Today, let’s talk about God’s promise to restore us should wefall into temptation and sin. The clearest example of this is, of course,Jesus’ promise to Peter: “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you,that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faithmay not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke22:31-32). This is in stark contrast to what happened earlier in the chapter:“Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of thetwelve” (Luke 22:3). From what Jesus said to Peter, we know that Satan couldnot have entered into Judas if Jesus prayed for him as He prayed for Peter.Looking at this, we can imagine Jesus saying, “Peter I loved, but Judas Ihated,” just as God said, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated” (Mal. 1:2).
Read MoreToday, let’s reflect on God’s promise of strength in temptation. Consider James 4:7: “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” “If we submit to God, He promises without question that He will give us the strength to resist the devil until he flees from us, not because of who we are but because we are part of the Lord’s army, and He enables us to stand firm in His power in the evil day (Eph. 6:10-11, 13)” (p. 100). A crucial part of submitting ourselves to the Lord is to trust in His promise and start resisting the devil instead of saying, “But….”
Read MoreToday, we begin a new topic: using God’s promises in times of temptation and sin. Temptation is an inevitable reality especially for Christians who have been redeemed from the dominion of sin and Satan. “…Satan fumes with rage at having lost his citizens. Like Pharaoh of Egypt, he will not sit idly by and watch his slaves walk away from his dominion. He therefore sets out with his vast and dark army in hot pursuit of us (Ex. 14:5-8)” (p. 93). “He tirelessly tempts us to sin, setting traps for our feet, lures for our hearts, sirens for our ears, and enticements for our eyes…” (p. 93). He is much stronger than we can ever be. But thankfully, we have the promises of God to help us in times of temptation and sin and preserve us through them all. But the authors first deal with three things about temptation we must understand.
Read MoreToday, let’s briefly consider God’s promise of wise and tender correction by our affliction. The authors say, “The Lord also promises to use our afflictions for our eternal good. This is because we undergo trials not as enemies of God, but as children of God through our saving relationship with Christ. To those without Christ, trials are but foretastes of the coming judgment, but to [us] who are in Christ, trials are mediated by God’s eternal grace and love. The Lord has promised our correction and spiritual benefits through our affliction. Keeping this in mind will help us face our troubles with the view of how we can profit from them rather than how long we have to suffer” (p. 80).
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