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Our Saviors Pattern for Prayer Part 3

By David Harrell Bible Text: Preached on: Matthew 6:9-13 Sunday !une 16 "#13

Calvary Bible Church $"%$ Hi&hway %1-' !oelton () 3*#+# Website: Online Sermons: www,-.-tn,or& www,ser/onaudio,-o/0*%6%1$6

1hat a 2rivile&e it is to -o/e to&ether and worshi2 the 3ord .y i//ersin& ourselves in his infalli.le 1ord, 1ill you ta4e your Bi.les and turn to Matthew 6, 1e -on-lude our study today of Our Saviors Pattern for Prayer a to2i- that is so -ru-ial for s2iritual &rowth and 2rote-tion and .lessin& and 5 re6oi-e that so /any of you over the 2ast few wee4s have e72ressed su-h 2rofound -onvi-tion with res2e-t to what the S2irit of 8od has .een tea-hin&, 'nd 5 2ray that this will lead to true re2entan-e otherwise it will lead to severe -hastenin&, Dont &rieve the Holy S2irit .y i&norin& his wor4 of &ra-e in your heart, 3ets read on-e a&ain Our Saviors Pattern for Prayer .e&innin& in verse 9 of Matthew 6 he says 9Pray then in this way: :Our ;ather who art in heaven Hallowed .e (hy na/e, (hy 4in&do/ -o/e, (hy will .e done on earth as it is in heaven, 8ive us this day our daily .read, 'nd for&ive us our de.ts as we also have for&iven our de.tors, 'nd do not lead us into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< By way of review we see here that !esus has &iven us an outline for 2rayer not a 2rayer and this -an .e divided into two se-tions ea-h havin& three 2etitions, (he first se-tion addresses the &lory of 8od and we are therefore to 2ray with res2e-t to his na/e his 4in&do/ and his will, 'nd then se-ondly we have a se-tion that addresses our needs 2etitions related to our daily .read that is our de2enden-e on 8od for&iveness whi-h s2ea4s of our de.ts to 8od and then finally what we loo4 at today 2rote-tion fro/ te/2tation whi-h addresses the issue of our need for defense .y 8od, 'nd 5 2ray that the S2irit will e/2ower /y fee.le thou&hts .e-ause fran4ly this is a 2rofound 2assa&e of S-ri2ture that 5 .elieve is seldo/ understood -orre-tly, 'nd 5 fear that today 5ll only .e a.le to s-rat-h the surfa-e, But unfortunately /ost .elievers and /ay.e youre in this -ate&ory have really never &iven /u-h thou&ht to this final se-tion of Our 3ords Pattern for Prayer, 9Do not lead us into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< =eally what does this /ean> 1hy is this i/2ortant> 1hy dont we ever hear this as a 2rayer re?uest when we -o/e to&ether> Do you in-lude this in your 2rayers> '&ain /ost do not understand the i/2ortan-e of this 2etition nor do we tend to see the fri&htenin& dan&ers that await those who do not 2assionately and 2ersistently 2ray this 2rayer with the 2ro2er theolo&y and the 2ro2er heart attitude .ehind it,

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5 wish to a22roa-h this te7t this /ornin& .y e7a/inin& four thin&s: first we want to have an a--urate understandin& of what !esus is really sayin&@ and se-ondly we want to understand the nature of te/2tation@ thirdly the dan&er of enterin& into te/2tation@ and then fourthly and finally the only /eans to avoid enterin& into te/2tation, )ow .efore we loo4 at this /ay 5 say that .e-ause of the de-eitfulness of the hu/an heart and the 2ower of Satan to de-eive /ost of what will .e revealed today will fall on deaf ears, Aa-h of us have an innate ina.ility to -onfor/ to the /oral -hara-ter and desires of 8od, (hat is the essen-e of our very fallen nature, 1e are li4e (eflon when -onfronted with truth nothin& sti-4s, Our natural tenden-y is to hear so/ethin& and then &et defensive and .la/e shift and disre&ard rather than hu/.lin& ourselves .efore the tea-hin& of the 1ord of 8od with a -ontrite s2irit and tre/.lin& at his 1ord, 1e are all ho2elessly .iased in our own favor and sha/elessly in favor of our .ias, So .ear that in /ind as we a22roa-h the 1ord this /ornin&, 5 have 2rayed that the S2irit of 8od will hel2 us see ourselves as we really are, So first we /ust understand what !esus is really sayin&, '&ain verse 13 9'nd do not lead us into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< )ow so/e /i&ht .e -onfused and say 91hy would we 2ray for so/ethin& 8od would never do>< Be-ause after all in !a/es 1:13 we read 93et no one say when he is te/2ted B5 a/ .ein& te/2ted .y 8od@ for 8od -annot .e te/2ted .y evil and He Hi/self does not te/2t anyone,< Moreover so/e would say 91ell why 2ray for 8od to lead us into that whi-h we should -ount as 6oy>< !a/es 1:"-3 9Consider it all 6oy /y .rethren when you en-ounter various trials 4nowin& that the testin& of your faith 2rodu-es enduran-e,< So what is he really sayin& here> 1ell first you /ust understand that in the ori&inal lan&ua&e the root of the word 9te/2tation< denotes a trial or a test and here it relates to a trial or a test that would -ause us to su--u/. to the wea4ness of our flesh and fall into sin, So thin4 of it this way this is a 2rayer a&ainst 2resu/2tion, (his is a hu/.le re-o&nition of our own wea4ness our 2ro-livity to sin, 's the Psal/ist said in Psal/ 19:13 9Dee2 Eour servant fro/ 2resu/2tuous sins@ let the/ not rule over /e,< So in effe-t what !esus is as4in& us to do here is to .e .rutally honest with ourselves, 1ith the reality that not only .e-ause of the wea4ness of our flesh .ut .e-ause of the &reatness of our sin we should -ry out to the 3ord to not allow us to -o/e in to so/e situation that would -ause us to fall into sin, 9;ather 5/ 2rayin& that you will hel2 /e here, 5 fear the evil in /y own heart it is des2erately wi-4ed it is de-eitful, ;ather 5 fear the frailty of /y flesh .e-ause 5 a/ attra-ted to sin li4e a /oth to a fla/e, ;ather 5 fear the evil that is in the world .e-ause it is so a22ealin& to /y fleshly a22etites, (he lust of /y eye the lust of /y flesh the .oastful 2ride of life that 6ust en-o/2asses all that 5 a/, ;ather 5 4now that in /yself 5 a/ no /at-h for evil, So 5 have no -onfiden-e 5 have no resour-es in /yself, 5 .e& you if it .e a--ordin& to your will that you not lead /e into so/e trial that is so &reat that 5 /i&ht enter into te/2tation and fall into sin,< My friends its as if were sayin& 9Dee2 /e fro/ that whi-h 5 a.hor that whi-h 5 fear .e-ause 5 4now how it -an .rin& su-h &reat /isery into /y life .ut worse yet 5 4now how sin -an

