Combating Sin and Temptation

Read Luke 4:1-13

Here’s a temptation story from “A Treasury of Jewish Folklore.” 

The Evil Spirit once came dejected before God and wailed, "Almighty God -- I want you to know that I am bored -- bored to tears! I go around doing nothing all day long. There isn't a stitch of work for me to do!"  "I can't understand you," replied God. There's plenty of work to be done only you've got to have more initiative. Why don't you try to lead people into sin? That's your job!"  "Lead people into sin!" muttered the Evil Spirit contemptuously. "Why Lord, even before I can get a chance to say a blessed word to anyone he has already gone and sinned!"

Do you ever struggle with sin?  Yea, me neither.  Of course that’s a joke.  This story reminds us that it’s not always the Devil who makes us do it; we are quite capable of sin all on our own.  Which brings us to our text today.  Was Jesus capable of sin?  An interesting question considering that He was both fully God and fully human.  I’m going to suggest to you that during His time on earth He was indeed capable of sin.  Otherwise He wouldn’t have been fully human.  The simple fact that He was tempted should also signify He was capable of sinning, because if you’re not capable of sinning than you would never be tempted in the first place. 

Now back to us.  Our capacity to sin goes without question.  Or better put, it’s not a question of if, but of when.  So we would do well to follow Jesus’ example in today’s text.  He shows us two solid ways to combat sin and temptation.  The first way is found in the very first verse.  In verse one it says Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit.  Of all the gospel writers Luke places the most emphasis on the role of the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ ministry.  It should be comforting to know that’s the same Holy Spirit and the same power source that we have when we decide to give our lives over to God.  We won’t live a perfect life without sin as Jesus did, but the more we are open to the Holy Spirit’s leading the stronger we will be.  The second way Jesus shows us to combat sin and temptation is through knowledge of scripture.  As we see, with each temptation Jesus quotes back God’s word to the Tempter.  We must not only know God’s word, but take it to heart and follow His path.  Psalm 119:11 states; I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.  This implies not only having a head knowledge of God’s word, but a heart knowledge with the willingness to follow through. 

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank you for Your Holy Spirit’s presence.  Help me to live my life in a way so as not to quench it, using Your word as my guide.