[Richard Kennebeck] I have a brother who lives in Texas, he's got a dog named Bo. Now several years ago, he trained Bo to resist and overcome temptation. You might think that's quite a feat, I mean that's pretty hard even for us humans to do; it's brilliant I think, to be able to teach a dog how to overcome temptation. But you know really, I don't think he completely overcame temptation, he still chased cats and dogs...or cats and cars, and still chewed on the furniture and the like, so, but he was able to overcome one temptation. You see, my brother...he put a favorite treat on top of Bo's nose, and he'd say, wait for it...wait for it, and Bo really wanted to eat that treat. He could almost taste it...he could smell it right up there on his nose. His mouth was just dripping with anticipation. The temptation was just about too much for him. He would just sit there and look at his master, he couldn't even look at the treat, it was so much a temptation. He wanted to just grab it and not wait for his master's OK. And my brother would just say, wait for it...wait for it, and then finally he'd give the command and, in less than a blink of an eye, that was gone.

You know, that was a really powerful temptation to that dog to ignore his master's command, his master's wish and eat that biscuit that was up on top of his nose. But you know, that dog learned over time that if you waited for it, that you got the treat, you got the reward. And if you didn't wait for it, well then you got a smaller reward and fewer rewards over time. So he learned over time that if he waited for it, he'd get some nice treats.

You know, how many of you were tempted maybe this morning to sleep in, or tempted maybe to have that second doughnut or danish at breakfast or you know maybe that third cup of coffee, which I sometimes have on Sabbath morning, cause it's so enjoyable, and then I have the jitters for the rest of the day.

You know, temptation is all around us. You don't need to go looking for it. It's right there...it's right in your face. It seems to smack us in the face all the time. It's just a fact of human existence.

The dictionary defines temptation as the act of tempting or the state of being tempted. To tempt is defined as to put to trial, to test or to try...that's one of its definitions. But there's another definition which we often think of temptation as, and that's tend to persuade, especially to evil, or to entice. That's the definition we often think about when we think of temptation.

So today, I'd like to take a look at temptation in that viewpoint. In, you know, the negative experience of temptation...the one that tries to pull us Christians down, rather than up. The one device that Satan uses against us Christians to try to make us sin. You know, when you go through temptation you need to realize that it's not, whatever temptation you're going through, it's not something that's unique to you. That humankind's been probably going through that same temptation for all of the time humans have been on this earth. The Bible's filled with Christians who went through temptations, many of which overcame it with God's help, some of which did not overcome it properly. But you know, God promises us that we can overcome temptations. It's easy to forget this when we're in the midst of a temptation, when we're in the heat of the moment, that we're told that God will help us through our temptations. You know, you may hold in your lap the book, the Bible, that's really just a history book, in many ways, of temptations of people that went through temptations, the struggles of men and women, some who were consumed like Samson, and some who stood firm and faithful, like Joseph.

We're going to turn to the book of James. When James wrote the epistle of James, he was writing to the scattered 12 tribes of Israel, scattered throughout much of the known world at that time, and in the first chapter of James he writes about trials and temptations...encouraging these scattered 12 tribes.

In verse 12 he begins talking about temptation and how temptation can lead to sin and eventually spiritual death. Verse 12 begins by encouraging us when we go through temptation. James reminds us about the future that we have as Christians, the wonderful promises that are in sight if we hold strong and keep our eyes and seek the Kingdom of God. Verse 12 of James 1, it says:

James 1:12 – Blessed...or happy...is the man who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

We all have a crown of life that's just waiting for us...that God has waiting for us, and God doesn't lie, He cannot lie. Those promises He'll keep. And we'll be blessed if we endure temptation. We have a promise of kingship, of priesthood in the future, living in a time of peace and prosperity. A wonderful time. But in order to reach that goal, we must endure temptation. In verse 13 it says:

James 1:13 - “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted by God; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.”

We can't blame God when we go into temptation or where we come up against temptations, or the struggles we have in life...the various temptations we go through...we can't tempt Him, God doesn't tempt...or we can't blame Him...God doesn't tempt us. But as humans, we always try to put the blame off don't we? It's not our fault, we try to blame somebody else.

