How Satan tempts

His name means “adversary.” He is a slanderer, a liar, and a deceiver. He lives to lead people astray from the truth. He is crafty and cunning in all He does. Just as Christ is trustworthy in all that He does, so Satan is untrustworthy in all that he does. But how does Satan tempt […]

An example and a hope

The Old Testament can sometimes seem obscure and difficult to understand. There are all the laws, sacrifices, and festivals in the Pentateuch that often seem quite disconnected from where and how we live, then there are some weird stories in the historical books (e.g., Judges 19 and 21), and it all culminates in the prophets […]

Carson on temptation

D. A. Carson talks about overcoming temptation — “it’s a worship issue…” This is a helpful follow-up to this morning’s post, “Gospel consequences.” HT: Desiring God.

Pure Life Conference audio

The audio from the recent “Pure Life Conference” hosted by Calvary Bible Church in Fort Worth has been posted. This conference was designed to help men address sexual temptation and sin with biblical purity. Our own associate pastor, Keith Palmer taught the third session in this one-day seminar. The topics included: “The Peril of Sexual […]

Grab bag

Some helpful articles spotted recently: A lesson in truth-telling, and what makes Christians different: “Mike Daisey, Apple, and Our Culture’s Crisis in Truth-Telling.” “Temptation Is Not Sin,” writes Bill Mounce. He makes three points: 1. Temptation is not sin, 2. No one can make you sin, and 3. God is on your side. The question […]

The flesh is weak

The crucifixion of Christ would occur within hours. So Jesus went to the garden to pray and asked the three disciples in the “inner core” — Peter, James, and John — to also pray (Mk. 14:32-42). These were not immature or ungodly men. They loved Christ. Peter had just professed that he would die for […]

Avoiding the two woes of temptation

I wish this were not true, but it is. There is an inevitability to sin. All men will sin because all men are fleshly and even those who are redeemed have not yet been finally redeemed. Our own natures will eventually produce sin. We are enticed by our own lust, James says (1:13-14). In that […]

The temptation of Christ

Among evangelicals, there are two ways of thinking about Christ and His temptation. No orthodox believer thinks that Christ sinned, but there is debate about whether he could have sinned. The view that Christ could have sinned is termed peccability (“able not to sin”) while the view that Christ could not have sinned is designated […]

Satan and temptation

The temptation of Jesus (Mt. 4:1-11) is often used as an illustration of how Satan attacks believers, or how believers should respond to Satan’s deceptive offerings, or how the Word of God is sufficient for every need, or how Christ is sympathetic to our temptations because He has endured every kind of temptation. All those […]

Founded on the gospel

I almost missed it. This morning, my Bible reading began in 2 Chronicles. And there, tucked into the account of the construction of the Temple in Israel was a little gem of grace that I just about skipped past. And then my rememberer worked. Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in […]

Resources for battling temptation

Though we regularly face temptation and though we sometimes succumb to temptation does not mean we are not in Christ or that Christ is not working in us. John Piper illustrates: Suppose you are in a car race and your enemy, who doesn’t want you to finish the race, throws mud on your windshield. The […]

Moore on temptation

At the conclusion of his book, Tempted and Tried, Russell Moore offers this statement about the “benefits” of temptation: I hope you recognize the satanic offers that come to you for self-directed provision or protection or exaltation. I hope you see how our Lord Jesus can intercede for you, how the Spirit can fight through […]

Sunday Leftovers (7/24/11)

Sin is evil. And temptation is the tool Satan uses to draw individuals into sin so that they are destroyed by it. He seeks to deceive and delude unbelievers so that they are prevented from seeing the light of the gospel. And he seeks to devour believers as their adversary. There is nothing inherently good […]

The power of the gospel

Of First Importance publishes a quote each day that relates to the power of the gospel. Here are a few recent ones that have particularly encouraged my heart: I never despair of anyone becoming a decided Christian, whatever he may have been in days gone by. I know how great the change is from death […]

Sunday Leftovers (5/29/11)

When attacked by Satan, we will be tempted to give up on God’s promises. Those realities that we know and have experienced about the sufficiency and ability of God will seem distant to us when the burdens of life are close. So in our hearts we will question God (though we likely would not do […]