The enemy wants to kill and destroy your life. There are many weapons he will use against you because of your faith and love for Jesus. John 10:10 says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.” In the life of every Christian, there are things that the devil targets and determines to rob you of. What many people don’t know or realize is that sin and temptation are two of the devil’s greatest tools to steal our peace and rob us of God’s blessings.
We all struggle with sin and temptation. Many Christians profess to trust God’s Will but when it comes down to letting go and letting God, they can’t and they slip deeper and deeper into a world of sin, temptation and brokenness. We know that God has a special plan and purpose for our lives, most of us don’t have trouble believing this, but the fear develops when we realize that His Will may not be the will we have for ourselves. When we’re afraid of His plan, we begin to doubt His Will for our lives and try to make decisions for ourselves that are out of line with God’s Will for us. We then must ask ourselves, how do we break free from the chains of sin and temptation and begin to trust God and His plan? We can begin by turning to the Bible. Here are six Bible verses to help you overcome sin and temptation:
1 Corinthians 10:12-13
First Corinthians 10:13 says, “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” There are a number of truths that we can pull from theses verses. First, we must always keep our guard up. If we think we are too strong to fall into sin and temptation, it will make us vulnerable. Next, there isn’t any temptation that we will face that others haven’t already experienced. Finally, we see that God will not allow any temptation to come our way that is too great for us to resist. We have the power to overcome it. Our Heavenly Father will always make a way for us to say no and the strength to overcome that sin and temptation. What an incredible promise this is!
Matthew 5:3
The enemy will do everything in his power to get you to focus your attention away from God. In a society where so many are driven by acquiring wealth, power and status, the Devil wants you to believe that obtaining these things will bring you happiness and completeness. This is completely false. Remember, what we acquire on earth is only temporary. God wants us to Seek Him first, and place our faith, hope and trust in Him. The Bible tells us “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). We must be humble in our spirits. When we come to God, it’s important that we acknowledge our own sin and our spiritual emptiness.
1 John 1:9
God is present come rain or shine. He is even present when we fail to realize it, when we sin and when we are tempted. It’s important that we turn our focus to God not only when we are hopeful, but also when we begin to lose hope. Many of us are quick to question God when things go wrong, but slow to honor Him when things go well. It’s so important that we confess our sins and trust in God’s forgiveness. First John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” When we focus our minds in the direction of God and proclaim His goodness, we reflect His glory.
James 4:7
The Devil wants you to believe he’s more powerful than God in hopes that you will lean on your own understanding, not God’s. He wants you to hear his voice, which manifests itself in the form of stress, confusion, addiction, even depression, instead of talking to God and trusting that all things are possible through Him. James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” God is right there to protect us from the enemy and his evil schemes. Don’t let him break you.
Galatians 5:16
An easy way to think of the Holy Spirit is God’s power in action, or an active force in our lives. Galatians 5:16 says, “If you are guided by the Spirit, you won’t obey your selfish desires.” Trusting in the Holy Spirit will lead us on straighter paths. We are also told in Micah 3:8 “But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, to Israel his sin,” and in Luke 1:35 “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” In these verses, we see that God sends out the Holy Spirit to accomplish His Will. It’s impossible to be a follower of God without being led by the Spirit.
James 1:12-15
“Happy are those who remain faithful under trials, because when they succeed in passing such a test, they will receive as their reward the life which God has promised to those who love him. If we are tempted by such trials, we must not say, “This temptation comes from God.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one. But we are tempted when we are drawn away and trapped by our own evil desires. Then our evil desires conceive and give birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
The enemy is sly and deceitful, with intentions of destroying you physically, mentally and emotionally. He will try to use sin and temptation as a weapon against you. But you have a greater weapon to use against Him and that is God! He is always able and we can always turn to Him in the face of any sin or temptation.