You know, that's what both Adam and Eve did when they ate of that fruit of the Tree of Good and Evil, the knowledge of good and evil. They didn't want to take the blame...the responsibility for their own actions...they wanted to pass it off onto something else, someone else. Eve, she blamed the serpent who deceived her. And you know, Adam actually blamed God! He blamed God.

In Genesis 3:12 – and we won't turn there, you can look at that, maybe at a later time. But God's talking to Adam and Eve in this passage, this area. And this is after Adam and Eve had eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and He's talking to them. And Adam didn't say, hey I was wrong, I blew this, please forgive me, you know I repent, it was my fault. No, he didn't own up to his sin. What he did, he blamed it on somebody else. The woman whom You gave...me, she gave me of the tree and I ate it. He wanted to pass it off. He wouldn't take responsibility for succumbing to the temptation. In effect, Adam was saying, God, it's Your fault, it's not mine. But we know God doesn't tempt us. And Eve, she said, oh, it was the serpent. It was the serpent.

And from the beginning of mankind, that's what we've been doing. We blame somebody else. We want to blame God, but we know God does not tempt. So we can't blame God for it, we have to look inwardly, inside ourselves, and towards Satan, for whom to blame.
You know, and as we read in James, we're going to find out that temptation follows an anticipated path. There's a temptation process. In verses 14 and 15 of James 1, we pointed out, or we find out that temptation is not an event, but it's a process. Temptation is not an event, it's a process, a process that each one of us is responsible for...what the outcome will be. So in verse 14 of James 1 we read:

James 1:14 - But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own...lusts and...desires, and enticed.

James gives us here the common pattern of temptations. Each one is tempted when...when? When he's dragged away by his own desires and enticed.

Now in this scripture, James is using a hunting and fishing illustration here. Dragged away or drawn away is the same...or is a fishing term. It's talking about providing a bait, providing a bait that entices the fish. And even the Greek word for enticed here comes from a fishing term. That fishing term, it comes...it's derived from, is bait, bait, as in...to bait a hook or set a trap with bait. And it implies to entice a victim into a moral trap or luring them through their own selfish impulses. You know, it doesn't take much of an imagination to see where this is going or what this principle is.

I haven't fished in quite a few years and I'm not a hunting person, but I think I understand this. You know, what is temptation like? Well, you take your hook, but you just take your line and throw it in the water? No, you bait that hook, because a hook by itself is not going to entice the fish. So you put on bait. And what kind of bait do you put on there? Well, you put the right kind of bait on for the fish you're fishing for. You just don't put any bait on it. Or you might even use something called a lure...a lure. I think that's quite an appropriate name for it, cause it's going to lure those fish to it. And then what do you do, you cast that line into the water, right into the spot where you know the fish are. And that worm's wiggling on the end of that hook, and what do you do when that line's cast in and that settles down a little bit, you give that line a jerk or two. You want that to wiggle a little bit. So those fish get the attention of that bait and/or and they see that bait and they get the attention. You know, and you may think, well, that's not fair, you know...what fish can resist that? Well, that's exactly what Satan does to us. He knows the bait to use for us, he knows the lure, he knows exactly how to handle that bait. You know, and eventually some fish down there can't resist just a nibble...just a nibble...just a little bit, but then what happens? He's hooked, and he's reeled in.

And that's what James is saying here. That's how Satan works, he throws the bait out, he makes it bob a little bit in front of you, he knows what bait you like, and he wants you to take just a nibble. But then you're hooked.

You know, and it never ceases to amaze me. How many of you have thrown your line in, caught this fish – aaah it's a catfish. Unhook it, throw it back in, throw it out there. Three casts later it's the same catfish! You know he didn't learn the first time, he didn't learn the second time, he just sometimes has to fish someplace else, cause he keeps coming after it. And if we're not careful, that's what we can do, over and over and over.

Temptation is another example of a fork in the road. You have to make your choice. Do you swim past the bait, or do you take a nibble? Do you swim past the bait, or do you take a nibble and get reeled in? Do you take the high road...do you take the low road? Do you take the wide and broad street, or do you take the narrow street that leads to life, and leads to a crown of glory? That's that first nibble you've got to watch for. That's the choice you have to make.

