Introduction
1. Keys...
These are my keys (explain what my different keys do...focusing on unlocking things)
Keys are very important...
They unlock other things...
Cars...trucks...motorcycles...homes...sheds...
Safety deposit boxes and much more...
In fact, the word KEY means among other things...
“of paramount or crucial importance”
2. As we continue to study our Biblical ABCs...
we come to the letter T...
T is for Temptation...
Temptation is a fact of life for everyone...
Christians and non-Christians alike face temptation...
As Christians, we must be able to overcome temptation...
temptation itself is not sin...
But yielding to temptation is a sin...
And, if we are going to live a victorious Christian life...
if we are going to successfully pursue our quest of a lifetime of growing closer to the Lord...by the power of the Holy Spirit...
we, as Christians, have got to find a way to overcome temptation...
thankfully, God’s word is not silent on this issue...
Throughout the Bible, we have some very practical advice on how we can overcome temptation...
3. Standing before us, are 3 locked doors...
blocking us from enjoying true spiritual victory...
and God’s Word has given us 3 keys to unlocking those doors...
and, if we will unlock all 3 doors...
we will find that we are able to enter in to a victorious Christian life...
that doesn’t mean that we will never face temptation again...
But, God has given us the KEYS to OVERCOMING temptation as it occurs in our lives.
Read Text: Psalm 141:1-10
3 Keys to Overcoming Temptation
1. The First Key to Overcoming Temptation...is to maintain consistent spiritual Discipline. vv. 1-2
A. One very important spiritual discipline is prayer.
Psalm 141:1-2a
“O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to me.
Hear my voice when I call to you.
May my prayer be set before you like incense”
We find prayer to be of utmost importance in overcoming temptation...
In Matthew 26:14, Jesus says "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak."
As Christians, what we do when temptation comes...
has a powerful impact on our ability to either withstand temptation...
or whether we succumb to temptation...
If we flirt with temptation...
if we allow our eyes to dwell on that thing that tempts us...
if we allow our hearts to become filled with desire for that thing that tempts us...
then we are much more likely to succumb to temptation...
However, when temptation comes...
if we will bow in prayer...
if we will ask God to empower us by His Holy Spirit...
if we cry out to the Lord in our times of temptation...
we are must more likely to withstand that temptation...
and continue on in spiritual victory.
B. Another important spiritual discipline is corporate worship.
Psalm 141:2b
“May the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice”
The picture that David is painting here...
is the picture of the priest in the Temple offering the sacrifice for the sins of the people...
As God’s people make their way to, in David’s day, it was the Temple...
In our day, it is the Church...
then we come into the presence of God...
as we worship the Lord together with our brothers and sisters in Christ...
we can gain the power we need to overcome temptation...
on the other hand...
if you have a Christian who only make half-hearted attempts to attend church...
if you have a Christian who allows unimportant things to enter in and take the place of attending church...
then you will have a Christian who is unable to successfully withstand the power of tempation...
and it won’t be long before they are overcome by that temptation...
and then, they aren’t a Christian no longer...
But David found that entering in to God’s house...
worshipping the Lord together with fellow believers...
gave him power to overcome temptation...
C. There are other spiritual disciplines that help us too...
Fasting, when added to prayer, gives us more strength to overcome temptation...
One of the major temptations that people face is in the area of how they use their money...
1 Timothy 6:9 says, “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.”
Christians who do not tithe...
are in great danger of falling into temptation...
As a pastor...when I see people who do not tithe regularly...
I often see people who struggle spiritually...
and they don’t seem to be able to live a life of spiritual victory...
and the reason is because they have robbed God in the area of tithes and offerings.
D. As Christians, if we want to overcome temptation...
we must maintain consistent spiritual disciplines...
specifically, prayer, attending church, fasting, and tithing...
2. The Second Key to Overcoming Temptation...is specific prayer. vv. 3-7
A. Guard my Mouth.
Psalm 141:3 says, “Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.
