Doubt and Desire

Verse of the day: Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”

Our enemy is no less cunning today than he was in the Garden. He and his minions still use tactics that stir up doubt and desire in our hearts and minds. This is the reason why it is so important that we continually draw near to God, so the He will draw near to us (James 4:8). Satan’s tactic in causing Adam and Eve to stumble was to create doubt in Eve, in respect to what God commanded Adam, and stir up her desire to be more like God (in a way not prescribed by God). James 1:14 tells us that each one of us is tempted when we are drawn away of our own lust, and enticed. 1 John 2:16 tells us that all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but of the world. When we are not careful to keep our sinful desires in check, we open the door for the demons to walk through, and dangle what the world has to offer, that draws us away from God, before our eyes. Matthew 6:22-23 reads, “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” When we set our eyes on worldly goals, such as gathering money and material things, we make ourselves vulnerable to allowing the enemy to use our propensity to covetousness to trip us up. If we are born again believers that are not careful about being self controlled, we will allow our fleshly desires to be misused. Those desires are ones that are natural and not sinful, such as a desire to eat (which when not kept under control, can result in gluttony), or have sex (which can result in sex outside of marriage, which is fornication, or adultery, when we lack self-control). Finally, if we allow ourselves to be convinced that outer beauty, and increased vain status, in society, will somehow make us feel more important, or boost our self-esteem; we will eventually self-destruct. God has told us how much He loves us. He proved it by giving us His only begotten Son (John 3:16). He has promised to provide for us, and take care of us. When God tells us, in His Word, that there is something we need to avoid, He always says it for our own good. The enemy always attempts to make us doubt God’s Word and His promises, and stir up in us those desires which lead us to give in to temptation, and sin against God. 1 Peter 5:8 tells us to, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” Note that what the serpent did was stir up doubt and desire, then step aside, and watch as Eve’s desires grew, and snowballed, until he caused both Adam and Eve to sin. We do not see him mentioned, as having further interaction with Eve, after verse 4, because he needed to do nothing else once the doubt was planted, and the desire was stirred up. We must, as Christians, make sure to spend time in prayer, and the study of God’s Word. We must put God’s Word to practice in our lives, and learn to be content with whatever God chooses for us, knowing and trusting that God is already giving us what is better than anything the devil and this world has to offer.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing their sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).