The Truth About Temptation

Why do we constantly have to fight the urge to do things we know we aren’t supposed to do? There are two beings telling us what to do, so who should we listen to?

Why is it that sometimes we want to drag people out of their cars and shake them, saying “Green means go!”? We know that is the wrong thing to do. What makes us want to take that second look with longing at that beautiful person or amazing gadget that doesn’t belong to us? We know that would be breaking the Tenth Commandment, which God gave to us for our benefit. So, basically, if we know we aren’t supposed to do it, then what (or who) makes us want to?

Satan, the tempter

In Matthew 4:1-3, we see that Satan the devil tempted Christ in the wilderness. In fact, Satan is also referred to as “the tempter.” James 1:13-14 further shows us that this subtle tempter even uses our own human desires against us: “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.”

These scriptures make it clear that God is not the one who tempts us to sin—to disobey commandments given to us by Him for our benefit. Rather, Satan is the inventor and master of temptation. The devil has been tempting mankind to disobey God’s beneficial commandments since the beginning of human history; and his methods, unfortunately, have proven effective.

Temptation methods that have lasted centuries

During the first recorded human temptation, Eve taking of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, Satan used methods that are still alive and well today. The account is found in Genesis 3:1-6, fittingly prefaced with “Now the serpent [referring to Satan] was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORDGod had made.” From this successful temptation, three general methods that have withstood the test of time can be seen:

1. Satan makes us want what we can’t have and forget the abundance we do have.

Satan remarks, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’” God had provided the most lush and enjoyable garden possible for Eve, filled with trees with delicious food on them. Satan slyly puts the idea into Eve’s head that she is entitled to all the trees in the garden. Today, people are encouraged by ads and society to ask themselves, “Why don’t I have that?” instead of, “Should I really have that?”

2. God cannot lie, but Satan is the father of all lying.

After Eve tells Satan about God’s command to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil upon penalty of death, he promptly retorts, “You will not surely die.” Though Adam and Eve did not die immediately upon eating the fruit, they did eventually die, proving Satan a liar. Lying about the consequences and effects of not obeying God’s beneficial commandments is clearly seen today. Just look at Hollywood: Beneath all the parties, glamour, movies, red carpets and “smiling happiness” lies a wasteland of broken relationships, drug addiction, overdose, suicide and the always overwhelming pressure to remain popular with audiences.

3. Satan only emphasizes the pleasure of sin, not the pain and consequence.

Finally, Satan reassures Eve with, “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” As enticing as being like God and having full knowledge of good and evil was, Satan somehow forgot to mention that taking the fruit would result in Eve being kicked out of the garden, a loss of innocence and eventually death. The same is true today. The idea of sinning or indulging in a lust is pleasurable and emphasized, but not the consequences of things like sexually transmitted diseases, jail time or alienation from people you love.

So, what can we do against a tempter who has fine-crafted his art for thousands of years? Hebrews 2:18 gives us the answer: “For in that He Himself [referring to Jesus Christ, who was God in the flesh] has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.” So, in short, to fight the tempter we must listen to and ask for help from God, the One who knows what we are going through and reveals to us the truth about temptation from His Word, the Bible.

Eddie Foster, a school speech-language pathologist, and his wife are members of the Cincinnati/Dayton, Ohio, congregation of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association.