How to Respond to Temptation and Satan

One thing is for sure for every follower of Jesus…we will face temptation and attempts from satan to destroy us. Sometimes our flesh will tempt us or tell us things that are untrue and other times I believe satan will try to tell us things to throw us off and remove us from following Christ. If he tried to tempt Jesus, why would he not try to tempt us?

And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. – Luke 4:1-2

It’s amazing to think that Jesus can truly sympathize with our every need (Hebrews 4:15-16). He faces hunger, his body gets tired, at times he is weak…and then satan comes in to try to tempt him. How many times do we find ourselves getting tempted when we are weak? Sometimes we feel like temptation is just too much and it’s going to consume us, but let’s look at how Jesus responds.

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’” And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’”

And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, “‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time. – Luke 4:3-13

We Have Got To Read The Bible

I know sometimes that it’s hard to actually sit down and spend time with The Lord. In fact, it’s really a battle, however, Jesus reminds us of just how important it is to spend time reading scripture.

Jesus responds each and every time with scripture and nothing else. He shows us the importance of reminding ourselves of what the Bible actually has to say along with telling that to satan and/or anyone else who tries to tempt us or destroy us.

Sometimes, we hear these things from satan or ourselves and they are simply untrue:

• I’m worthless.
• I have no value and no purpose.
• Go ahead, no one is looking.
• What’s the point of this anyway?
• Do I really have to spend time doing this?
• See, I knew it, I’m a failure.
• Am I really a follower of Jesus?
• But, I really need this.
• If only I had that, my life would be better.
• I’m stressed and I keep worrying.

Whenever these moments come into our lives (and many have probably already happened today), we must respond with scripture. If Jesus gave us a model and He Himself responded with scripture to satan, then why would we think we would do anything differently? Sometimes we believe if we have certain methods or procedures to take care of temptation, then it will work, but nothing will even come close as much as the Bible itself (Hebrews 4:12).

If Jesus Himself responded to satan with Scripture, why would we respond any other way?

So next time you find yourself being tempted in anyway, remind yourself of the Gospel…remind yourself of Scripture…remind yourself of what He has already done on your behalf. Let some of these verses below help you as you continue to read and study even more of God’s Word in your walk with Jesus.

“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. 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 stand up under it.” – 1 Corinthians 10:13

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” – Galatians 5:22-23

“For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” – 2 Timothy 1:7

“Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.” – Proverbs 19:11

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” – 2 Corinthians 5:21

Questions: What do you think? Have you used scripture in response to being tempted before? Are there other verses you’d like to share? Have you noticed the model that Jesus has given us when being tempted? Please comment below and join the discussion.