Fox Television has featured a series Living on Temptation Island recently which I am sure is hoping to draw from the tremendous audience of CBS Survivors Series. I haven’t spend my time watching the show but I have seen the weekly commercials which portray engaged couples being set on an island where they encounter various types of temptations, most it appears in a sexual content, to see if their marriages will last. From what it appears, temptations are winning over sensibility. And isn’t that the way it is with most people who live on this planet, a temptation island of our universe.
Paul, writing about the Israelites who went through the wilderness and had many defeated by temptation said this to us today in 1 Corinthians 10:11-13 These are all warning markers—DANGER!—in our history books, written down so that we don’t repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we are just as capable of messing it up as they were. Don’t be so naïve and self-confident. You’re not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; its useless. Cultivate God-confidence. (The Message)
I. The Danger of Life
Life is not a casual walk in the park. Along your life journey there are dangers, temptations which have been set up to draw you from your purpose in life. I want to highlight those dangers so you will not be ignorant.
D---Double minded in your thinking.
A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. James 1:8 (KJV)
What would cause someone to take a chance on their potential marriage, to be exposed to temptations foolish brought before them? In one of the commercials a participant said something to the effect, this would prove if their marriage would last.
When you start to question the yes of your yes and the no of your no, when you become double minded, the instability caused by your lack of positive decisions will open your life up to all kinds of temptations which you cannot stand against.
In the Garden of Eden the serpent comes to Eve and asks, Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’? –Genesis 3:1b. (NIV). Because Eve was not solid in her decision, all of mankind has paid for her and Adam’s double mindedness.
There is danger ahead if you don’t know what you stand for and what you believe. Society today is paying a heavy price for the instability in marriages. I was watching the Learning Channel where a 14 year old girl gave birth telling the interviewer she was just looking to be loved, she was not looking to get pregnant.
A --- Allurement for Momentary Pleasures
Speaking of Moses, Hebrews 11:25 states He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time.
Sin is an allurement. The danger is in seeking that momentary pleasure of sin, there is long term consequences down the road. It is a game of Russian roulette, eventually the bullet is going to fall into the chamber and once fired the end result is devastation.
This time of the year we see on the news the tragic results which come to some snowmobilers who race down the face of snow covered mountains ahead of the avalanches to whom the momentary pleasure of life ends their life prematurely. Am I saying it is a sin to race the snow? No, but it is a sin to die before your time.
Allurement of momentary pleasure could be staying in bed instead of fellowshipping with the body of Christ. It could be seeking self gratification over the needs of other people. Lets face it, some things are good, but others are better. Would you prefer to do the better or do you seek to do the best? There is a danger in living on temptation island. What you do now, will impact where you go later.
N --- Negative Influences in Your Life
George Washington said, “Associate yourself with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation; for ‘tis better to be alone than in bad company.”
Proverbs 29:3 When good people run things; everyone is glad, but when the ruler is bad, everyone groans.
Proverbs 13:20 Become wise by walking with the wise; hang out with fools and watch your life fall to pieces.
How true that is. When you are around negative people, they have a strong tendency to pull you down if you are not aware. The news was filled with the story of the Texas Seven who broke out of prison, killed a police officer and made it to Colorado where they set themselves up as a group of Christian men coming into the community. When captured, one killed himself and the other six now face the death penalty for the ill gotten friendship they had formed. These men represent a growing population of prisoners who are not in jail by themselves but came with so called friends who impacted their lives with their negative influence. It was two friends who went into Colombine High School and killed their fellow classmates, it is friends who pile into a car and drunkenly weave their way down the highway, it is friends who tell you church is old-fashioned, there is no god who take you down the well worn path of destruction and a final eternal destination in hell. Watch out for the danger signs, it is friends who encourage you to give into the temptation living here on temptation island.
G---Greedy Ambitions will tempt you.
Advertisers are cheerleaders for this temptation on the island. New gadgets you can’t live without, credit just awaiting your signature until one day your bills exceed your income and now you are in bondage because of your greed.
John wrote, Never give your hearts to this world, or to any of the things of it. A man cannot love the Father and love the world at the same time. For the whole world-system, based as it is on man’s desires, their greedy ambitions and the glamour of all that they think splendid, is not derived from the Father at all, but from the world itself. The world and all its passionate desires will one day disappear. But the man who is following God’s will is part of the permanent and cannot die. (Phillips) 1 John 2:15-17
My parents have recently moved. They had been in the house for some time and over the years have collected, as we all do, the trappings of the world. The stuff yard sales are made of. They have made probably well over a dozen trips to the dump, to pay someone to take what they had paid for originally. The desire to accumulate without a plan can be somewhat greedy. My parents paid cash for what they have, they don’t use credit cards or bank loans, but how many are like that? How many check the lottery numbers twice a week to see if they can pay their bills, or fulfill their dreams, thinking more money will take care of their needs. Greedy Ambition is a danger living on temptation island.
He who has the most toys when he dies does not win, he just dies and the toys are hauled to the dump, sold or inherited but they do not pass on over into eternity.
You will make your life smoother if you began to live within your means because to do so outside of your ability is greed. The desire to have what you cannot afford, to be willing to sacrifice your future ability to live by acquiring what you want today on credit. Watch out for your creditors will own you and the decisions you make.
E --- Eyes that wander into the Forbidden Zone.
With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable. 2 Peter 2:14
The attraction of the show temptation island is to see if anyone will wander away with lustful eyes to fulfill forbidden desires. What is the problem with what people do behind closed doors? What is the danger in that? If they get AIDS, they are only killing themselves I have heard said. But that is not true. The cost to the medical community is bore out through increasing medical costs passed on to everyone. Unplanned and unwanted pregnancy is not a closed door problem. Those who are on the welfare roles to support their wandering over into forbidden territory is paid for by the taxpayers. And on and on I could go.