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-ause a .rea-h in our fellowshi2 in our relationshi2 with our ;ather and that is the &reatest sorrow of all,< So as4 yourself 5s this a the/e in your 2rayer life> 1ell 8od never te/2ts he never sedu-es us to do evil, He does test he tests us to 2rove our faithfulness to hi/, Aven !esus was te/2ted in the wilderness .y Satan, (herefore in He.rews %:1$ we read that 9we do not have a hi&h 2riest who -annot sy/2athiFe with our wea4nesses .ut One who has .een te/2ted in all thin&s as we are yet without sin,< 'nd you will re-all that later when he was in the 8arden of 8ethse/ane he said 9My ;ather if it is 2ossi.le let this -u2 2ass fro/ /e,< He was a.solutely horror stru-4 with the thou&ht of ta4in& sin u2on hi/self and yet he went on to say 9Eet not as 5 will .ut as (hou wilt,< Eou 4now Christian none of us should .e so foolish as to 2resu/e that we are any /at-h for even the s/allest te/2tation althou&h its all around us, (his is why the 3ord 2rayed for us in his hi&h 2riestly 2rayer in !ohn 1*:1$ 95 do not as4 (hee to ta4e the/ out of the world .ut to 4ee2 the/ fro/ the evil one,< Martin 3uther su//ariFed this well when he said 91e -annot hel2 .ein& e72osed to the assaults .ut we 2ray that we /ay not fall and 2erish under the/,< So /y friends this is a 2etition that lays hold of that 2ro/ise in 1 Corinthians 1#:13 that says 98od is faithful who will not allow you to .e te/2ted .eyond what you are a.le .ut with the te/2tation will 2rovide the way of es-a2e also so that you will .e a.le to endure it,< (his is also to .e o.edient to what the 3ord told his dis-i2les to 2ray in the 8arden, 5n Matthew "6:%1 91at-h and 2ray lest you enter into te/2tation, (he S2irit indeed is willin& .ut the flesh is wea4,< !ohn Ma-'rthur su//ariFed it well when he said 9(his 2etition is a safe&uard a&ainst 2resu/2tion and a false sense of se-urity and self-suffi-ien-y,< So a&ain 5 would as4 you 5s this a the/e in your 2rayer life> 5s this an on&oin& -on-ern that -auses you to wat-h and 2ray lest you enter into te/2tation> 5f not why not> Has not the 3ord /ade it -lear here that this should .e a 2riority in our 2rayer life, May 5 answer for you .e-ause 5ve had to answer for /yself as well> (he reason why this ty2i-ally is not a 2riority is .e-ause we si/2ly dont see the need, 1e tend to have a false sense of se-urity, Gery often .e-ause of the de-eitfulness of our hearts we .elieve that we are suffi-ient in and of ourselves and we si/2ly dont see the dan&er that is around us and that is within us, 1e tend not to .e a.le to really see the wea4nesses of our flesh and so /any ti/es were not only wal4in& on the very ed&e of the sli22ery slo2e of te/2tation /any ti/es we a-tually slide ri&ht down into sin, Often we -ant see our own sin .e-ause it see/s so ne-essary so a22ro2riate so 6ustified, So/eti/es we .la/e it on our 2ersonality thats our .i& e7-use, Sin /anifests itself often in our inter2ersonal style of relatin& and we dont see how we i/2a-t others, ;or e7a/2le one 2erson /ay see the/selves as a &reat leader an initiator and a develo2er you 4now a 2erson that is the /over and sha4er whereas in reality whats &oin& on is they are a de/andin& arro&ant -ontrol frea4 that wants the s2otli&ht on the/selves that resents authority and is filled with 2ride, Or you see the sweet &entle hu/.le shy ?uiet

