Science of Temptation

Victory is not about resisting temptation until we build enough spiritual muscle to beat it in an arm wrestle.
Victory is about unraveling temptation before it starts.

Let's back up.

Satan deceived angels not by leading them to concede to the viability of evil, but by offering them a counterfeit good.

He entered the garden, and offered Eve freedom when she was already free.

He offers us love, [insert: happiness, peace, fulfillment...] when in fact, we are already loved.

The fundamental principle of evil is calling into question the sufficiency of the genuine.


That's the great controversy in one sentence.
And that's the science of temptation.
First, causing you to question the real, then offering a supposedly viable alternative.

That is why faith makes us righteous, (ever heard of Righteousness by Faith?) and free.

When the child of God believes that all the promises are "Yes, and Amen!"
When he believes that every word of God is creative-- just as creative as "Let there be light."
And that the promises are not stored in Heaven for our aid someday, but are already in our pockets...
Already acting in the lives of those who believe them...

Then the very fundamental principle of temptation is shattered.
Temptation is neutralized before it gets off of the ground...
Unraveled like a rotting sweater.

When we believe (with our hearts, not just our heads) that the promise is all sufficient,
Temptation suddenly becomes utterly insufficient.

You have a billion dollars in your pocket. Why are you falling for the enemy's penny?

Only because you think you're poor.

Read part 2 here.