The Serpent of Old - Part 1 (Santosh Poonen)

After filling you, the Holy Spirit will lead you into the wilderness to prove His power in you. The greatest proof of you’re being filled with the Holy Spirit is not that you speak in tongues or heal the sick or raise the dead, but that you have power to resist temptation in the “wilderness”. Jesus was tempted in all points of “the world” — the lust of the flesh, the boastful pride of life, the lust of the eyes (I John 2:15-17; Matthew 4:3,6,9) — yet never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). If there’s one thing that characterizes the Devil’s tactics it’s not power, it’s craftiness. He’s not a mammoth, but a serpent. We must not be ignorant of Satan’s devises... 1. Satan Tempts You in Your Mind: Jesus wasn’t actually physically taken to “the pinnacle of the temple” or “a very high mountain”; He was in the wilderness, tempted in his thoughts. You are what you think! (Romans 8:4-8; Colossians 3:1-3; Romans 12:2) 2. Satan Uses Siege Tactics: Satan waited until Jesus had fasted for 40 days before coming to tempt him with food (Matthew 4:2-3). Job’s real temptation was not his physical affliction, but in the pressure that followed it: from his wife, his friends, his own thoughts. Temptation is strongest when it comes dressed as relief from your current affliction. 3. Satan Asks for Just a Little: Rather than force his way in, Satan only asks you to leave the door slightly ajar, and is willing to nudge at it multiple times. His strategy (Genesis 3): 1. Question God’s Word (v1) The Devil does not initially come with an “exclamation mark” against God’s Word. He comes with a “question mark”. 2. Enter into dialogue (v2-3) 3. Oppose God’s Word (v4) 4. Prod you with a sense of entitlement (v5); e.g. “because you are the Son of God…” (Matthew 4:3,6) 5. Appeal to self-pleasing (v6). Temptation does not aim to uproot your tree by force, but to dig around it and loosen your root of faith.