discussions come statements like:
• Don’t be so hard on yourself.
• Don’t take life so seriously.
• Allow God to use you, even in your sin.
We have now found good reasons for disobeying His word.
My good people, Satan loves to discuss theology. Because he is so good at taking God’s word and twisting it, bringing it to a new level that seems right in human reasoning, but in fact is soul damning in its consequences.
Another thing Satan does in this temptation discussion is to focus Eve’s attention on a single tree in the center of the garden. Allow me a little license with the text, OK? Satan seems to say:
• God won’t do that.
• He wouldn’t restrict you so.
• I mean what’s one tree.
• Everybody knows one tree is as good as another.
Notice now, how Eve comes to God’s defense. She is a witness for God. She says, No, we can eat of all except that one... We can’t eat of it or touch it. Hey... God didn’t say anything about touching it, did he? NO! But one of the things that people do in defending God is they become:
• More righteous,
• More restricting,
• More narrow than God.
This was the problem with the Pharisees. They made laws where God never made them. They built fences where God never built fences. This is one of the problems of the self-righteous and the extreme religious right. Sometimes we take God’s commands and go one... Two, three steps further. What Satan has done is focus all the Christian’s attention on one thing and we carry the thought to an extreme. We become hobby riders, allowing Satan to focus out attention in only one area, on only one command to the exclusion of others. Folk, Satan doesn’t care if he get us with liberalism or with Pharisaic conservatism. Either way he has us. So,
• Satan comes in disguise.
• He conceals who he is.
• And he conceals what he is trying to do.
Secondly, the tempter attacks God. First he attacks God’s word.
No you’re kidding... Surely die?... You don’t believe that do you?... Not surely die... God even knows better than that... God is just trying to get your attention. Surely die?... Come now you’re much too sophisticated for that. Look about you, God is so good... He loves you so much... He’s good enough to give you this marvelous garden... All these trees and bountiful fruit... He is so excited about you. Surely die?... No, God certainly didn’t mean that. Oh, how easy we fall into this trap. We believe in the inerrancy of the scripture, but on ONE particular issue it is an issue that is just between God and I; he doesn’t mean it. Not surely die! For instance:
• How do we fee about those who live after the flesh shall die?
• Do we believe seek you first the kingdom of God.
• Or fornicators and adulterers, God will judge
• Or no drunkard shall inherit eternal life.
Does God mean it when he says things like:
• Love not the world nor the things of the world.
• You can’t love God if you can’t love your brother?
• Does God really mean it when He says, baptism is for the forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
• Does God really mean it when He says, give as we have been prospered?
Does God mean these things. Surely he does. You see, church, it is so easy to apply Scripture to others, but very difficult to apply it to ourselves and our situation while completely ignoring others.
Not only does Satan attack God’s word, he also attacks God’s character.
Note verse 5 of our text. For God knows that when you eat of that tree your eyes will be opened an you will be like God, knowing good and evil. You see, what Satan is doing here is attacking God’s goodness. Satan is saying:
• God just wants you to submit... To keep you on a leash.
• He doesn’t want you to be free and to experience the abundant good life.
• He knows when you eat of that fruit you’ll experience things you can’t experience any other way.
• God has an ulterior motive in all this... He has a hidden agenda... An evil motive.
• Don’t allow him to keep you under his thumb.
Church, once the well is poisoned, all the water is ruined. All of it. If Satan can get us to doubt God’s goodness in any one area, he is already well on the way to winning the battle.
For example one of the most beautiful confessions of love and faith in the scripture is Ruth’s statement to Naomi. Entreat me not to leave thee or to return from following after thee; for whether thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge, thy people shall be my people, thy God my god. Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: The lord do so to me and more if ought but death part thee and me. Beautiful! Right! But suppose someone came to Naomi and said Naomi, listen.
• Ruth is a gold digger.
• She’s a manipulator.
• What Ruth really wants is to go to Israel and marry a rich, wealthy Jew.
• Naomi, she knows you are her passport to Palestine.
• She is just using you!
Now, if Naomi believes this, the well is poisoned and every good thing that Ruth does, Naomi will suspect. Every kind word Ruth speaks, Naomi will reject or question.
Satan wants us to come to the point where we question and doubt, even the purest of motives. How easy he can do that. Look at verse six... The deed is done, doubt is cast
• When the woman saw the fruit was good for food.
• Pleasing to the eye.
• And could provide wisdom.
She took some and ate it
Sin becomes desirable to us, for two reasons:
1. Because we listen to the lie of Satan
2. Because lust, our own evil desires take control.
When we question:
• God’s word
• God’s character,
• God’s goodness,
• God’s motive, then suddenly our lust comes alive and lures us into what is evil, if it is not controlled.
You see, what was once: out of bounds, off limits, becomes the one thing we desire more than anything in the world. Satan’s methodology is the same today. Notice the progression!
• She considered (thought about it)
• She looked at it.
• She handled it.
• She partook of it
• She shared it with someone else.
This is the same progression that put a good gospel preacher in a Texas penitentiary. A piece of fruit! Are you telling me Eve sinned by eating a piece of fruit? Are you telling me that a piece of fruit damned the human race? Separated man and God? No, not a piece of fruit,
• But disobedience to God’s word,
• A distrust,
• A loss of faith in God’s character.
The fruit is out on the periphery. Folk, Sin is the issue, the transgression of God’s law. It always is. But Satan take the focus off the real issue and places it somewhere else. God is serious about sin, because he is serious about us.
When Satan comes to tempt us he never comes dragging the chains that will bind us or the fire of passion that will consume us. If Satan had come to Eve that day in the garden, and said look, sign this paper and be done with God forever, she would have never signed it. He comes with a crown that will ennoble us. He comes offering:
• Pleasure,
• Expansiveness,
• Experience,
• Money,
• Popularity,
• Pleasure,
• Power,
• Freedom,
• Enjoyment.
He never comes speaking of consequences. In fact he never really says there are any consequences at all.
I hope the lessons today will help us to be aware of Satan and the devices he uses to destroy us.
Now, I didn’t present these lessons, to bring you some kind of tight legalism. Christianity is more than mere morality... More than mere religious rules.
• It’s not us toeing the line,
• Keeping the rules.
• Living by law.
God doesn’t just call us to religious rule keeping, but to a relationship with Him. That’s what Christianity is all about, a restored relationship... Back like it was in the garden before Satan entered the picture. Jesus came to make this relationship possible. Are you interested?
You see, God is willing to make us His children and forgive us all our sins by faith, repentance and New Testament baptism.
• You are all sons of God by faith in Christ Jesus, for as many as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ, been clothed yourselves with Christ.
• Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
• If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, continues to cleanse us from all sin.
The invitation is yours.
