‘For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.’

There is something that we all struggle with everyday. I certainly do and I know it's something you battle with daily. No, I've not had a word of knowledge. It's just that we're human , I'm talking about Temptation. 

 We all have to deal with it, and we all have to make decisions about how we will deal with it.

  The devil uses it to get at me everyday, he uses it to get at us all. He tries to wreck our lives, mess up our relationships and to spoil our walk with God.

  One of the great lies of satan is that the paths down which he tries to direct us lead to fun, pleasure and laughter. That’s a lie that I want to nail because the only place that the devil leads people is hell!!

However, we have to remember that God is always with us and is willing to give us the strength we need to overcome the temptations the devil puts in front of us.

 Jesus knew that we were going to be tempted every day of our lives, and that some of the time, we would fall to that temptation. In Luke chapter 4 we read

 ¹Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. ²After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." ⁴Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' " ⁵Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ⁶"If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written:
   

" 'He will command his angels concerning you,
       and they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. "
⁷Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.  
⁸Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. ⁹"All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." ¹⁰Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only. ¹¹Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him

Jesus spent 40 days in the desert. Three times during that period, He was tempted by the devil.  He was tempted to turn a stone into bread. How did Jesus respond?

He says that man does not live on bread alone, but on the word of God. Then Jesus was tempted to worship the devil in return for all the kingdoms of the Earth, but again The Lord resisted and replied, "It is written:  'Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only'."  Lastly, the evil one told him to throw himself off the highest point of the temple, because it is written "He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully. They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone."  But Jesus refused and replied, "It also says: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' "

Jesus was perfect and therefore never sinned, but He knew that we would, so He showed us what we should strive to do when we are tempted.

 Temptation it not a sin! It's the giving into that temptation that offends God.

Listen, the closer we walk to the Lord the easier it becomes to turn from the things that tempt us. The more we read his word and the more we talk to the Lord in Prayer the easier it becomes to make a stand against the devil and what he tries to offer us.

 We all sin, but it's not all hopeless. God is with us to strengthen us, and help us to overcome the temptations we are faced with.  Even when we do turn away from God and fall in to the temptations, God forgives us and will love us, no matter what.

However, if we have given into temptation it’s very important that we confess our sins to the Lord and ask His forgiveness.

 Recently I preached a message ‘There is power in the name of Jesus’! I felt God tell me to declare His power to heal.  However, one of greatest healings that we can experience is coming to Jesus and receiving His forgiveness.

 There are times when the guilt of sin just overwhelms us and we need to unburden ourselves to God, but words fail us.

Psalm 25 is a Psalm of repentance. If you are struggling to find the right words to say to God use this Psalm as a Prayer.

1 To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul; 2 in you I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemy’s triumph over me. 3 No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame, but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse.

4 Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths;
5 guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Saviour, and my hope is in you all day long. 6 Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.

7 Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O LORD.

8 Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. 9 He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. 10 All the ways of the
LORD are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant.

11 For the sake of your name, O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great. 12 Who, then, is the man that fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way chose
for him. 13 He will spend his days in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land. 14 The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known
to them. 15 My eyes are ever on the LORD, for only he will release my feet from the snare.

16 Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. 17 The troubles of my heart have multiplied; free me from my anguish. 18 Look upon my affliction and
my distress and take away all my sins. 19 See how my enemies have increased and how fiercely they hate me!

20 Guard my life and rescue me; let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.

21 May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you.
22 Redeem Israel, O God, from all their troubles!   AMEN.

 Finally it’s very reassuring to know that when we stumble and fall the Lord is forgiving. However the best way to live is God’s way and that means avoiding those things that we know will trap us into sin.