It would be a lot easier if we didn't have forks in the road, wouldn't it? It'd be a lot easier, but you know, those forks in the road are what builds our character. Those forks in the road are what makes us decide which direction we're going to go. To help us mature, to help us grow...that character that God wants us to have through all of eternity. It helps us build that crown that God has waiting for us in reserve for us.

Now let's go back to James 1 again, verse 14, and see what happens next. Verse 14, we read in this verse it says:

James 1:14 - But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived...we've been enticed by the bait, we've been hooked and we're being reeled in...Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

So we see from this verse that temptation leads to sin only when you yield to is and act upon it. And therefore, sin requires an action on your part.

You know, if we look at David's sin with Bathsheba, we can see this progression in it. You know first, he was up on his rooftop...walking on the rooftop...and he saw this beautiful woman. That by itself, isn't a sin, but what he did next drew him into that, and closer to sinning. He should have turned his head and walked away, but he didn't. Next, it appealed to the lust of the eyes. He had a chance here to turn away and walk away, but he didn't. Next, he inquired, who is she, who is she? That snare's beginning to entrap him. Then, he has Bathsheba brought to him. That snare's enticing him more and he's getting tangled deeper and deeper, and that led to sin. The original temptation, which he could have walked away from - he had a choice, led to adultery, deceit and murder. What began as a casual walk on a rooftop and probably a very warm evening, ended up with a grave sin. David had a chance to walk away, but he didn't. He could have gone another road, another route, but he didn't.

Temptation can knock on your door; that's not a sin; it's when you open that door and let it in that it becomes sin.

In Hebrews 4 verse 15 it says, talking about Christ:

Hebrews 4:15 – For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

That scripture shows that it's not temptation itself – is not sin. Christ was tempted, but He did not sin. He never gave in to the temptation.

You know, one promise that God has is that He will never tempt us beyond what we are able, and that, when we have a temptation, there's always a way of escape....there's always a path of escape.

Let's turn to 1 Corinthians 10. 1 Corinthians 10 verse 6, and read Paul's comments about this. In 1 Corinthians 10 Paul's talking about Israel of old as they journeyed for 40 years through the desert because of their disobedience. And during those 40 years they oftentimes went through temptation and failed, and it's an example to us, it's left behind as an example to us.

1 Corinthians 10:6 - Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted...talking about Israel. Vs. 7 - And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” Vs. 8 - Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; Vs. 9 - nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them...were...tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; Vs. 10 - nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. Vs. 11 - Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of  ages have come.

Israel was tempted, and they failed many times. Rather than resist in temptations, they fell underneath it, fell under those human sinful actions. But as we come down to verse 12 we see a wonderful promise:

1 Corinthians 10:12 - Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. Vs. 13 - No temptation has overtaken you except which is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make a way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

God is our partner during temptations. When we approach a temptation, He's there with us. He won't (1) let you be tempted beyond what you're able; and (2) He's already worked out a way for you to escape it. He already knows and has given you a path out of it.

So what I'd like to do in the rest of the sermon is take a look at an action plan for temptation. Four points of handling temptations...four strategies to help us overcome temptation, to win over it, to stand up against temptations.

The first strategy for overcoming temptation is to realize that temptation is all around us, so be vigilant. Realize that temptation is all around us, so be vigilant. Temptation is part of our natural life, and realizing that should be part of our natural life too, and we need to learn that that's a key to not fall under the power of temptation. 1 Peter 5:8 says:

1 Peter 5:8 - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour.

You know, Satan doesn't take a summer vacation, a winter holiday, a Labor Day holiday; he's constantly there, waiting to put temptation in front of us. He doesn't take a time out.

You know there's a story, an old story, about an eagle who on an early morning was flying above a stream, looking for something to eat. And he looked down in the stream and there was this small rodent that had...that was sitting on a block of ice that had broken away from the bank. And he looked at it and boy, that rodent was trapped, so he thought he'd fly down there, and he did. He flew down and this block of ice was floating down the river, and he got on that ice and that eagle began to eat the rodent. It was an easy meal. And it looked awfully good...awfully tempting, and as he ate the meal, he noticed that there was a waterfall coming towards him, and he thought, OK, I've got plenty of time to eat this, this...this rodent, so he ate and ate, and he says...at the last moment I can fly away. But you know, as he neared the end of that waterfall and where it was going to go over...it just began to tip over...and his mighty wings that he had were supposed to take him away from this; he hadn't realized that while he was eating that rodent, his feet had become fastened to the ice from the mist freezing over his feet. And he thought he could get away, but he couldn't. It had taken him down. He was sure that he had a handle on this whole thing...his wings would take him away, but he fell to his death because he had become overconfident.

