As we survey Pauline literature we will discover fourteen tactical strategies that the enemy will use to come after God's people along with specific antidotes in addressing that problem. See the introduction to this series to receive an overview of this subject.
2. Sexual Temptations, Abuse of Christian Liberty & Addictions
"Sexual temptations are lurking around every corner in our lives today! Resisting the temptation to gratify the flesh is a full-time job." - Gary Rohrmayer
Text: I Corinthians 5:5 – “When you are assembled in the name of our Lord Jesus and I am with you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present, hand this man over to Satan, so that the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord. Your boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?”
I Corinthians 6:12-20 - "Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything. "Food for the stomach and the stomach for food"—but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, "The two will become one flesh." But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit. Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
Problem: "Satan can destroy a life by controlling a person through immoral sexual addiction along with other additive substances such as food, alcohol, medication, etc." J.Robert Clinton
Antidote: "Avoid situations that can lead to sexual addiction and frequently ask the question 'Am I being controlled by these substances, sexual impulses or the Spirit of God?'" J.Robert Clinton
Reflective Questions:
- If the enemy of God were to attack one area of your life do you know what area he would try to exploit?
- What are you actively doing to release the stress build up in your life?
- Are your actively crossing a moral line in your thought life? (Mathew 6:27-30)
- When is the last time you did a rigorous spiritual inventory of your life?
- Have you ever said “I really need...” or “I really deserve...”?
- Have you ever attempted a “spiritual fast” to break “bonds of wickedness” in your life? (Isaiah 58:6)
Prayer: Father in Heaven, I praise You for not only redeeming my soul but for redeeming my body as well. Through the death and resurrection of your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, my body is now a temple for Your Holy Spirit to reside. Holy Father, grant me the courage to deal with sin in my flesh and in the church rigorously. Righteous Father through the power of the resurrection help me to seek want is beneficial and not what is simply permissible. Loving Father, I surrender my desires and sexual impulses to You as I seek to honor You with my body. Father, I desire to treat my relationships with the opposite sex with caution, care and in an honorable way. Heavenly Father You are my master and I desire to be controlled by You and Your desires alone. I come to You in the strong name of Jesus, Amen
Next: Unmet sexual needs within a marital relationship
To view the entire series of posts on Spiritual Warfare
