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Moments of temptation happen to all of us. Evil approaches, makes an ask, and we respond with a “yes” or “no.”
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7, ESV).
A week ago in the Philippines, I stood outside my hotel early in the morning, about to go on my daily walk.
While stretching, the security guard came out of the lobby and asked, “Are you here by yourself?” … (pause) … “In the Philippines, there are many beautiful women.” Quickly, I responded, “I love my wife, and I’m not interested in other women.”
The guard replied, “So sorry!” and quickly disappeared back into the hotel lobby. As he walked away, I thought, “Live a life submitted to God, resist the devil, and he will walk quickly back into the hotel lobby.”
Despite the hotel guard’s opaque comment, I knew exactly what he was offering. But in my soul, there wasn’t a smidgeon of temptation. Why not?
I memorized Romans 13:14 when I was 19 years old. . .
Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires (Romans 13:14).
I’ve meditated on this verse most days for 50 years. It’s become a shield of faith that easily deflected the arrow of temptation from the hotel guard. He’d made this offer to other men, and probably some succumbed.
The Book of James teaches that receiving the Word implanted saves our soul (James 1:21), and Bible verses inspired by the Spirit connect our flesh to the freeing power of truth. The more we memorize, and the more we meditate, the more we empower our spirit to extinguish fiery darts.
During my walk after the hotel incident, I thought about my wife Barbara and thanked God for Romans 13:14!
Scenarios of — hotel guards, porn on the internet, one more drink, no one will know, just this once, mostly telling the truth — all allow fiery darts to sink deeply. But memorized and meditated Scripture overturns temptation.
Think about it — that hotel guard skittered back into his lobby lair from a few words of truth.
Moments of temptation spring upon us without warning. Suddenly, it’s there, and we respond with a “yes” or a “no.” Hopefully, with little hesitation, we say “no” and walk on with our daily business. Or we say “yes” and lament afterward, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it. Will you forgive me?”
The difference? Our depth in the Word of God.
Note: While I was traveling, my wife celebrated a significant birthday. Unfortunately, I was on a plane that entire day, so I asked some Filipino friends to send her a greeting. Click here to see what they sent to her.