So like that, we need to be vigilant, that we don't become overconfident...that we can handle anything, that we don't have to worry about temptation because we've become mature.

Proverbs 16:18 should be a warning to us. It says:

Proverbs 16:18 - Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

Don't fool yourself, don't become overconfident, thinking it won't happen to you. That's a recipe for disaster.

So strategy #1 is: Realize temptation is all around you, so be vigilant.

The second strategy is: Prepare yourself, prepare yourself. Prepare yourself through Bible study, prayer, meditation and other ways. Prepare yourself before temptation comes.

The apostle Paul said in Romans 6:14 that sin should not have dominion over you. You know, yet sometimes it feels that way. You know, we struggle against sin, we struggle against temptation. Sometimes it's overwhelming, sometimes we feel like we're losing the battle, but we need to ready ourselves, and that will help us to overcome these things and give us more confidence in God and in ourselves, to be able to do that.

An example of this is found in Job 31 verse 1, and I'll read it out of the NIV version, of readying yourself beforehand, because Job says something here that's really interesting. He said:

Job 31:1 – I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl, or at a young woman. Job readied himself in advance for wrong thoughts towards a woman. He said, I will not look wrongly towards a woman. So he prepared himself in advance. He got ready.

So what are some of the ways that we can prepare ourselves? Well, one is prayer. Prayer is a powerful thing, a life-changing thing. It brings us closer to God and it builds a good relationship, a closer relationship with God.

James tells us in James 5:16 that the effectual...the effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

Let's turn to Luke 22, verse 39 through 46, and read the powerful words that Jesus Christ had just shortly before He was taken away on the night of the Passover, or shortly after He was taken away, or before, I'm sorry. Luke 22:39-46. He's talking with His disciples in the Garden of Gethsemene, praying...He's praying to God the Father, for strength, cause He knows what He's going to be going through. Luke 22, verse 39, He says:

Luke 22:39-46 - Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. When He came to the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” This was the key that Christ says to them, pray that you will not enter into temptation. And He was withdrawn from them for about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and He prayed, saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” Christ is praying for strength here, cause He knows He's going to be going through a difficult time. And what happens? I think this is interesting next that happens. Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. So God gave even Jesus Christ strength during this time. Verse 44 - And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Verse 45 - When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. Then He said to them, “Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.” So twice here He tells His disciples that they need to pray, lest they fall into temptation.

Another way we can prepare ourselves is to know God's word. Know God's word. In Psalm 119 verse 11, we're told:

Psalm 119:11 - Thy word I have hid in my heart, that I might not sin against You.

And in Psalm 119 verse 105, we read:

Psalm 119:105 – Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light unto my path.

You know, God's word...if it's hidden inside us...we should be able to use to determine which path is the way out of temptation. That light should be a light to us...His word. And Jesus Christ used the word of God to fight off the temptations that Satan gave to Him when He tempted Christ three times; and we'll talk about that in just a few minutes.

Meditation is another way that we can overcome and prepare for temptation. You know, by meditation we can resolve and think through how we will handle temptation. We can look at it in advance and prepare a plan of action. We can prepare a plan of action before the temptation arrives, not during the temptation.

You know, as an illustration, I drove...or used to drive to work on this road, and every morning so often we'd find deer coming across the road or on the side of the road, and there was a stretch that was down a hill...very curvy...and I knew my reaction would be - if a deer jumped out in front of me, I would swerve, and if I swerved I might hit a car coming at me or I might go over the other embankment. So what I would do is in advance for awhile, I prepared my mind for that stretch of the road; if a deer jumps out don't swerve. So when I came to that point and a deer jumped out, I had/I hoped that I had worked on it enough myself that I would not swerve and put myself into a worse situation.

Colossians 3:2 says:

Colossians 3:2 - Set your mind on things above...set your mind on things above. If we keep those things above in our mind and in our hearts, temptations will be much easier to resist.

