Daily Devotional For Saturday, December 28, 2024

Romans 13:14 says this, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires” (CSB). Every single person battles some kind of temptation. For some it is spending, others eating, others something sensual or sexual, or anger/temper, judging others, betting and gambling, for others it is lying, stealing and killing. I am not trying to be exhaustive here, but to me the greatest temptation we all face is pride. To me,my own acronym for  PRIDE is: Personal Responsibility Ignored to Do Evil. 

Proverbs 4:14-15 states, “Keep off the path of the wicked; don’t proceed in the way of evil ones. (15) Avoid it; don’t travel on it. Turn away from it, and pass it by” (CSV). James 1:14 says,  “But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire” (CSB). We have only ourselves to blame when we give into any temptation and sin. 

Humans have been struggling with temptation since the earliest chapters of Genesis. Most people are not tempted by everything the world offers. But we are tempted in one or more areas, and each of us knows where we are the most vulnerable. I encourage you to limit your exposure to the things that tempt you. Establish barriers or protection to keep you from giving into temptation. This means you might need to consider some kind of accountability defense such as telling another person, or some app, and turning to the Lord when you feel vulnerable. 

Don’t leave it to chance; intentionally turn away from and avoid anything that will diminish your righteousness. Just don’t go there—physically or mentally. Don’t indulge your curiosity. Don’t crack open those doors to see what’s on the other side. Instead, clothe yourself with Jesus. Seek the Lord. Spend time thinking about Him. Cultivate new habits of prayer and Bible study. Carefully choose the media you consume. Be actively doing the work of the Kingdom. When you make the effort to be like Jesus, He will wrap you in such joy and purpose that you will have far less time to think about the temptations of the world.

Christian author and pastor John Ortberg writes this:

“Recently my wife and I went fly-fishing for the first time. Our guides told us that "to catch a fish you have to think like a fish." They said that to a fish life is about the maximum gratification of appetite at the minimum expenditure of energy. To a fish, life is "see a fly, want a fly, eat a fly." A rainbow trout never really reflects on where his life is headed. A girl carp rarely says to a boy carp, I don't feel you're as committed to our relationship as I am. I wonder, do you love me for me or just for my body? The fish are just a collection of appetites. A fish is a stomach, a mouth, and a pair of eyes.

While we were on the water, I was struck by how dumb the fish are. Hey, swallow this. It's not the real thing; it's just a lure. You'll think it will feed you, but it won't. It'll trap you. If you were to look closely, fish, you would see the hook. You'd know once you were hooked that it's just a matter of time before the enemy reels you in.

You'd think fish would wise up and notice the hook or see the line. You'd think fish would look around at all their fish friends who go for a lure and fly off into space and never return. But they don't. It is ironic. We say fish swim together in a school, but they never learn. Aren't you glad we're smarter?” (Source: John Ortberg, The Me I Want to Be, pp. 137-138).

We choose to give into temptation out of pride. We tend not to think that what sin we are about to commit is as bad or evil as someone else’s sin. And the reason we do this is we refuse to see sin as God does and we refuse to be grateful for what Jesus Christ did to pay for our evil sin. We are all guilty of PRIDE–personal responsibility ignored to do evil. 

Questions To Consider

1. When it comes to temptation and where you are vulnerable, what are those areas and how do you typically deal with them?
2. Do you have any safeguards or accountability established to keep you on the right path? If not, why? Not having safeguards or accountability is an issue of pride also. Why?
3. How is being more active in the Kingdom of God a great deterrent to sin and temptation?
4. John Ortberg says that fish swim in schools, but do not seem to learn. Are we any different? One of the ways we can learn is to look at the consequences our sin and temptations have caused to us and others around us. As you look at yours, what can you learn from them?
5. Do you in all honesty see sin as God does, especially your sin or do you tend to rationalize it, justify it and legitimize it? What would it take for you to start seeing your sin as God sees it?

Scripture To Mediate On: Galatians 6:7, “Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a person sows he will also reap” (CSB).

Prayer To Pray: “Heavenly Father, holy be Your name. Your Kingdom come and Your will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give me this day my daily bread. Forgive me my debts, as I forgive my debtors. Lead me not into temptation but deliver me from the evil one. For Yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forevermore. In Jesus’ name, Amen.” (Adapted, Matthew 6:8-13)

I love you Southside!--Pastor Kelly