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2erson and you say 9Oh isnt that wonderful,< 1ell it /ay .e .ut /any ti/es what that is -overin& u2 is a very an&ry 2erson that fears /an /ore than 8od and is filled with fear and lives under the &uise of self-2rote-tion, 'nd on and on it &oes, So often we -ant see our sin and so/eti/es when we see it we dont want to deal with it .e-ause we love it so /u-h, 1e dont want to &ive it u2, Aven as .elievers its easy for us to on-e a&ain 2la-e ourselves .a-4 into the .onda&e of so/e life do/inatin& sin, 3i4e un.elievers we -an suddenly fall into the tra2 of fearin& /an /ore than 8od and 6ust not havin& any fear of 8od at all and worshi22in& idols in our hearts, Dear friends 2lease hear /e: until a /an fears 8od he only 2lays the fool, 1hat a dreadful thin& to enter into te/2tation to 2resu/e u2on 8ods &ra-e, 1hat an a22allin& thin& to .e li4e a do& that would return on-e a&ain to its vo/it, 1hat an awful thin& to live in the stor/ of divine -hastenin& and thin4 that its nor/al, Dear Christian we /ust re/e/.er that 8od is as 6ust as he is /er-iful and he will not allow sin to &o un2unished even in his -hildren, So weve &ot to learn to -ry out to the 3ord as David did 9A7a/ine /e O 3ord and try /e test /y /ind and /y heart, Sear-h /e O 8od and 4now /y heart, (ry /e and 4now /y thou&hts and see if there .e any wi-4ed way in /e,< 'nd we /ust learn to 2ray for ourselves 2ersonally as well as ea-h other -or2orately, )oti-e it says 9Do not lead us into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< Cor2orately its a -on-ern .e-ause you see your sin will s2latter on every.ody around you, So we 2ray 93ord 5 4now /y wea4nesses and 5 4now that theres wea4nesses within /e that 5 -ant even see, 3ord 5 fear the seriousness and the -onse?uen-es of sin so 2lease 4ee2 /e far fro/ the sli22ery slo2e of te/2tation that would -ause /e to fall in so/e &reat a.yss of sin that would ulti/ately .e&in to define /y -hara-ter,< Be-ause you see friends thats what sin will do, 5t will .e&in to define who you are and you will .e 4nown as the slu&&ard or the &ossi2 or the &lutton or the drun4ard or the dru& addi-t or the -ontrol frea4 or the liar or the forni-ator or the adulterer or the hothead the a.user the &reedy /aterialist the filthy tal4in& vul&arian and on and on it &oes, 9Deliver us fro/ te/2tation < and he says 9do not lead us into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< (hin4 a.out that thats the 2riority here, 9Hel2 /e to wal4 .y the S2irit and not -arry out the desires of the flesh, Hel2 /e to 2ut off sin hel2 /e to 2ut on Christ 2ut on the whole ar/or of 8od to treasure your 1ord in /y heart that 5 /i&ht not sin a&ainst (hee, (o su./it to 8od < as !a/es says literally 9su./it to his 1ord, =esist the devil and he will flee fro/ /e < and on and on it &oes, )ow .eloved if these thin&s never -ross your /ind then you 2ro.a.ly do not understand the se-ond i/2ortant -onsideration in this te7t and that is the nature of te/2tation, 's we loo4 at it in this -onte7t we see that te/2tation is any thin& its any o22ortunity any situation any -ondition that /i&ht enti-e us to sin, (hen of -ourse there are a /yriad of e7a/2les of this, But its i/2ortant for you to understand that te/2tation -an s2rin& fro/ within us as well as outside of us, (he sedu-tion fro/ within has to do with our lusts, !a/es 1:1% says 9But ea-h one is te/2ted when he is -arried away and enti-ed .y his own lust,< 3ust is that dee2 a&&ressive desire that we have for so/ethin&, (he ter/ 9-arried away< in the ori&inal lan&ua&e denotes a dra&&in& away .y

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an inner desire, 5t was a-tually a huntin& ter/ used to des-ri.e a .aited tra2 desi&ned to enti-e unsus2e-tin& 2rey, Do you realiFe that thats within you> 1ithin your lusts> He says not only are we -arried away .ut we are enti-ed .y our lust, Anti-ed was a fishin& ter/ used to define the .ait used to -at-h a fish, So thin4 a.out it our lusts within us have the 2ower to -arry us away to enti-e us to a-t wi-4edly, 'n a/aFin& thin& a.out it it -an do that while at the sa/e ti/e -onvin-in& us that what were doin& is o4 that there are really no -onse?uen-es that are that severe that it really doesnt dishonor 8od, 5n fa-t the thin&s that we 2ursue with res2e-t to sin a-tually are fulfillin& to us, (hese thin&s satisfy our fleshly desires, (he te/2tation fro/ within are often overloo4ed, 3et /e &ive you an e7a/2le: Peter uses this ter/ 9enti-e< to des-ri.e the de2ravity of false tea-hers those who he says have 9eyes full of adultery that never -ease fro/ sin < -at-h this 9enti-in& unsta.le souls havin& a heart trained in &reed a--ursed -hildren,< Anti-in& unsta.le souls a22ealin& to their lusts with so/e irresisti.le .ait, My friend how well do you 4now your heart> !esus said that 9the thin&s that 2ro-eed out of the /outh -o/e fro/ the heart and those defile the /an for out of the heart -o/e evil thou&hts /urders adulteries forni-ations thefts false witness slanders,< !ere/iah testified that 9the heart is /ore de-eitful than all else and is des2erately si-4 who -an understand it>< (he reality is we -ant, 1e need su2ernatural hel2, So we 2ray 9;ather lead us not into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< 'nd as we -ontinue to i//erse ourselves in the 1ord of 8od we .e&in to understand /ore and /ore of who we are and who he is and how we should live out our lives how we -an defeat the ene/y within and the ene/y outside of us, So lets thin4 a.out the ene/y outside, (hese are the thin&s of the world that a22eal to the evil that already e7ists within us, 1 !ohn ":1$-16 s2ea4s of this its the lust of the flesh it a22eals to the lust of the eyes the .oastful 2ride of life, Eou see our heart is li4e a /a&net that attra-ts the -orru2tion thats all around us, (hin4 of the te/2tin& de-e2tions of false tea-hers, (hey are in our .oo4stores they are in our televisions they are on the radio waves on the internet, Peter des-ri.ed the/ as those who throu&h 9arro&ant words of vanity < heres the word a&ain 9enti-e .y fleshly desires < .y sensuality, 5ts interestin& Paul des-ri.es Satan as the hinderer as well as the te/2ter in 1 (hessalonians and he warns us not to allow Satans world syste/ to sha2e us into its i/a&e, Eou re/e/.er in =o/ans 1":" 9Do not .e -onfor/ed to this world,< Do not allow it to unwittin&ly sha2e you into its /old, Eou 4now its interestin& you -an ta4e a -u-u/.er and you -an 2la-e it in vine&ar leave it there for a while and 2ull it out and its still a -u-u/.er, My friends if you leave that -u-u/.er in there too lon& it .e-o/es a 2i-4le and thats what ha22ens to us in the world, Satan and his /inions 4now our individual wea4nesses they study 2re-isely how when and where to set the snare of so/e &reat trial to entan&le us and defeat us with sin, Eou will re-all in 3u4e "":31 !esus said 9Si/on Si/on .ehold Satan has de/anded 2er/ission to sift you li4e wheat,< Eou see Peter was .lind to his arro&ant sense of self-