Another way to prepare is to limit your opportunities. Limit your opportunities. The idea here is to know your weaknesses. Know your weaknesses and remove sources that may cause you issues. Take whatever steps necessary to avoid the places, the people, the situations, maybe even the feelings that you find yourself in when you,or that leads you to temptation.

Proverbs 22:3 says:

Proverbs 22:3 - A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself, but the simple pass on and are punished.

We can foresee evil and walk around it, get away from it, hide from it in advance.

You know, there's a story about a man who is overweight, and one of the problems he had is that every morning on the way to work, he'd stop by this bakery shop and he'd get a couple of doughnuts, a couple of danishes. Oh, he loved it, but he thought, I'm going to stop this. I'm going to go on a diet. So what did he do? He decides what he should, “I'll take a different route to work, won't pass that bakery anymore.” So this works out great. He starts telling his people or his friends at work, you know, hey, this is working great. I'm losing weight, I'm not going by this bakery. It's helped me so much, and then, you know it's amazing, one day he walks into work and he's got a whole box of danishes. His fellow coworkers go, what happened? You've been so good for a whole month now. And he said, well you know, I woke up this morning and I just wasn't thinking well, and I just got going the same old way that I used to go, and you know, about a mile away from that bakery I realized that I was on...I was going the old way, and I thought, well you know, if God wants me to stop at this bakery, there will be a door/an open slot...parking space right in front of the front door. And that will be my sign. It'll be my second sign that I'm supposed to go to this bakery. So he says, you know, um, God gave me that sign, and on the eighth time around the block, I found an opening at the front door!

So, we shouldn't be going around the block eight times. We need to limit ourselves...take a side street; take a side street, bypass the bakery.

We also need to replace bad influences with good influences. Bad influences with good influences. Just think about who you spend your time with. Are they good influences on you or bad influences? Do you hang around people that are causing you to get into situations that cause temptation? If you do, you've got to be very careful. And it's best to just leave those situations and those influences.

Proverbs 13:20 says:

Proverbs 13:20 - He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.

You know, have you ever stood at the inside of a pool...somebody was on the side of the pool...you reached up to them and you pulled them in the water. That was pretty easy to do, you know, pretty easy to do.  Have you ever stood on the side of the pool and tried to pull somebody out of the water? It's a whole lot harder to do. It's much easier to pull somebody down than it is to pull somebody up. It's much easier to pull somebody down in life, into sin, than to lift them up. Look at your friends, are they trying to pull you down, or are they lifting you up? Are they happy staying with where they are, or do they want to grow? Replace poor examples with strong examples.

So the second strategy in overcoming temptation and fighting against it is to prepare yourself.

Now the third strategy for overcoming temptation is that we need to respond in a Godly manner. Respond in a Godly manner. Temptation is all around us, so we're vigilant; we've prepared by Bible study, prayer, meditation...we've worked out plans, you know, but there comes a time when temptation is there and we've got to put it all into place. You know, what do you do, how do you respond? We're all going to respond in one way or another. Temptation will beat us or we'll beat temptation.

When you're out with your friends and you've maybe had as much alcohol as you feel you should have, and they all order another round. What do you do? When your friends go out to a movie, your Mom told you you had to be home by such-and-such a time...they decide to go out to ice cream afterwards. What do you do? You just heard a good piece of juicy gossip, but you know you shouldn't be telling somebody that, or anybody else that. What do you do? How do you know, or how do you respond?

Remember Job that I talked about earlier? Job said in advance he had made a covenant that he would not look upon a woman wrongly. He had a plan and apparently, he processed that plan and used it whenever he came across that.

When you're confronted with temptations, practice those strategies that you've prepared in your Prepare Yourselves point in this. You know - your Bible study, your Bible, your prayer. Practice all those things...your plans of action.

So how do we...how do we fight against temptation? How do we respond? Well, there's a couple of ways we can respond that we see in the Bible. One way is to resist temptation. Resist temptation. Resist the devil.

In James 4:7 we read:

James 4:7 - Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

We're to resist the devil. And how do we do that, how do we resist the devil? Well, one way is by submitting to God, drawing close to God, and God will draw close to us. But there are also other things we can do to have Satan flee from us.

