Genesis 3:4-5 – The serpent said to the woman, ‘You certainly will not die! 5 For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil.’
If you have turned from sin to Jesus Christ, you know the joy of the Lord, and you will also know temptation in paradise. When something good for the kingdom takes place, it seems a given that the tempter is not far behind.
There is a great spiritual high that comes when being used by God and the tempter comes to shift us from dependence on God to self. Our adversary never asks us to be his servants, he rather tries to bring us a false sense of security and autonomy from God. ‘You certainly will not die! ’
It is in times that we feel we are experiencing a bit of the paradise to come that we must be most disciplined to remember our need for Christ. Our adversary is continually looking to catch us with our guard down to make compromises that have a greater cost then we could imagine. King David’s unfathomable downfall into greater and greater sin came when things were good and he decided not to go into battle with Israel. He became distracted with forbidden fruit and then became completely autonomous from God. While he was ultimately forgiven by God, there was a lot of death and heartache that ensued.
Heavenly Father, I thank you for all the blessings that often come when walking in your ways. Lead me not into temptation but deliver me from the evil one and help me to stay humble and dependent on you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.