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suffi-ien-y, His heart was filled with 2ride and Satan saw that vulnera.ility, 'nd Peter said 93ord with you 5 a/ ready to &o .oth to 2rison and to death,< He said 9Aven thou&h all /ay fall away .e-ause of you 5 will never fall away,< So the (e/2ter /erely laid in wait for his 2rey and in the -ourtyard of the Hi&h Priest he tested hi/ in the area of his &reatest wea4ness and he failed the test and denied Christ three ti/es, 5 re-all when 5 lived in British Colu/.ia there was a -ertain /ountain rid&e that 5 would ride and 5 was warned fro/ down .elow that on that rid&e there are so/e &a/e trails that loo4 li4e they -ould save you a lot of ti/e .ut they .e&in to /ove down towards a shale slide, )ow if youve not .een in the /ountains you /i&ht not 4now a.out shale slides, '-tually theyre a lot of fun if you -an see the .otto/@ you -an a-tually 4ind of run down the /ountain and every ste2 is a.out 3# feet as you 4ind of sli2 and slide all the way down, But .e-ause of this 2arti-ular shale slide if you were to &et on it theres the dan&er of the shale .e&innin& to sli2 and you .e&in to slide and the whole thin& .e&ins to slide and it loo4s li4e a &entle slo2e .ut it 2i-4s u2 /o/entu/ to a 3## foot -liff and they told /e of several 2eo2le that had /ade that /ista4e, 'nd 5 re/e/.er the first ti/e 5 -a/e to that s2ot it was a hot day and 5 thou&ht .oy /y horses are tired theyre thirsty 5/ tired 5 want to &et .a-4 to -a/2 and 5 -an see this trail 5 -an see where its &oin& to &o this loo4s li4e the ri&ht way to &o, 5 dont want to have to &o u2 around these ro-4s and that rid&e over there .ut 5 did and 5/ &lad 5 did, 5 &ive you that as an e7a/2le .e-ause so often we find ourselves seein& a different way to &o and not heedin& the warnin& that 8od has &iven us, 'nd how often he warns us of the dan&erous shale slides of this world trails that see/ so a22ealin&, (he entertain/ent that we en6oy the /usithat we li4e to listen to the -rowd that we li4e to han& around the way we s2end our ti/e the thin&s that we loo4 at on the internet the thin&s that we 2ost on the internet and on and on it &oes, )ow the &ood news is we 4now that a--ordin& to 1 Corinthians 1#:13 there is 9)o te/2tation that has overta4en you .ut su-h as is -o//on to /an@ and 8od is faithful who will not allow you to .e te/2ted .eyond what you are a.le .ut with the te/2tation will 2rovide the way of es-a2e also so that you will .e a.le to endure it,< But O -hild of 8od 4nowin& our wea4ness 4nowin& the dan&er of sin how i/2ortant it is for us to -onfess this and say 9O 3ord 2lease do not lead /e into te/2tation, 5 fear it,< By the way it was for this reason the very verse .efore the one 5 6ust read Paul says 9(herefore let hi/ who thin4s he stands ta4e heed lest heH,< 1hat> 93est he fall,< =e/e/.er friends we have two ene/ies: our flesh and Satan and his world syste/, 'll those te/2tations out there that a22eal to our flesh and .rin& us to destru-tion, 'nd Satan 4nows e7a-tly the ty2es of thin&s you -rave@ he 4nows e7a-tly where to set his tra2 where to destroy you where to render you useless for the sa4e of Christ or to destroy your fa/ily, He atta-4s our /inds with lies, He atta-4s our e/otions .y ani/atin& the/ towards thin&s that would destroy us, 'nd he a-tivates our wills to re.el, On-e a&ain a22ealin& to those three -ate&ories of lust des-ri.ed in 1 !ohn ":16: the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes the .oastful 2ride of life, !ohn says 95ts not fro/ the ;ather .ut is fro/ the world,<