Danny Chambers made the comment, what you feed you mind, you will become in time. The feeding of our mind comes through the portals of our eyes and our ears.
The growth of the internet and all the positive side, has its own first avenue. The largest growing industry on the internet is pornography. Using a search engine to find Biblical information, I continue to from time to time get URL’s to pornographic sights. Young people have been found to increasingly be spending time entering into these zones, tempted on the island of internet. It is so widespread support groups are growing throughout the country to help people get out of the addiction just as they have them for drugs and alcohol.
It doesn’t help in the summer to hang out on the beach, for bikini’s have been replaced with thongs that are little more than a couple of strings attached to a cotton ball. It is not the first glance that destroys, it is the second look. Just ask King David when his eyes wandered from his roof to Bathsheba’s and his kingdom went downhill thereafter.
R---Refusing to Acknowledge Jesus as Lord.
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 4:3-4
Some have pronounced God as being dead, they have no time in their schedule, they are preoccupied with themselves on temptation island, their own pleasure, they have put the Creator out of their mind. When we become so busy with self, it is easy for the god of this world, satan and his band of demons, to blind our eyes to the truth. To know God you have to make room for God in your schedule.
Life is not just about surviving, it is about thriving. I have talked this morning about the dangers of living on temptation island, now I want to conclude by talking about how you can thrive in the midst of the temptations all around, how you can live and grow in the Lord.
L Living is found in serving others.
People who fall into the trap of temptation do so for personal gain. No one is honored in life for what someone gave them, but they are honored for what they have given to someone else. Jesus said in John 12:26, If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall My servant also be; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
If you are looking for joy and satisfaction in life, follow the example of Christ and learn to be the servant of all. Don’t look for what you can get, look for what you can give to make the world a better place.
I Invite Jesus to be Lord and Savior of your life.
Jesus said in John 10:10, The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I come that they might have life, and they might have it abundantly.
Is your life weighed down with the cares of the world? Are you having trouble sleeping at night because of regrets you have? It is time to get a clean start. The devil has been stealing peoples sleep, killing their dreams, and destroying their future for far too long. It is time to move into the abundant life Jesus Christ offers. He invites us to do that. He says Come unto Me all who are weary and heavy-laden and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28).
Tired of the same old, same old. Looking to add spice to your life. Stop looking over the fence and starting looking to Jesus. It is so simple, is seems hard to be true. Ask Him to forgive you of the sins, the indulgences you have taken on temptation island, and ask Him to be the owner of your life, to manage your life in a fresh way. Let Jesus handle the burdens and cares and follow His expert leadership, learning His ways through the Bible and solid teaching and fellowship. Before we close, I will give you the opportunity to make that decision. You can even mark that decision on the welcome cards in the book holder in front of you and give it to me at the end of the service so I can follow up with some great helps.
V – Value other people.
Jesus gave us these instructions on how to live in John 13:34, A new commandment I give you, that you love one another, even as I have love you, that you also love one another.
The best value you can have for another person is the value of love. You will not find yourself involved in covetous behavior, wanting your neighbors possessions, your eyes will not wander off into temptation as King David’s did with Bethsheba. You won’t be fighting and complaining, but you will seek to put your neighbor ahead of your own agenda. Imagine how different the world would be if we did random acts of kindness to our neighbors rather than random acts of violence against them. Do you think they might want to embrace the truth of Jesus if they saw people demonstrating His truth rather than just talking about it. Maybe I can help you jump start this by suggesting you look for a need in your neighborhood and find some way to meet it this week. If you do, you will stand out on temptation island as someone who does not fall into the gutter of living but has found a way to demonstrate the higher ground of real living.
E – Enjoy Life.
Proverbs 4:23 Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flows the springs of life. Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Life is not a list of do’s and don’t. It is a life of fulfilling the desires of your heart which come from delighting in the Lord. When you delight yourself in the Lord, when you are watching over your heart with all diligence, you will not have to worry about picking forbidden fruit, giving into the temptations, doing wrong. In fact, the thoughts will not even pass through your mind because you have learned the secret of true living, delighting yourself in Jesus Christ.
Life will always have temptations. You can make a willful choice to indulge yourself in them, or a willful choice to pass by for the better purpose God has put before you, fulfilling His plan for your life.
We do live on temptation island. Sometimes it might feel we have been shipwrecked here so remember, your rescue is only a prayer away. In fact, why don’t we take time to send up an s.o.s., that’s save our soul, right now, would you bow your heads with me…
Prayer…
Father God, I pray for each one here, many who are weary travelers cast away on temptation island, looking for rescue. Lord, I pray today will be a rescue day for everyone here.
Folks, I want to lead you in a prayer of rescue. So if you are going through some struggles in your life, just pray this prayer with me in your heart. “Dear Lord Jesus, help me today to overcome the temptations all around me. Help me to know the danger and then help me to live. I know I have not always done right in my life and I have indulged on occasion, so would you help me today by forgiving me of my past and leading me into a fresh future. I want today to be a day of new beginnings, so help me with that. I thank you that through your sacrifice, I can have an abundant life. Lord, continue to bring new adventures in my life as I learn how to truly life in and for you. In your name, Jesus I pray. Amen,”
If you have prayed to have Jesus come into your life for the first time or rededicated your life to Christ today, let me or one of the staff know so we can provide you with further information on living the great adventure of life.
