The unholy trinity sounds like a great title for a B horror flick, but it is real. There are three very real sources, according to the Bible where temptations will come. We are talking about the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh. Let’s work through the reality of each of these.
The devil is an angel. His native tongue is the lie. Or as the old joke goes, how to you know if the devil is lying? His lips are moving. Yet these lies are far from white, they can be very little. The greatest lie that he whispers to you is that you are not loved. God doesn’t care about you. The first temptation that we covered in our Bible study was all the way back in the Garden of Eden. “Eve you can be like God! Knowing good and evil…” Up until that point creation had only known good. After the fall, oh they were like God alright, but not in the way Eve and Adam were thinking. They knew evil and they knew THEY were the evil. The lie was complete.
What about the world? How bad can the world be. Turn off the news for a second. How bad is the world really. Oh, it’s a cesspool of temptation and evil (next week’s topic), but you removing yourself from the world isn’t that answer. #1 the devil won’t leave you alone and your flesh still covers your body. #2 if you pull yourself out of the world, how can you let your light shine before men? Don’t tell me this is too hard. You God calls you to faithfulness. More importantly he provides a way out for every temptation.
That brings us to your flesh. In the history of the world there have been some bad ideas about how we can “mortify” the flesh. Here’s the thing. God made you fearfully and wonderfully. The risen Lord Jesus has a body just like yours – oh it’s glorified and ready for eternity, but it’s a body. There is nothing wrong with your flesh per se. This side of the grave you will be tempted by every fleshly desire. Lust, I suppose, is one biggie in 2019. On the Last Day you will be raised – with a body – imperishable.
Want to hear more? Watch this week’s lesson in our series on the Lord’s Prayer
Please click HERE for the Bible class slides.