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Eou would re-all in 8enesis 3:6 what ha22ened to Ave, (here we read 91hen the wo/an saw that the tree was &ood for food < theres the lust of the flesh 9and that it was a deli&ht to the eyes < there is the lust of the eyes 9and that the tree was desira.le to /a4e one wise < theres the 2ride of life 9she too4 fro/ its fruit and ate@ and she &ave also to her hus.and with her and he ate,< (his is the sa/e strate&y that Satan used with !esus when he te/2ted hi/ in the wilderness, Eou will re-all that he a22ealed first to his flesh: he was hun&ry and he says 95f youre the Son of 8od tell these stones to .e-o/e .read,< He a22ealed to his eyes: he showed hi/ all of the 4in&do/s of the world and said 9'll of these -an .e yours if you will .ut worshi2 /e,< 'nd he even tried to a22eal to the 2ride of life whi-h didnt e7ist in !esus, He says 9Dive off the 2inna-le of this te/2le and the an&els will res-ue you and then everyone will 4now that you are the Messiah and worshi2 you,< But unli4e our Savior dear friends that -ould not sin our nature is so fallen it 2refers sin to ri&hteousness, 5 have never seen a 2arent have any need to tea-h their -hildren to .e foolish .e-ause its .ound u2 in their heart, Eou dont have to tea-h a -hild not to o.ey authority that -o/es natural, 5t -o/es natural to all of us and its for this reason that the first .e&innin&s of te/2tation are i/2er-e2ti.le, Moreover they are a-tually 2lausi.le to us, Beyond our 2ower to see so/eti/es .eyond our 2ower to ar&ue a&ainst they are deli-ious to our fleshly a22etites, 'll the /ore reason to avoid it alto&ether, 5 li4e to thin4 of it this way te/2tations are /erely the fuel that -an i&nite the .urnin& e/.ers of lust that &low within the heart, Peters vain -onfiden-e -overed u2 the e/.ers of his -owardi-e and inse-urity .ut the fuel of 2erse-ution set the/ a.laFe, (he e/.ers of '-hans &reed e72loded into a roarin& fla/e when te/2ted .y the &as of for.idden s2oils, Eou will re-all that the e/.ers of Davids se7ual a22etite and violen-e a&ainst those who /i&ht o22ose hi/ was suddenly set into full .laFe and .e&an to ra&e out of -ontrol when he &aFed u2on Bathshe.as nudity, (he e/.ers of De/as lusts .urned hot when i&nited .y the te/2tations of worldliness even thou&h he was servin& with the '2ostle Paul, (he e/.ers of Diotre2hes lust for 2ower and 2resti&e within the -hur-h .urst into full fla/e when -onfronted with the authority of the a2ostles, 5 would as4 you 1hat e/.ers await full fla/e in your heart> 're you aware of the 4inds of te/2tations that /i&ht i&nite that whi-h is within you> Perha2s so/e of the/ are ra&in& out of -ontrol ri&ht now, 'nd so/eti/es its ra&in& out of -ontrol and we dont even 4now it, (hose are the /ost dan&erous ones of all, ' &reat 1*th -entury Puritan theolo&ian !ohn Owen said this 9' /an 4nows not the 2ride fury /adness of a -orru2tion until it /eets with a suita.le te/2tation,< So thirdly we need to understand the dan&er of enterin& into te/2tation, 5n order to understand this 5 would ta4e your /inds to Matthew "6, =e/e/.er in the 8arden of 8ethse/ane> (here we read that !esus .ein& dee2ly &rieved to the 2oint of death stationed Peter and !a/es and !ohn in a 2arti-ular area and he as4ed the/ to 94ee2 wat-h with hi/ < verse 3+, Dee2 wat-h, 1at-h over what> Over te/2tation, Over the te/2tation to run and to hide and /ay.e to lash out in an&er, May.e to lose faith, May.e to .elieve so/e lie, 'nd then the te7t says that he went on .eyond the/ to a 2la-e of solitude and he fell on his fa-e and 2rayed that the ;ather would s2are hi/ of drin4in& the .itter -u2 of divine wrath, 'nd as we read that te7t we see that three ti/es he

