James 1:12-16

² God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. ¹³ And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. ¹⁴ Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. ¹⁵ These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. ¹⁶ So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters.

Not only does James reveal Satan’s purpose and plan but also his end game which is:

• To birth bondage and deliver death

James reminds us that Satan often starts small, just like how a newly conceived baby starts off in their mother’s womb. A fertilized egg, so small you don’t even notice, but then those cells multiply and as it grows it become more and more obvious. The baby grows until it is large enough and healthy enough to survive outside the womb at which point it is born. The baby continues to grow taking on its own personality, becoming more and more independent. Until finally it takes on a life of its own. That is the picture James is painting for sin. It often starts so small and tiny that nobody notices it, but what it births in our life is bondage which left unchecked always delivers death. That is Satan’s evil intention. He intends for you to fail. Small at first. But even a small foothold is still a foothold. And once you give him a foothold, he will use it to devour you. Is there any area in your life where you are giving Satan a foothold? It’s here that James now reminds us of the”

A. Solution to defeating Satan and saying no to sin– Vs 16

Don’t be misled: First James calls us to

• Recognize who is behind the temptation:

2 Corinthians 2:11 says “so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.” 2 Corinthians 11:14 tells us that “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” Satan is a counterfeiter, who hides behind camouflage. Satan is the originator of stealth and if we are going to follow Christ and not fall for a counterfeit, we need to recognize him for who he is. The way that the FBI is able to spot counterfeit cash is that they have taken the time to study the real thing. They are so familiar with the real thing that when they are confronted with a counterfeit it stands out as a fraud. Many of us are fooled by the fake because we are not studying Christ. Why is it critical for me to check each piece of currency? Because once I accept a bill, that piece of money becomes my responsibility. Should I attempt to later deposit that bill in a bank and the teller sees that it is counterfeit, the bill will be confiscated, and I will not be reimbursed. What I accept becomes my responsibility. There is a clear parallel here to spiritual discernment. Just as I am responsible for the money I accept and later attempt to spend, in the same way I am responsible for the teachings I accept, put into practice and later attempt to share with others. Thus, it is my responsibility before God to inspect every teaching that comes my way. We should test each teaching that is presented to us and refusing to accept any that goes against God’s Word. Not only should we recognize but second, we should:

• Reject temptation

Recognize the temptation and flee from it 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” God provides a way out, but we have to take it. I think of Old Testament Joseph who when confronted with. sexual temptation fled. Our problem is that instead of escaping we tend to entertain temptation. In James 4:7 we are told to: “humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” The Solution to not falling for Satan’s schemes is to Submit yourself to God. No one has ever resolved their sin problem by working on it, it’s not by trying but by trusting. Righteousness is imparted not by works but by faith. If we are not careful, we will get caught up trying to do things for Christ instead of doing things in Christ. Learn to focus on the promise not the problems, keep your eyes on the crown of life not on the crud in life? Today chose to pursue God’s prize instead of Satan’s prison.

James 1:12-16

² God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. ¹³ And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. ¹⁴ Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. ¹⁵ These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. ¹⁶ So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters.

It’s here that we come to the:

2. Problem – Vs 13-16

While God has a purifying purpose for testing, Satan’s also has a specific purpose, to poison our lives with his plan. James begins by reminding us of Satan’s purpose and then revealing his plan.

A. Satan’s Purpose – Vs 14

God intends testing for our good, but Satan has evil intents for what God intends for good. Satan twists God’s good tests into temptations. His desire is for us to fail God’s good tests by succumbing to the temptation he brings from them. He does that by tricking us into pursuing his temptations instead of passing God’s tests. Satan goal is to sidetrack us so he can sideline us. He doesn’t want you to be defined by Jesus and refined by the tests, He wants you to be defined by the junk and destroyed by the temptations. Now James uses the word “tempted” or “temptation” 6 times in his introduction. The original word doesn’t necessarily carry the negative meaning that most of us have attach to the word. In the original, it simply meant “test” or “trial”. Where the different meanings come into play is in how that test is intended. See, God ordains the test, He intends it for our good. But Satan intends that same test for evil, that’s when tests become temptations. We need to learn to respond to God’s tests and reject Satan’s temptations which means that we need to understand:

B. Satan’s Plan – VS 15

• To influence our Actions for Evil.

