"For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father, but is of the world."
1 John 2:16
My BSF lesson led me to an interesting train of thought this week. We were asked to read this verse in the light of Christ's temptation in the desert found in 3 of the gospels. I was quite surprised to see that Satan used these three same methods of temptation to try and get Jesus to stumble. I was also very surprised to read this in Genesis...
"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that is was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate."
Genesis 3:16
It really made me think about what drives us to make choices leading us into sin and further away from the Lord. We steal either to meet our physical needs or because we see something and desire it. We make moral and ethical exceptions to gain fame or to make a name for ourselves. Pretty much all I've done in my life has come down to these three things - wanting to meet my physical needs, wanting what I see because it is pleasing to my eyes and wanting to be someone important and special.
I'm so glad I had the chance to work on this study this week. Knowing that this method of temptation has been part of human nature from the beginning of time gives me a bit of relief. Sure, I still know that my heart naturally desires these earthly things, but this gives me the knowledge needed to spot temptation before I get myself into a hole of sin and repercussions. We can fully trust God to meet our physical needs despite our circumstances (Matthew 6:25-26). And taking what is pleasant to the eyes does not fulfill our hearts the way we imagine it would (Ecclesiastes 4:8). Of course, we all know that pride comes before a great fall (Proverbs 11:2.)
What actions do we take that are truly seperate from these selfish desires? I know I cannot name many, but I really do desire to have God say "Well done, good and faithfull servant." I am thankful for the Holy Spirit's work in making these verses so relevant to my life - I can only hope and pray that this will also encourage you to see where Satan is guiding you by your flesh and that you would find strength in His Word and Spirit to resist and find peace.
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