"Fear God, Love God, Serve God": Matthew 4:1

"TEMPTED"

"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil." (Matthew 4:1) It happened then; it happens now ... We all have been "Tempted!"

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable

to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have

one who has been tempted in every way, just as

we are--yet was without sin."

(Hebrews 4:15)

We have no excuse before Almighty God, because He's been there, done that! But, without sin! So, our excuses don't hold water; and the bottom line? If He could do it; we can do it ... without sin also. You say, "But, He was God in the flesh; He has more power than we do." Amen, but you brought up an excellent point ... "Power!" It is not within us, as human beings, to have power over anything; that is, if we have not "received" the power from God. But, the Lord Jesus Christ died to give us the power over sin, sickness, disease, and all manner of evil, through His Spirit! When we have been filled with His Spirit, the Holy Ghost and fire; we become overcomers, winners, and we have the impetus within us to live pure holy lives. Without the Holy Ghost, we "have not" the power to resist!

"But each one is tempted when, by his

own evil desire, he is dragged away and

enticed."

(James 1:14)

O, Samson; you're playing with fire! You remember the story; Delilah accepted money from the Philistines to "entice" Samson to give her the secret of his power and strength, and over and over he gave her fake stories. He would fall asleep on her lap, and suddenly she would shout, "The Philistines are upon you!" He then awoke to a gang thralling him with those expose's of what would take away his strength. Samson, having the Nazirite vow from birth, was set apart unto God. Part of the vow was that his hair was never to be cut and herein was the secret of his extraordinary strength.

It's amazing to me that Samson kept playing the game with Delilah, and the Philistines came in repeatedly to attack him after he supposedly told her the secret. Why didn't he realize she was in collaboration with the Philistines? Maybe he did, but was "enjoying" the game! Finally, Delilah, wore down fun-loving, cruisin' for a bruisin', play with fire and ya gonna' get burned, Samson. He told her the truth; if a razor were put to his head, he would lose his strength and be like any other man! You know the end; she told the Philistines; they attacked and shaved the seven braids of his hair ... Samson's strength left; they gouged out his eyes, put him in a Gaza prison, and to work at hard labor grinding grain like an oxen. The moral of the story ... Don't "play" with Delilah!

Samson was now humbled and wise to "games." He prayed to God and God answered Samson; his hair grew back and he killed more enemies in his death than in his life.

Samson's mission from birth was to deliver Israel from the Philistines. (Judges 13:5) About .Com.Christianity says it perfectly, "Samson is just like you and me when we give ourselves over to sin. In this state, we can easily be deceived because the truth becomes impossible to see."

"Then the devil taketh him up into the holy

city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the

temple, and saith unto him, If thou be the

Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is

written, He shall give His angels charge

concerning thee ..."

(Matthew 4:5-6)

How did Jesus Christ fight temptation? He replied to satan in the above scripture, "It is written again, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." Jesus said "again," because satan had tempted him twice now and would tempt him once again. Jesus Christ our Lord fought temptation by quoting the Word of God!

We must "know" the Word of God, the Holy Bible, in order for it to come to our minds in tempting situations! The Holy God-breathed Word will not come to us when we are in dire straits if we have not read it, or heard it. "Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee." (Psalm 119:11)

"The law of his God is in his heart;

his feet do not slip"

(Psalm 37:31)

The good news is that "if we have slipped;" the Lord is faithful and just to forgive us. We need only ask ... Lord Jesus, forgive me of all of my sins; cleanse me of all unrighteousness; fill me with Your Spirit that I might not sin against You; I will be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of my sins. Help me to live a life pleasing to You. I will turn around and walk another way; I will turn my back on sin and evil. Thank You for dying for me, for loving me, and for leading me in the paths of righteousness for Your name's sake. Amen and Amen !

The Answer to this: