The Nature of Temptation

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, 'If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.' But he answered, 'It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.' Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, 'If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.' Jesus said to him, 'Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.' Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, 'All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.' Then Jesus said to him, 'Be gone, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.' Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him" (Matthew 4:1-11). Every believer is born again into spiritual conflict which will last his or her life time. This is why we must be aware of the wiles (schemes) of our common enemy. In the account of the first temptation of Jesus we learn that Satan tempts our Lord to carry out his mission in an unfaithful manner by using the powers that He had voluntarily set aside by becoming a man. The temptation sequence was real and not a vision. This temptation takes place immediately after Jesus' baptism and the declaration that He is God's Son. Satan wants Jesus to test (or prove) that declaration.The first temptation is for Jesus to trust Himself rather than God the Father to meet His physical needs. Every believer will be like wise tempted. When times of financial hardship come we must trust the Lord for His provision. Faith is living without scheming. The second temptation is for Jesus to "force" God to save Him. Jesus was wise enough to not put Himself in a place where He was tempting God. This applies to how we drive, how we care for our health needs, and how we use wisdom in protecting our lives. The Devil is the god of recklessness.The third temptation is for Jesus to avoid the cross (note Peters request Matthew 16:22-23). Many times the enemy will tempt us to avoid a painful change in our lives in order to build a better relationship with our mate. He may temp us to cheat (taxes comes to mind) in some way to avoid making financial sacrifice. To every temptation, Jesus responded, not by performing a counter miracle or showing a counter sign, but simply by quoting a relevant passage from the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy. We can clearly see that Jesus had enough of God's Word memorized to refute and protect Himself against Satan's best temptations. In the third temptation, Satan essentially claims the world as his dominion (Luke 4:6). This statement by Satan is neither affirmed or denied by the Lord Jesus. It could a statement not worth commenting on. In tempting Christ, Satan shows Him the kingdoms of the world in their splendor, but, as a liar, hides the sin that would be involved in gaining the kingdom Satan's way. Often Satan will, in type, present an old harlot dressed in a new gown. The evil one sugar coats sin in such a way that one cannot see beyond the "pleasure for a season." He does his best to make us forget" the wages of sin are death. "Satan's power and abilities are evident in that no earthly mountain would have been high enough for him to have shown Jesus the whole world in an instant. Having failed, Satan leaves Jesus, waiting for a more opportune time. This does not mean that he gives up all activity until a much later time. It simply means that he does not give up for good and that he is always looking for the right time to try again. We must be careful to think that that after we win one victory Satan will call off his hounds of hell. After the temptations, angels come and 'minister' to Jesus with food and comfort. Note the sequence 1. Jesus is hungry. 2. Satan's fulfillment is offered and refused. 3 God provides Jesus' needs through angels. 4.Jesus' victory over Satan at this time gives the foundation for His authority over demons in the rest of His ministry. We must be careful to avoid the trap of thinking that Satan's strategies do not change over the course of time and from culture to culture. With that warning in mind, the parallels in the two temptations are worth pointing out. Garden of Eden: 1. Question the content of God command. "Did God really say,"2. Reject the command itself. "You will not die."3. Get Eve to believe that Satan is the one who is really concerned for her. Jesus' Temptation: 1. Trust Himself rather than God to meet His needs. "Turn these rocks into stones."2. To "force" God to save Him. "Jump off the pinnacle of the temple and the angels will catch you."3. To avoid the necessity of the cross. "I will give you the kingdoms of the earth."Common to both: 1. Appeal to physical senses before spiritual ones.2. Twisting God's words.3. Questioning the character of God (testing Him)4. Offering a shortcut. 5. Goal: to break relationships.6. Theater: the mind. As we walk through life, we will be in many ways like wise tempted. We must know enough of the Word to combat the lies of the enemy. The power of Satan is in the lie. Spiritual warfare is confronting the Devil's lies with God's truth. God's Truth will trump Satan's lie every time. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Where The Spirit Leads

"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil" (Matt 4:1-2). Would our heavenly Father ever allow one of His children to be tempted by the Evil One? After Jesus experienced John's baptism he was lead by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, for the purpose of being tempted by the Devil. Jesus was being tempted as a man, not as God. Jesus came to earth as a man to live His life with the same limitations that you and I have. Satan tempted Jesus to use His divine power as God to satisfy His human hunger. This seems to be Jesus' first real test as a human being. Some people think God would never lead His people into the desert to be tested. Some would even say this is the devil's doing. The fact is, both statements are true. God actually uses Satan to test His servants to help develop patience and obedience in their lives. One purpose of the testing was for Jesus to tap into the power of the Holy Spirit, just like we must do in order to have victory over temptation. This would be true for the rest of His life. Every miracle He performed was done by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Jesus said we would do even greater (in number) works than He did because we are indwelt with the same Holy Spirit and we have the same access through prayer to the Father as He did. God led the people of Israel into the desert to learn something about themselves. They learned about their level of obedience when life became difficult. "Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands" (Deut 8:2). When God leads you into the desert, He is allowing you to learn something about yourself. We all need to learn how we will respond to temptations in our lives. As we draw closer to God during these times the roots of our faith are forced deeper and deeper into the soil of His grace. Jesus went into the Desert, in the fullness of the Spirit, He came out of the Desert in the Power of the Spirit. Do not fear being led into the desert. The desert can be a real faith builder. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Know Your Enemy

Isaiah 14:13-14 "For you have said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God, I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the side of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High." The enemy said he would ascent into heaven, to take charge. He said he would exalt his throne above the stars of God to rule over all creation in God's place. He would sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north to lead in all worship services that were meant to worship God. He would ascend above the heights of the clouds to break into God's most private secret haven. And he would be like the most High, to drive God out and take His place. The enemy still fights against God by doing battle with God's children. "We wrestle not against flesh and blood." We must know his ways and be on guard. We are never so much like the enemy as when pride rules in our hearts. The cure for pride is worship. Pride focuses on self; worship puts the focus on Christ, (John 4:23). There is the pride of self will, the pride of self effort and the pride of self glory. The answer "Nebuchadnezzar lifted his eyes unto heaven and his understanding returned" (Daniel 4:34). Look to Jesus and give yourself to Him. Jesus came to "Heal the broken hearted and set the captive free." God does not deliver us for our sake but for His sake. He frees us so we can fulfill His purpose, ( Isaiah 61:1-4). Many Christians battle with a spirit of fainting. In Christ we obtain comfort for mourning, garland for ashes, gladness for sorrow, the mantle of praise and thanksgiving instead of weariness and heaviness. Freedom comes through brokenness, repentance, humility and trust. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

A Study in Humility

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:11-12). Notice Jesus didn't say "Blessed are those," but "Blessed are you." Jesus takes His teaching on non retaliation to its logical outcome. Not only should we not strike back, but we are to rejoice when we are persecuted. Wow you might say, how do we do that? Well, our trust in God's promise of reward comes into play. The prophets suffered likewise (II Chron. 36:15-16). For you see our role as a disciple of Jesus Christ is greater than that of an Old Testament prophet. I can almost hear you saying lets have some proof of that. All right, take out your Bibles and look up Matthew 10:41-42; 23:34 and 11:9, 11, 13:17 and see for yourself. Thus we can identify with prophetic leaders like Jeremiah, Isaiah and Ezekiel. Here is why we are given a greater honor than being prophets; God summons us to bear the name of His Son the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 11:27; 20:28). Please note the characteristics of our Savior, He is lowly in heart, mourns over the unrepentant, shows mercy and He is a peacemaker. How much more so must be His disciples who are to imitate His ways. A Christian is a little Christ. Contrast the attitude of a real disciple to those in the world who receive honor among men. I recently heard a pastor say "The church is like an old prize fighter who has lost his punch." We lose our punch when we stop being like Jesus. Our Lord told us "The greatest among you is servant of all." In the Christian life the way up is down. We are told to learn from Jesus who is "Meek and humble of heart." We are never so much like the devil as when we are proud. We learn from James to "Humble ourselves under the mightily hand of God and He will lift us up." We are taught by Peter that "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." This could be a good time to learn a lesson in humility, its a requirement for discipleship. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

The Reality of Spiritual Warfare

I have watched trends in Evangelical Christianity for the last 40 years. The Church from the time of Christ seemed to have been aware of an active enemy who sought to destroy the work of God. Satan is the "Thief who comes but to kill, steal and destroy." Numerous books have been published that alert the church to the enemies schemes and instructed believers in the battle. It seems to me that in the last few years many ministries have turned away from teaching about the enemy. I have numerous friends who serve in Scriptural Warfare ministries, they all tell me the church has become cool toward the subject of warfare. Some of this undoubtedly comes from a abuse of warfare teaching and extremest in the body of Christ. However, their abuse is not an excuse for our non practice of Biblical truth. I believe this gives the enemy a tremendous advantage in very troublesome times. Lets examine a few passages that deal with our common enemy. Paul said "In your anger do not sin: do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold' (Ephesians 4:26-27). The word "Foothold" literally means "Place." Paul is saying that it is possible for us to allow the devil a place in our lives if we fail to speak the truth in love or fail to be emotionally honest. Anger that leads to bitterness and spiritual ineffectiveness is an open invitation to demonic influence (see II Corinthians 2:10-11). It is a critical need that each believer understand their vulnerability to demonic influence so they may have an adequate Biblical answer should they fall victim to "The Fowler's snare" (Psalm 91:3) or "The devil's trap" (I Timothy 3:7). Satan may well outwit us if we are "Unaware of his schemes" (II Corinthians 2:11). Spiritual believers don't grow out of coming under spiritual attack. As we grow in the Lord the enemies' attacks may well increase. Anyone who is doing damage to the devil's kingdom will feel his wrath. When we come under attack we must have the discernment to understand the nature of our attack. If we blame God, our confidence in Him will be shattered, and we won't submit to Him and resist the devil. I believe the Biblical balance in warfare is to gaze on Jesus and on occasion glance at the enemy. This is a good time for a glance. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

When God Takes the initiative

"Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil" (Job I:8). Please notice it is God who brings up Jobs' name to Satan. The Lord takes the initiative knowing well the events that would transpire. The Lord calls Job His servant, Job was a godly man and a good servant. The Lord is honoring Job, pointing out the the evil one that there is no one like Job on the earth. Without a doubt He is contrasting the misery of the evil angel who so dishonorably fell with the joyful life of His servant Job. Our Lord was saying "You are the very opposite of Job." The joy of the Lord in the lives of His saints bring shame and torment to the evil hosts of hell. He asked Satan where he had been. The evil one answers "Walking back and forth on the earth." He failed to add "Seeking whom he could devour." Satan can boast but he can never triumph, for after Calvary he is a defeated foe. The evil one still walks the earth today,seeking to destroy that which is holy and good. He and a hoard of demons seek to undo that which God is doing in His Kingdom. The only thing that the adversary could come against Job with was a trumpeted up charge of hypocrisy. He says Job is a mercenary, that he only served the Lord for the blessings he received from Him. Satan asked "Does Job fear God for nothing"? The truth is no man can serve both God and mammon. Should Job have served God for the mammon he received, in time his heart would have turned to the mammon. The Psalmist wrote "When riches increase set not your heart upon them." Living an upright life does not mean you will escape the attack of the devil. Holy living can make you his target. He had been checking out Job, but God had placed a hedge around him and Satan couldn't touch him. God in His great wisdom may allow the enemy to attack us to fulfill His purposes. Paul had a thorn in the flesh, Peter was told "Satan will sift you." Job came under horrible attack from the evil one. The early church came under demonic attacks in the form of persecution. The truth is Satan is under God's control. He can do nothing without the Lord's permission. Satan, in essence obeys God. Many believers when under attack, gripe, complain, lay down and give up. James says this we are to "Draw close to God, resist the devil and he will flee from us." He will run like a scared rabbit when we are snuggled up to Jesus. How do we live through times of enemy activity in our lives. By staying close to the Lord, using the Scriptures, trusting the Lord and doing right. Oh by the way, when you are going through a difficult period of life you can count on three of Job's friends to pitch their tents in your back yard. Just as in the case of Job they have come to "Help" you. Their pithy one liners will add to your torment, hang in there this also works into the plan of God. Their time of growth is coming, they will experience their own three friends. Suffering, its part of the Christian life. Victory, its just around the corner because in Christ we are more than conquerors. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Spiritual Warfare and Temptation

Have you ever prayed the Lord's Prayer and stumbled over the words "And lead us not into temptation." Did you asked yourself, would the Lord lead a believer into temptation? We can ask Peter about that, he was told by the Lord that he would be tempted and he would fail. Peter could not imagine himself denying the Lord. After all he was the guy who thumped his chest and said "Though all men deny you, I will never deny you." He like we should be careful of making such statements, they could be famous last words. We know that Peter did fail the test and the Lord. However the Lord did not fail Peter. Peter repented and went on to preach the sermon at Pentecost in which he said to his audience "The Lord whom you have denied." When the Israelites went into the promised land there were Canaanites in the land. Concerning these Canaanites the Lord said "They were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord's commands, which He had given their forefathers through Moses" Judges 3:4. God's purpose in the test is to strength us. We really don't know if we will cling to the Lord in trust or if we will fail when the test comes. When our Lord wants to develop character in our lives He will often cast us into the midst of a trail. The trail will always reveal our character and when we respond to the trail in a godly way it will strength our faith. The test passed will move truth from our head to our heart. Even when we fail we can fail forward, Peter did, he learned from his trail and failure. King David committed adultery and murder, he certainly failed and fell. However upon his repentance he wrote many Psalms attesting to the faithfulness of the Lord. Martin Luther said it takes three things to make a minister of the Gospel. 1. Prayer. 2. Meditation. 3. Temptation. How is it that James could write "Brothers consider it pure joy when you fall into many temptations." James 1:2. Because the writer got a glimpse of the fruit that was coming from the temptations. Later in the passages he states the temptations would produce patience and maturity. Our Lord never allows us to be tempted beyond that which we can bear. Why? Because He goes through the trial with us. He enters into our suffering and we enter into His. That is why we can agree with the Scripture that states "That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable to His death." Philippians 3:10. What about trails and temptations? Do we really see God in the middle of them. Are we like the three men in the fiery finance of old, the Son of God was in the furnace with them. All they lost was the ropes that bound them. The men who threw them into the fire lost their lives. We must get God's perspective on temptation, He is there with us in the middle of the temptation. Temptation calls us to a new level of trust. In faith we cry out to the only One who can deliver us. How are you handling your temptations today.

A Fresh look at Spiritual Warfare

Please read Matthew 4:1-11. Every believer is born again into spiritual conflict which will last his or her life time. This is why we must be aware of the wiles (schemes) of our common enemy. In the account of the first temptation of Jesus we learn that Satan tempts our Lord to carry out his mission in an unfaithful manner by using the powers that He had voluntarily set aside by becoming a man. The temptation sequence was real and not a vision. This temptation takes place immediately after Jesus' baptism and the declaration that He is God's Son. Satan wants Jesus to test (or prove) that declaration. The first temptation is for Jesus to trust Himself rather than God the Father to meet His physical needs. Every believer will be like wise tempted. When times of financial hardship come we must trust the Lord for His provision. Faith is living without scheming. The second temptation is for Jesus to "force" God to save Him. Jesus was wise enough to not put Himself in a place where He was tempting God. This applies to how we drive, how we care of our health needs, and how we use wisdom in protecting our lives. The Devil is the god of recklessness. The third temptation is for Jesus to avoid the cross (note Peters request Matthew 16:22-23). Many times the enemy will tempt us to avoid a painful change in our lives in order to build a better relationship with our mate. He may temp us to cheat (taxes comes to mind) in some way to avoid making financial sacrifice. To every temptation, Jesus responded, not by performing a counter miracle or showing a counter sign, but simply by quoting a relevant passage from the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy. We can clearly see that Jesus had enough of God's Word memorized to refute and protect Himself against Satan's best temptations. In the third temptation, Satan essentially claims the world as his dominion (Luke 4:6). This statement by Satan is neither affirmed or denied by the the Lord Jesus. It could a statement not worth commenting on. In tempting Christ, Satan shows Him the kingdoms of the world in their splendor, but, as a liar, hides their sin. Often Satan will, in type, present an old harlot dressed in a new gown. The evil one sugar coats sin in such a way that one cannot see beyond the "pleasure for a season." He does his best to make us forget "the wages of sin are death." Satan's power and abilities are evident in that no earthly mountain would have been high enough for him to have shown Jesus the whole world in an instant. Having failed, Satan leaves Jesus, waiting for a more opportune time. This does not mean that he gives up all activity until a much later time. It simply means that he does not give up for good and that he is always looking for the right time to try again. We must be careful to think that that after we win one victory Satan will call off his hounds of hell. After the temptations, angels come and 'minister' to Jesus with food and comfort. Note the sequence 1. Jesus is hungry. 2. Satan's fulfillment is offered and refused. 3 God provides Jesus' needs through angels. 4. Jesus' victory over Satan at this time gives the foundation for His authority over demons in the rest of His ministry. We must be careful to avoid the trap of thinking that Satan's strategies do not change over the course of time and from culture to culture. With that warning in mind, the parallels in the two temptations are worth pointing out. Garden of Eden: 1. Question the content of God command. "Did God really say," 2. Reject the command itself. "You will not die." 3. Get Eve to believe that Satan is the one who is really concerned for her. Jesus' Temptation: 1. Trust Himself rather than God to meet His needs. "Turn these rocks into stones." 2. To "force" God to save Him. "Jump off the pinnacle of the temple and the angels will catch you." 3. To avoid the necessity of the cross. "I will give you the kingdoms of the earth." Common to both: 1. Appeal to physical senses before spiritual ones. 2. Twisting God's words. 3. Questioning the character of God (testing Him) 4. Offering a shortcut. 5. Goal: to break relationships. 6. Theater: the mind. As we walk through life, we will be in many ways like wise tempted. We must know enough of the Word to combat the lies of the enemy. The power of Satan is in the lie. Spiritual warfare is confronting the Devil's lies with God's truth. God's Truth will trump Satan's lie every time.