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returned to his dis-i2les only to find the/ aslee2, 5ndifferent to his a&ony they were un-on-erned a.out their own vulnera.ility to te/2tation and then !esus warned the/ in verse %1 9Dee2 wat-hin& and 2rayin& that you /ay not enter into te/2tation@ the s2irit is willin& .ut the flesh is wea4,< But instead of wat-hin& and 2rayin& the fri&htened dis-i2les -olla2sed in defeat and -ried the/selves to slee2, By the way what a 2erfe-t illustration of all of us when we find ourselves in so/e &reat distress, (heir eyes were heavy with tears of sadness and -onfusion and fear they were o.livious to all of the dan&ers that were around the/, 5n fa-t 3u4e "":%$ tells us that they were 9slee2in& fro/ sorrow,< 'nd /y friends as a result of this they entered into te/2tation, (hey .e&an to trust in the/selves not in 8od, (he fear .e&an to envelo2e the/ and as a result they su--u/.ed to it to a -arnal fear that rendered the/ .oth useless and /isera.le, 1here have you entered into te/2tation> (hin4 of those who have entered into the te/2tation of &reedy /aterialis/ that is so -hara-teristi- of our -ulture, (he '2ostle Paul tells us in 1 (i/othy 6 .e&innin& in verse 9 9But those who want to &et ri-h < theres the lust 9fall into te/2tation and a snare and /any foolish and har/ful desires whi-h 2lun&e /en into ruin and destru-tion, ;or the love of /oney is a root of all sorts of evil and so/e .y lon&in& for it have wandered away fro/ the faith and 2ier-ed the/selves with /any a 2ain,< Eou say 91ell 5/ &lad that one doesnt a22ly to /e,< =eally> 1hats your -redit -ard .alan-e> How /u-h /oney do you owe> How do you s2end your /oney> 1hat o--u2ies your thin4in&> '&ain !ohn Owen wrote this in 16$+ 9Anterin& into te/2tation /ay .e seen in the lesser de&rees of it as for instan-e when the heart .e&ins to se-retly li4e the /atter of the te/2tation and is -ontent to feed it and in-rease it .y any ways that it /ay without downri&ht sin, 5n 2arti-ular a /an .e&ins to .e in re2ute for 2iety wisdo/ learnin& or the li4e he is s2o4en of /u-h to that 2ur2ose and his heart is ti-4led to hear it and his 2ride and a/.ition affe-ted with it, 5f this /an now with all his stren&th 2ly the thin&s fro/ when-e his re2ute and estee/ and &lory a/on& /en do s2rin& with a se-ret eye to have it in-reased he is enterin& into te/2tation, 1hi-h if he ta4e not heed will ?ui-4ly render hi/ a slave of lust,< 3et /e &ive you so/e su.tle ways that you need to e7a/ine that will hel2 you see when you /ay .e enterin& into te/2tation /ay.e when youve already entered it and youve .een entan&led in so/e wi-4edness fro/ whi-h there see/s to .e no es-a2e, 1hen we first of all /iti&ate the seriousness and the -onse?uen-e of a te/2tation and the sin our lust will -on-eive and .irth, 5n other words when we /ove towards so/ethin& that we 4now is dishonorin& to the 3ord and we say 9Eou 4now its not that .ad, Averyones doin& it,< May.e we loo4 to so/eone we really res2e-t and he or she is doin& it, Or we .e&in to say to ourselves 9Eou 4now /y &ood really outwei&hs the .ad, 'nd its not li4e 5 do this all the ti/e,< My friends if thats your attitude youve entered into te/2tation, Eou 4now the heart -an offer a thousand -o/2ellin& rationaliFations as to why so/ethin& is o4 and not one of the/ .e true, )ot one of the/, More often than not the s/allest sins are /ore deadly than the &reater sins .e-ause you see the s/aller sins

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are so i/2er-e2ti.le, (hey do not startle the soul .ut its li4e ta4in& in a .a-teria .ut then that .a-teria .e&ins to /ulti2ly, ' little leaven leavens the whole lu/2, ;riends 2lease hear this: there is /ore evil in the s/allest sin than the &reatest triu/2h, 91e /ust a.stain fro/ every for/ of evil < 1 (hessalonians $:"", 3et /e &ive you another way that you will 4now when youve entered into te/2tation when you silen-e the alar/ of your -ons-ien-e over so/e te/2tation .y a22ealin& to un&odly voi-es that will 6ustify your a-tion, 5n other words when you loo4 for a se-ond o2inion outside the 1ord of 8od to &et so/e.ody else to say 9Eou 4now thats o4,< Or thirdly when you 6ustify so/e sinful -o/2ro/ise on so/e thin&s .y -onvin-in& yourself that a s/all evil is vindi-ated if it 2rodu-es a &reater &ood youve entered into te/2tation, ;or e7a/2le when you lau&h at the dirty 6o4es and you run with the worldly -rowd for the &reater &ood of 9leadin& the/ to Christ,< Or when you -o/2ro/ise or -onte7tualiFe the &os2el to so/ehow .e a22ealin& to the lost so that you -an &et the/ to -o/e to your -hur-h and on and on it &oes, ' fourth e7a/2le: when you 6ustify the ne&le-t of the very .est /ost i/2ortant duties of the Christian life .e-ause you are so heavenly invested in other thin&s that you en6oy /ore, (a4e the /an that s2ends all of his ti/e with his -areer with his wor4 .e-ause after all 95 have to 2rovide for /y fa/ily < and yet he ne&le-ts tea-hin& his -hildren and she2herdin& his wife, Or the wo/an who s2ends all her ti/e -arin& for her -hildren as a &ood /other should do and yet has no desire to -are for her own s2iritual &rowth and develo2/ent, ' fifth e7a/2le: when we rehearse -ertain sins in our /ind and treasure the/ in our i/a&ination, (a4e the youn& wo/an who fantasiFes in her /ind a.out turnin& heads when she -o/es into the -hur-h or the -lassroo/ or the youth &rou2, She .e&ins to feed u2on that, She will s2end way too /u-h /oney .uyin& thin&s that are 2o2ular@ she will .e&in to dress i//odestly, She will .e&in to o.sess a.out how she loo4s and &radually she will -ontinue down that sli22ery slo2e, She will learn how to flirt and eventually she will &ive away her vir&inity, (hats how it wor4s when you enter into sin, Or another e7a/2le: when we see no need to dis-i2line ourselves for &odliness and we .e-o/e -areless and ne&li&ent in our s2iritual duties, 1hen we say to ourselves 9Eou 4now one ser/on on Sunday is enou&h,< 'nd then little .y little your reli&ion .e-o/es /e-hani-al it .e-o/es nothin& /ore than a ritual, Eou lose your 2assion your Feal and you leave your love for Christ, 'nd one final one: when you see no need to wat-h and to 2ray 9;ather lead /e not into te/2tation .ut deliver /e fro/ evil,< Beloved dont flatter yourself, Dont flatter yourself, (here are se-ret lusts hidin& in the -averns of your i/a&ination ri&ht now 6ust waitin& to rise u2 as a traitor within the -a/2 and .rin& you to ruin, 'nd that lust will never a&ain .e silent until it is either starved or satisfied,

