One thing I have learned well in my fifty plus years is that temptation never looks like temptation. You sit smugly in front of the evening news watching a parade of sinners in shackles and quietly think to yourself "I would never do that". No, you would not because the devil knows you would not. Instead, he knows what you "would" and he is a schemer (the dictionary definition being "someone who makes secret plans in order to gain benefit for himself"). He notices your weaknesses and intends to exploit them for his own benefit. So, he tests the waters. He throws a crumb and you eat it, so he throws a bigger one and then a handful until gradually you have finished a loaf. Pay attention, you are not immune. If there is a lion prowling in the high grass you stay alert and strap a weapon to your side. You don't turn your back on it for a brief moment of pleasure, because in the end it will eat you alive.
1 Peter 5:8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
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