Satan’s goal is to influence your attitude so that he can infect your actions. We are especially vulnerable to listen to Satan’s lies during times of testing, because it’s in these times that we are tempted to walk by feeling instead of by faith. In times of testing often we don’t feel like God loves and cares for us. This is where Satan comes in and starts to feed those feelings, by whispering lies into our life that lead us down the road of ruin. When we listen to his lies and fall for how he twists God’s tests we end up becoming angry with God and letting that anger alienated us from God. What we are often tempted to do when we go through tough tests is to blame God. We shake our fist at God and accuse Him of being mean and unfair. But why do we do that? Because we have listened to Satan and his lies. He loves to twist God’s tests into temptations, so that instead of the tests bringing blessing into our lives, we fall for and follow his temptations which bring bondage. Let’s look at an example of how Satan turns test into temptations by looking at God’s previous test of prosperity and poverty. Where God tests us with prosperity so that we will learn not only how to manage His money but to invest it in ministry. Satan tries to turn that test into a temptation in order to trip you up so that you don’t just fall but you fail. Instead of seeing yourself as a manager of God’s money he wants you to see it as MINE. So that instead of using it to serve you use it for self. Instead of money being a ministry it becomes a misery. While God wants to use prosperity to help develop a proper perspective when it comes to possession, Satan wants to use it to promote pride in your life. Pride will cause you to focus on ME instead of the Master, again pointing you to selfishness instead of service. Before we know it ME and MY wants start to eclipse ministry and God’s Will. 2 Corinthians 4:4 tell us that “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News” One of Satan’s favorite strategies is a Soular Eclipse, an eclipse of the heart. Have you ever experienced an eclipse, that incredible phenomenon when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, and blocks or “eclipses” the Sun. When that happens day is turned to darkness. What’s amazing to me is that while the Sun is roughly 400 times bigger than the Moon, it is also about 400 times farther away from the earth, which is why they often appear to be the same size. While the Moon is tiny compared to the huge Sun it can still blots out the Sun, one because it stands between the Sun and us, and second because it is closer to us. The same is true for us, often we listen to Satan’s lies and let small things get in between God and us so that His light becomes limited in our lives. So, let me ask you what things are you allowing to get in between you and God so as to eclipse Him? What are you focusing on that blots out your vision of God? What is it that eclipses His light in your life? Is it some secret sin that is crippling your sight, are you focused on fear so that you fail to see the Father, or are you so worked up over worry that you fail to worship? Sometimes the occlusion is inside us. There are many people who because of cataracts are for all practical purposes, blind. Cataracts eclipsed the light, but when they undergo surgery to have those cataracts removed the eclipse is gone and their sight is restored. The things around them didn’t disappear they were just eclipsed. The same is true of God, He is still there you just don’t realize it because you have lost your spiritual sight. I want to challenge you to take time and look inside your heart and mind and ask yourself if there are any spiritual, moral or mental cataracts that Satan has been cultivating that are eclipsing God’s light in your life? His light still shines behind the eclipse but it’s not until we deal with the cataract that everything that blocks our vision of God is removed. Now on the opposite side to prosperity is poverty, again God doesn’t test us with humility just to be mean and make us miserable. He uses humility to draw us close to His heart, to learn to depend on his power and not our possessions. While we dislike financially difficult times God loves to display His power through our poverty. Because poverty puts us in a position where we can’t grab His glory, all we can do is brag about His glory. So, let me ask you are you trying to bag or brag about God’s glory? God also used poverty to cultivate contentment in our life, so that our contentment is built on Christ not cash. Because while the world tells us that cash is king, the Word reminds us that Christ is King. Here is where Satan loves to turn God’s test of poverty into a temptation. By using poverty to cause you to complain and criticize God instead of depending on Him. To get caught up in pouting and protesting instead of praise. If we are not careful, we will waste our life’s on whining instead of worship. Instead of the tests bringing you closer to God you let Satan turn them into temptations that batter your belief and cause you to criticize God. Satan’s strategy is simple, he wants to prison your praise. So that instead of a praise filled life, you let poison flood your life. He wants to take you from a love filled life to live a locked-up life. Are you bound up in the lies or living out your belief? You will either be a prisoner to your circumstances or a praiser through your circumstances.