Ephesians 6 says that we're supposed to put on the whole armor of God. And parts of those armors are very important: the shield of faith, the breastplate of righteousness, and the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. All these are tools to fight temptation.

Jesus Christ confronted Satan early in His ministry. Satan gave Him three temptations. You can read about them later if you want to in Luke 4, but you know how Christ fought all those temptations? He used the word of the spirit. He used God's word to fight every single one of those temptations. You know, and if you read the end of that story, what does it say? It says, Satan departed from Him. Satan departed. Satan fled. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Hebrews 4:12 says:

Hebrews 4:12 - The word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing assunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

You know, that's one of the things we can use. Use the Bible, know the Bible well...use that as a tool.

And you know, another way that we can react towards temptation is to run like the wind. Run like the wind. You know, recognize there are times that we should resist, and then there are times that we shouldn't discuss with temptation why it's wrong or how it should change, we just need to run.

Every great general knows when they need to fight and go to battle, and when they need to retreat. Custer would have lived a lot longer had he known to have retreated, instead of going into battle.

You know, Sampson thought he was pretty strong...you know didn't he? Boy, he was a mighty man, he was tough, he was a macho man. How many did he kill with the jawbone of a donkey? Just ask Delilah how weak he was! Sampson should have run from Delilah. You know, instead of being like Sampson, we need to be like Joseph. When Potiphar's wife grabbed him what did Joseph do? He ran. He didn't talk to her, he ran. He even left his coat behind, which means, you know I take that as a sign that there are times we'll have to leave things behind when we flee temptation.

You know, the Bible tells us there are several things we need to flee expressedly.

1 Corinthians 10:14, it says we are to flee idolatry.

1 Corinthians 6:18, it says we're supposed to flee immorality.

1 Timothy 6:10, it says we're supposed to flee or withdraw from greed.

So the third strategy for overcoming temptation is to respond in a Godly manner, whether to be to actively resist or to flee.

Now the fourth and last strategy that I have...and there are many more. I'm sure that we can, if we study into it that we'd find. But the fourth strategy is to rise again. Rise again. As hard as it is to resist temptation, we sometimes fail. You know, we try real hard and we succumb to that second Twinkie you said you weren't going to have. Or we watch a movie that we knew we really shouldn't have watched. Or we spread gossip we really shouldn't have spread. Or we maybe gamble when we knew we shouldn't have gambled. Maybe we missed prayer and staying close to God like we knew we should have because maybe something else got in the way and it keeps getting in the way. We're not perfect yet, but we're working on that.

So what do we do? Don't give up, rise up. Don't give up, rise up. Rise up, repent and ask for forgiveness. Then go back to point two and prepare yourself for the next battle. There's no sin that God won't forgive us of if we repent. And we also know that God will never leave us or forsake us.

Turn with me to Proverbs 24 for a short verse here. Proverbs 24 verse 16. This chapter, as most of the Proverbs is, is filled with wisdom for us. Proverbs 24 verse 16 says:

Proverbs 24:16 - For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity.

The righteous man may fall seven times, but rise again. Many times the difference between a success and a failure is getting back up...getting back up and trying again. You can only fail once if you never get back up. So when you do fail, succumb to a temptation, don't give up, strengthen your resolve, commit to success the next time. Get closer to God, build your temptation tool chest for the next time it comes along.

You know, this point is well-illustrated in a short essay called, Autobiography in Five Short Chapters, by Portia Nelson. And you may have heard this one before. This is chapter one. I walk down the street, there's a deep hole in the sidewalk, I fall in, I'm lost. I'm helpless. It isn't my fault. It still takes forever to find out, or find the way out. Chapter two. I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend I don't see it. I fall in again. I can't believe I'm in the same place, but it isn't my fault. And it still takes a long time to get out of there. Chapter three. I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it there, I still fall in, it's a habit. My eyes are open though, I know where I am. It is my fault. I get out immediately. Chapter four. I walk down the same street. There's a deep hole in the sidewalk. I walk around it. Chapter five. I walk down a different street.

That's what a man does...a righteous man, when he falls in, he realizes his error...picks himself up, repents. God promises He'll help. Through that process we should learn to walk down a different street, not the same old road with the same old potholes that cause us to fall into sin, but a different street.