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3et /e &ive you a -o//on illustration one that 5 see all too often, 3et /e ta4e the illustration of a youn& /an who -o/es alon& and he &ets /arried, By the way as 5 thin4 a.out this 5 re/e/.er when 5 was a youn& /an and 4ind of went down this sa/e 2ath, Eou &et /arried and you foolishly assu/e that you -an 2rovide for your fa/ily you -an she2herd your wife you -an raise &odly -hildren you -an 4ee2 yourself /orally 2ure you -an rea2 a harvest of divine .lessin& u2on yourself and your fa/ily without a dis-i2lined 2rivate 2rayer life, 1ithout a se-ret devotion to 8od, 1ithout ever -ra-4in& your Bi.le .etween Sundays, 1ithout any dis-i2leshi2 and a--ounta.ility, 1ithout honorin& Christ with the s2iritual &ift that 8od has &iven you, 1ithout any -o//it/ent to .ein& o.edient to the &reat -o//and/ent and the &reat -o//ission, Eet fillin& your /ind with a steady strea/ of Hollywood and /usi- desi&ned to a22eal to the lusts of those who are dyin& in their sins, My friend if that is you you are livin& in a fools 2aradise and you have entered into te/2tation, 1hat far/er would e72e-t to rea2 a &ood harvest without first 2re2arin& the soil> 'nd then 2lantin& the seed and re/ovin& the weeds and irri&atin& the -ro2> Paul said in 8alatians 6:* 9Do not .e de-eived 8od is not /o-4ed@ for whatever a /an sows this he will also rea2,< Dear Christian if you sow the seeds of a slu&&ard you will rea2 the harvest of s2iritual disaster, How /any /en &ood &odly /en have we seen fall on their fa-e in s2iritual defeat> 'nd yet you dont thin4 it -an ha22en to you> =eally> How sad when a /an wants nothin& to do with 8od in his heart and then 8od &ives hi/ over to the -onse?uen-es of his ini?uities and he .e-o/es a slave to the idols that he loves, Beloved so often we -an .e li4e those Sodo/ites who &ro2e in the dar4ness to find the door of life, (hey weary the/selves in vain 2ursuits that offer only /o/entary 2leasure .ut end in eternal re&ret, Prover.s %:19 9(he way of the wi-4ed is li4e dar4ness@ they do not 4now over what they stu/.le,< 1ell finally in -losin& the only /eans to avoid enterin& into te/2tation is very i/2ortant, '&ain 4nowin& the &reat dan&er of it: !esus warns that we are to 4ee2 wat-hin& and 2rayin&, By the way 2resent i/2eratives in the ori&inal lan&ua&e whi-h -arry the idea of -ontinuous a-tion, 5t needs to .e a 2art of who you are, 9Dee2 wat-hin& and 2rayin& that you /ay not enter into te/2tation the s2irit is willin& .ut the flesh is wea4,< 5n other words stay vi&ilant, (he war is always ra&in& all around you and even within you, Dee2 alert and stand &uard over the frailties of your flesh, He was sayin& dont .e over-onfident in your own stren&th, Be forever sus2e-t of your own s2iritual 2rowess lest you suffer so/e sur2risin& defeat, Eou 4now Peter learned that the hard way and thats why he said in 1 Peter $:+ 9Be of so.er s2irit .e on the alert,< 's if to say 93i4e 5 wasnt on-e,< Be-ause 9your adversary the devil 2rowls around li4e a roarin& lion see4in& so/eone to devour,< But you 4now he also learned that the 3ord -an deliver us fro/ te/2tation, 5n " Peter ":9 he says 9the 3ord 4nows how to res-ue the &odly fro/ te/2tation,< 'nd si/ilarly !esus warned .elievers to .e vi&ilant to wat-h and to 2ray for his return sayin& in 3u4e "1:3% 9IBe on &uard so that your hearts will not .e wei&hted down with dissi2ation and drun4enness and the worries of life and the day of the 3ord -o/e on you

