7 TIPS ON HOW TO OVERCOME TEMPTATIONS & ADDICTED SINS (Part 1)
As a Christian, after you genuinely give your life to Jesus and become a new person in Him, your soul is saved and washed by the blood of Jesus Christ , your conscience is cleansed by His blood and your spirit is restored in connection with God. But your body is not affected by the spiritual transformation. When you are saved, you will not see any change of color or stature in your body as a result of the salvation of your soul. It’s the same unaffected body that will want to drag back you into sin, into old life, because your body has nothing to lose, your body has no heaven to go, your body is a mortal and dust. Your body is temporal, it’s earthly and will disappear by reason of time. It is that same body that the devil uses to drag people back to sin after they are saved.
The body, your flesh, influenced by Satan, will demand contrary to the Spirit of God inside you, will want you to please it and displease God. This flesh, your body, brings temptation and want to retain the ungodly pleasure it is used to, and that is addicted sin and temptation in your new life in Christ Jesus. Addicted sins are the sinful lifestyles, things or attitude we were used to before we became born again. And they want to come over again in our new lives in Jesus. And temptation, it is ungodly suggestions of Satan into your mind, simple!
The purpose of temptation is to make us sin against God and against our own souls for destruction. The object of temptation is from outside, but the desire and suggestion is from within. So then, temptation is a seduction to sin, either old addicted sin or new general, common sins. Temptation comes on a daily bases and on different bases; your personal relationship with God depends on how you overcome temptations. We need to know that temptation itself is not a sin, either from within by our thought or from without through people or things, it is falling into temptation that becomes sin; it is also a sin to get or go close to the appearance of sin. It is sin to go or get close to what you know may lead to sin by using vain boldness which is tempting God and the Bible commands us not to tempt God. Temptation comes from within or without, from your mind, your body, your feeling; from people, from Satan; pressure, persuasion or persecution, but the good news is that the power lies on you to decide, to sign or silent the temptation; that is your power of decision. Here are 7 tips that will always help us to overcome every form of temptation or addiction on our ways:
(1) HOLD YOUR PEACE AND SEE THE TEMPTATION FADES AWAY
The undiscovered truth about sin is that behind every sin in life is a demon, satanic spirit that inspires people to that sin. Every persuasion and pressure to sin comes from these assigned demons; they use people, our feeling, minds and flesh to persuade us. The real image was made clear when Satan was tempting Jesus in the wilderness, Jesus was seeing Satan clearly because Jesus could see everything. We may not see Satan or his demons when they come to persuade us to sin, but we should do what Jesus did. When this pressure of the addicted sins or persuasion to sin come, it will be as if you cannot survive it, as if you cannot do without it, you know what? Just hold your peace and look beyond the people or the objects of the temptation and do as Jesus did: rebuke the demon behind in Jesus name. “Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan!” and the next thing, “Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.” Matthew 4:10, 11.
Don’t bother yourself about the pressure within or without, Satan is behind them, pushing them to persuade you. You may feel as if you are so weak to resist, but don’t fall anyway. Since you don’t use your power, you use the Word of God and name of Jesus to resist Satan who is behind every sin. The pressure to sin, to have sex, to smoke, to lie, to masturbate, etc. will overwhelm your body and feeling as if you will die if you don’t do it, it is not so; you just hold your peace with God’s word and you will see the feeling going down. The demon of that sin cannot stay long, there is a particular minutes and period of time God permits Satan and his demons to tempt and pressurize us, and thereafter they fades away, if you hold it and resist in that period, and you will overcome. The temptation and pressure to sin can come few minutes and last for few months, it may be an overwhelming thought or pressure for lust of the flesh, notion for lust of the eyes, or temptation for pride and worldly cares.
Now, here is the truth, this pressure or temptation for the particular sin maybe coming every day, it may be apportioned for few months, and no matter how much you pray, the thought or pressure may not stop. What you need to be praying for daily is grace and the Blood of Jesus to purify your heart, and as long you don’t give in, it will soon fade away and you overcome. That is the truth about temptation and addicted sins.
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”
…THE OTHER TIPS CONTINUES IN THE SECOND PART.
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