The Gospel should only be presented to us with sincerity of heart, authority of Christ and the fear of the Lord. We must remain vigilant in defending our exposed places before the enemy exploits them. We all have needs but the Bible assures us that God will meet all of them according to His riches in Christ Jesus. The scheme of the enemy is to supplant God in our lives to meet those needs. His plan has always been to usurp God. But he has been a liar from the beginning and we need to be aware of his lies and the promises of God that counter them.
This brings us to our key verses for today. There are several truths we need to remember in our walks. The first one is to never think we have "arrived." Thinking that we are standing strong doesn't mean the devil will not find an area to attack. David was standing pretty strong when he sinned with Bathsheba. Peter had just correctly answered that Jesus was the Christ when he found himself rebuking Him for daring to say he had to go to the cross. Arrival is always in our mind only and always a fertile playground for pride and the schemes of the enemy.
Secondly, God assures us that what we are going through is normal. So normal that He says everyone goes through it. No one is exempt from temptations, regardless of how spiritual they may seem. Remember, the higher up someone goes in ministry, the more they need our prayers because the more the enemy will tempt them to fall. We see this play out nearly every month with one mega church pastor after another falling into sin. Thirdly however -- God is faithful! Hallelujah! When we are unfaithful, He remains true to who He is and what He has promised us. He does not shift with the wind beloved:
G od is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through? Numbers 23: 19 (NLT)
Fourth, whatever we are going through it will never exceed what we are able to bear. It may not feel like it when we are in the middle of it but God is assuring us here that if we handle things correctly -- we will be able to stand. We will be able to resist the devil and he will have to flee from us! This leaves us with the last promise from the key verses -- God will show us a way out of the temptation so that we can endure! Does this mean that God will magically show us an escape hatch from our pride or lust, or carnal desires in this world? Yes -- He already has. The Word of God is our answer to every temptation the devil can possibly throw at us. How do we know this? Because it was the answer Jesus used when He was being tempted:
Jesus answered, "It is written: "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" -- Matthew 4: 4 (NIV)
Jesus answered him, "It is also written: "Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" -- Matthew 4: 7 (NIV)
Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: "Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" -- Matthew 4: 10 (NIV)