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suddenly li4e a tra2 for it will -o/e u2on all those who dwell on the fa-e of all the earth, But 4ee2 on the alert at all ti/es 2rayin& that you /ay have stren&th to es-a2e all these thin&s that are a.out to ta4e 2la-e and to stand .efore the Son of Man,I 1e are to wat-h we are to 2ray, (hrou&hout S-ri2ture we are fre?uently re/inded of the i/2ortan-e of 2rayer, 1e are ad/onished for e7a/2le in He.rews %:16 9draw near with -onfiden-e to the throne of &ra-e so that we /ay re-eive /er-y and find &ra-e to hel2 in ti/e of need,< By the way if you loo4 at the -onte7t there that is referrin& to ti/es of te/2tation, 1e see this refle-ted in the Psal/ists 2rayer when he said in Psal/ 1%1:3 9Set a &uard O 3O=D over /y /outh@ 4ee2 wat-h over the door of /y li2s, Do not in-line /y heart to any evil thin& to 2ra-ti-e deeds of wi-4edness 1ith /en who do ini?uity@ and do not let /e eat of their deli-a-ies,< 1e are told to 2ut on the full ar/or of 8od, 5n A2hesians 6:1+ he says 91ith all 2rayer and 2etition 2ray at all ti/es in the S2irit and with this in view .e on the alert with all 2erseveran-e and 2etition for all the saints,< 5ts interestin& the old -ow.oys .a-4 in the late 1+##s and even early 19##s were very -on-erned a.out the ni&ht wat-h when they had the ni&ht wat-h they didnt want the -attle to &et s2oo4ed and to sta/2ede, (hey wanted to really -are for the .osss herd so in order to stay awa4e what they would do was ru. a little .it of to.a--o 6ui-e in their eyes, 5 wouldnt re-o//end that .ut 5 heard that it really wor4s, (he &reat illustration of how we need to .e, 1e are to 2ut on the 3ord !esus Christ, Ma4e no 2rovision for the flesh in re&ard to its lust, 'nd in -losin& 5 want to 6ust re/ind you of so/e very 2ra-ti-al thin&s that 5 thin4 will .e of hel2, Eou see every season of life .rin&s with it uni?ue te/2tations and were all in so/e season of life, (hese seasons re?uire us to wat-h and 2ray s2e-ifi-ally, May.e its in ti/es of disease or si-4ness or 2ros2erity 2overty un-ertainty -onfusion whatever it /ay .e, (he S-ri2ture &ives us /any illustrations of those who failed to wat-h and 2ray in so/e vulnera.le season of their life and as a result they slid down the slo2e over the -liff into tra&i- defeat, ;or e7a/2le: althou&h '.raha/ was a /an of &reat wealth and was 2ro/ised an heir .y 8od hi/self durin& a season of waitin& u2on the 3ord '.raha/ &rew i/2atient and he too4 /atters into his own hands and su--u/.ed to his wifes sinful s-he/e to have a -hild .y Ha&ar, Durin& a season of 2rolon&ed stress Moses su--u/.ed to an&er and diso.eyed the 3ords -lear -o//and and he s/ote the ro-4 at Meri.ah, David su--u/.ed to his lust and sinned with Bathshe.a durin& a season of -o/2la-en-y and s2iritual over-onfiden-e, 5n a season of &reat s2iritual vi-tory Ali6ah /elted in fear and .e-a/e sui-idal over the threats of !eFe.el, Durin& a season of dis-i2leshi2 and servi-e with the 3ord Peter .e-a/e over-onfident and .oasted of his unwaverin& alle&ian-e to !esus and then denied hi/ three ti/es, 5t was in a season of /inistry that Martha lost si&ht of the 2riority of su./ittin& herself to the tea-hin& of the 1ord of 8od and she su--u/.ed to selfish 2ride and self-2ity .y de/andin& that Mary assist her with do/esti-ate duties,

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Beloved we need to 4now ourselves 4now the season in whi-h we are livin& anti-i2ate those uni?ue te/2tations that are so a22ealin& to us, Our 2rayers should -arry the for-e of Ha&&ai warnin& to a2ostate 5srael when he -ounseled the/ to 9-onsider your ways,< Consider your ways, 5 -lose with a little list of wea4nesses that you /i&ht have so/e -ate&ories and if these resonate within your heart you need to wat-h and 2ray, May.e you have a fas-ination with the 4in&do/ of dar4ness and the world of the o--ult, May.e you have a wea4ness in ter/s of an an&ry and defensive attitude that resents &odly authority, May.e you have a lon&in& to .e noti-ed and affir/ed and in -har&e, May.e you have a se-ret deli&ht in -hara-ter assassination, May.e you have a tenden-y to &ive u2 in diffi-ult -ir-u/stan-es, 'n in-lination to fear /an /ore than 8od, ' wea4ness to .uy thin&s on i/2ulse -redit and overs2end, ' 2ro2ensity to su--u/. to 2eer 2ressure, 'n attra-tion to worldly for/s of i//oral and un&odly entertain/ent, ' 2redis2osition to s2iritual lethar&y when thin&s are &oin& well, 'n attra-tion to 2orno&ra2hy and other for/s of i//orality, ' disre&ard for /odesty di&nity and 2ro2riety, ' 2attern of envy 6ealousy /aterialis/ and dis-ontent/ent, 'n a2atheti- disre&ard for 2rivate worshi2, ' resent/ent of authority, ' -riti-al s2irit that always sees the worst in others, 'n attitude of 2rovin-ialis/ that 6ust doesnt li4e 2eo2le who are different than you and dont share your 2referen-es, Or a heart attitude that sees worshi22in& and servin& Christ in his -hur-h as /erely a duty and not a desire that is an overflow of the do7olo&y of your heart, Beloved -onsider your ways, 3et the li&ht of S-ri2ture shine u2on you so that you see yourself for who you are, 'nd learn what it /eans to e7a/ine your heart and to -ry out to the 3ord 9;ather lead us not into te/2tation .ut deliver us fro/ evil,< 3ets 2ray to&ether, Lord, all of us feel the sting of the lash upon our back because we all have sinned in these ways. I pray that these truths will begin to bear much fruit in our heart. Cause us to live them out. To the praise of your glory, we pray in Jesus name. men, 1e 2ray youve .een edified .y this 2resentation, Eouve .een listenin& to Pastor Bi.le (ea-her and 'uthor Dr, David Harrell, ;or /ore infor/ation or for other /essa&es fro/ Dr, Harrell 2lease visit the Olive (ree Christian =esour-es we.site at ot-r,or&,

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