David wrote about this in Psalm 37:23-24 where he says:

Psalm 37:23-24 - The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholds him with His hand.

If we fall, don't get discouraged and give up. Repent and follow the steps to success. Get closer to God.

You know, Peter denied Christ three times when Christ was taken away for crucifixion; and Peter was waiting around and kind of watching what was happening. And Christ had told him that he would deny Him. And Peter did, he denied Him three times, and then the rooster crowed. And at that time Peter remembered what Christ had said. What did Peter do? Matthew says, Peter went out and wept bitterly. Mark says, and when he thought about it, he wept. He was truly sorry about what he had done. He wept bitterly. You know, but did Peter stay down? Here he had denied his Savior and he was realizing that. Did he give up, since he had failed Jesus? No, because if we look 50 days later...a little more than 50 days later, we find a powerful Peter, talking to a crowd at Pentecost...talking openly about Jesus Christ and about this new Way. So Peter didn't give up, he got up and went on and overcame.

You know, there are times when you really struggle with certain temptations and you may need additional help. You know, maybe you're struggling with alcohol and it's temptations, or drugs, maybe pornography. Maybe gambling or overspending, overeating, maybe anger, maybe same-sex attraction, maybe even video gaming. And we struggle with these, but it's times like that that we may have to admit that we can't handle it alone. There are times when we can gain strength through others. You know, find a trusted person, your pastor, a friend, a parent, and talk it over with them; or a support group. But there are times we need help that go beyond what we are able to do ourselves. And that doesn't replace God, it doesn't replace God at all. It just helps us, and God is still part of the picture. Those struggles that we call addictions...they may need professional counseling, but go to your pastor or brother you trust. And maybe they can help you find somebody who can help you in those.

You know, and how are we supposed to react? If somebody comes to us and says, “I've got this problem.” We need to make sure that we react in the right way. We want to help our brother to be there in the Kingdom. Let's not judge them. If they want to change, we should be behind them, helping them, not judging them. Helping them to reach their goal of the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.

So the fourth strategy is to rise again. Rise again. You know, no matter what temptations you might have in your life; you know, you really need to remember two things:

First is what it says in Philippians 4 verse 13, where it says:

Philippians 4:13 – I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Jesus Christ will strengthen you. God the Father strengthened Him in His trials and His temptations.

And secondly, God has a wonderful crown waiting for us. The temptations we go through now don't compare with the crown of glory that we've got waiting for us.

As we read earlier in James 1:12:

James 1:12 - Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

Keep that in mind...the crown of life. What a wonderful future. When you're struggling through things, remember that. It's all worth it.

There's a saying to remember maybe. And it says, the pain of discipline is temporary. The pain of compromise is permanent. The pain of discipline is temporary. If we're in a trial and a temptation, remember the pain to walk away is temporary, but the pain of compromising at that time can be permanent.

Back to the story at the beginning of the sermon about that dog named Bo. You know, there's a lot we can learn from him learning that trick. He kept his eyes on his master. He learned that if he had patience and listened to his master and overcame temptation, there was a reward at the end of it.

You know, God has waiting for us such a marvelous reward in the future. You know, He's got joy, peace and prosperity, pleasure and power and happiness. But you know, these are all the things that temptations tell us they'll give us now. They say they'll give us joy, peace, a great job, prosperity, but you know, all those are temporary. Typically, temptations to bring us temporary power, temporary peace, temporary wealth. But God's got waiting for us something that is permanent, something that is eternal: eternal peace, eternal love, eternal happiness. That's what we need to focus on. If we focus on all these things and remember all these things, hopefully it will help us through temptations.

I want to challenge you, brethren, to maybe to go ahead and pick out a temptation you may have a problem with, and focus on that temptation.

In writing this sermon I've done that. I've picked out one and I'm going to be working on that temptation. To try to overcome these, to bring us closer to God, closer to the life that He wants us to be living. And you can use these tactics against them. Realize that temptation is all around us and be vigilant. Prepare yourself through prayer, Bible study, meditation, removing sources of temptation from you, and other things. Respond to the temptation in a Godly manner. Put into practice what you've learned through meditation and prayer, and rise again. When you succumb to temptation, don't give up. Ask God's forgiveness and rise again. Carry on the battle, don't give up. Look forward to that crown that's waiting for you.