Sometimes, our mouths can get us into trouble...
we speak before we think...
and the wrong thing comes out...
we hurt someone’s feelings...
we speak judgmentally...
we tear down instead of building up...
and we commit sin...
But David prayed specifically for God to guard his mouth...
and we need to pray the same way...
ask the Lord to help us speak words of love, kindness, gentleness, and peace...
B. Guard my Heart.
Psalm 141:4 says, “Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil, to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers; let me not eat of their delicacies.
David prayed that God would guard his heart...
our hearts...our inner person...the place our emotions and attitudes lives...
that is the place that we need God to guard...
James says, “each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed”...
When we allow our desires to hold sway over our actions...
then we will quickly fall into temptation and commit sin...
Pray for God to guard your heart...
C. Guide my Friends.
Psalm 141:5a says, “Let a righteous man strike me--it is a kindness; let him rebuke me--it is oil on my head. My head will not refuse it.
One of the great things about the church is that we have friends...
fellow Christians who can help guide and direct us...
they pray for us and encourage us...
they help us along our journey with Christ...
they can gently and kindly rebuke us when we are wrong...
so, we should pray for God to guide our Christian friends as they help us to live a victorious Christian life...
D. Guard against Sin.
Psalm 141:5b says, “Yet my prayer is ever against the deeds of evildoers”
We need to pray for our enemies...
we need to pray for those who are fighting against Christ and the Christian way...
In Matthew 5:44, Jesus said, “But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”
E. As we engage in specific prayer...
we are able to overcome temptation...
3. The Third Key to Overcoming Temptation...is Sovereign Protection vv. 8-10
A. we need to Fix our eyes on Jesus.
Psalm 141:8 “But my eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign Lord”
Our eyes are the doorway to the soul...
where we focus our eyes...our vision...
that’s where our hearts are...
if we are focusing our eyes on the world...
if we allow ourselves to get sucked in by worldly desires...
then we open ourselves up for temptation...
But, if we fix our eyes on Jesus...
then we give ourselves the means to overcome temptation in our lives...
B. We also need to Pray for protection.
Psalm 141:9 “Keep me from the...traps set by evildoers”.
Satan would like nothing better than for a Christian to fall into sin...
and there are those in the world today...
who rejoice whenever a Christian falls into sin...
and they use that to perpetuate the idea that the church is full of hypocrites...
For every Jim Baker, Jimmy Swaggart, and Ted Haggart that succumbs to temptation and commits sin...
there are those that celebrate and gloat over a fallen Christian...
And it’s not just those who are famous who fall into sin...
but even you and I...
people are watching us...
our neighbors...
people outside the church...
and if you fail to live up to the Christian ideal...
there are those who secretly rejoice.
But David was wise in praying for protection...
Protection from sin...
protection from satan...
protection from those who do satan’s bidding...
protection from those who would like nothing better than to see a Christian fall from grace.
Conclusion
1. Keys are great for unlocking things...
Here in Psalm 141...
we find 3 keys that will unlock the doorway to spiritual victory!!
The First Key to Overcoming Temptation...is to maintain consistent spiritual Discipline...specifically, prayer, church attendance, fasting, and tithing...
The Second Key to Overcoming Temptation...is specific prayer.
Pray for God to guard your mouth...
and guard your heart...
that He would guide your friends...
and guard against sin...
And The Third Key to Overcoming Temptation...is Sovereign Protection
we need to fix our eyes on Jesus...
and we need to pray and ask God to protect us...
2. If we will use these 3 keys...
you will be able to unlock the doors to spiritual victory!!!
You won’t be so easy tossed around by the storms of temptation...
but you will be able to resist the devil...
Let me conclude with 1 Corinthians 10:13
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.
Another paraphrase says this:
No test or temptation that comes your way
is beyond the course of what others have had to face.
All you need to remember is that God will never let you down;
he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit;
he’ll always be here to help you come through it.
