Bringing Down a Super-Villain's Defenses

Suggested Reading: Revelation 2:12-17

In Superman II,  three super-powered villains from Krypton come to earth to take revenge on their jailer by killing their jailer’s son, Superman. After several battles where neither Superman nor the villains can gain the advantage, Superman lures them to his Fortress of Solitude in the Arctic. Playing on Lex Luthor’s greed and tendency for betrayal, he tricks the villains into turning on a machine that will eliminate their powers while Superman himself is protected within a crystal vault.  Superman knew that in order to win, he had to eliminate the villains' advantage.

When Israel was wondering through the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land, they wanted to pass through the land of Midian. Balak, the king of Midian, tried to hire a prophet named Balaam to curse Israel so that he could wipe them out, but each time, Balaam’s attempt to curse the Israelites turned into a blessing.  The Israelites were protected by God and, seemingly, there was no way to curse them or defeat them.  Not long after that, however, according to Jewish tradition, Balaam found a way to remove Israel’s singular advantage of God’s blessing. This new tactic is summarized in Revelation 2:14 as the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to place a stumbling block in front of the Israelites: to eat meat sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality (HCSB).  Balaam knew that Israel could never be defeated by Midian so long as they were under God’s blessing so, according to Jewish tradition, he encouraged Balak to send in some seductive women who would encourage the Israelites to engage in idolatry and sexual immorality, breaking God’s laws and removing God's blessing from them so that they could be defeated.

Like the Israelites, we also have an Enemy who roams about like a roaring lion, seeking to devour us. Our Enemy also knows that we can never be defeated as long as God’s blessing rests on our lives, so he seeks to remove that blessing by tempting us into sin and into lifestyles that will separate us from the blessing of God. Our Enemy knows that if we remove ourselves from God’s protective blessings that we can be rendered ineffective and begin living defeated lives. Satan doesn’t always come at us head on, trying to mow us over. On the contrary, the Enemy tempts us to remove ourselves from God’s blessing, to give up our singular advantage.

Choosing to continue in a lifestyle of sin is not harmless. Rather, continuing in sin sets us up for failure and defeat, playing right into the Enemy’s hands. Choosing to sin and allowing sin to have a foothold in our lives amounts to stepping out from under the impenetrable shield of God’s blessing. By doing so, we give up our singular advantage and make ourselves vulnerable to the Enemy’s attacks. Why would we do that to ourselves?

Intentionally engaging in sinful behavior makes us vulnerable to the Enemy’s attacks. Recognize temptation for what it is: an attempt by your Enemy to bring down your defenses.

Impressing Teenage Boys With My Girl Watching Skills

Suggested Reading: Proverbs 7:6-23

When I was in high school, our youth group went to Six Flags Over Texas for the day. When we were ready for lunch, I found myself standing in line with a couple of other teenage boys waiting to order. As we were slowly moving through the line, one of my friends suddenly muttered in a very excited voice, "Wow, she's hot!" The other guys in the line with me immediately turned to stare at the beautiful girl in line several feet behind us but I refused to turn. A couple of the guys urged me, "You've got to look at this girl! She's gorgeous!" I answered that I would but that I refused to turn and stare like a gawking bird and make a fool of myself. The guys described her to me and after a minute or so I twisted like I was stretching one way and then the other, getting a good look at the girl as I did. The other boys in line with me were impressed by the move and began practicing the move themselves as the day went on. I used to be real impressed with myself, too, until I realized that I didn't have a problem with staring just like everybody else. I just had a problem getting caught.

The author of Proverbs struck on the core of this human tendency in a scene where an adulterous woman attempted to seduce a young man walking past her house. The woman said, "Come, let’s drink deeply of lovemaking until morning. Let’s feast on each other’s love! My husband isn’t home; he went on a long journey. He took a bag of money with him and will come home at the time of the full moon” (Proverbs 7:18-20, HCSB). Notice, that the adulterous woman's main selling point is that her husband will be gone for a long time and they won't get caught.

While the author of the proverb was specifically warning about the dangers and temptations of adultery, the seduction method is something we experience in nearly all areas of life. The belief that we won't get caught, that no one will know, can be a strong motivator to do something we know is wrong but we really want to do anyway. Rarely do men look at pornography when their wives are sitting next to them but they watch it when they think they won't get caught. Employees skim a little off the slush fund at work because no one keeps up with exactly how much is in there and they will never get caught. Those little indiscretions on business trips happen because there is no one who will report back to our spouse that we were unfaithful. Or we run that stop sign because no one is around to see us or give us a ticket.

The knowledge that we won't get caught emboldens us to do what we want when, at any other time, we would resist temptation. Las Vegas's "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" motto is built on this foundation. But the definition of sin doesn't change because no one is watching. It's still called cheating even when you don't get caught, and you're still staring, even if no one can tell that you are. Rather than pushing the line and getting away with what we can, we ought to be even more careful with our integrity when no one is watching.

God has called us to live lives of holiness. Are we living with integrity or just trying not to get caught?

Practical Jokes and Balcony Patios

Suggested Reading: James 1:12-18

From time to time I enjoy a good practical joke. When I was in college I had a friend who lived on the second story of an apartment complex and he had a balcony big enough to place a couple of chairs where you could sit and talk. One particular night, several of us were over at his apartment playing Risk and we had taken a break. I announced that I needed to run to my car to grab something and would be right back. When I left, instead of going to my car, I walked around the building to his patio. I climbed up the side of the building, quietly hefted myself over the railing, and then made a very sudden, very loud entrance through the unlocked patio door. I caused a few mild heart attacks and made someone else spew a drink out of their nose in fright before they realized what had happened. At least for me, it was stinking hilarious. And the entire prank was possible because no one ever thought about locking the patio door. After, all, it was on the second story of the building. No one would be able to get in that way, right? But after that night, I never found the patio door unlocked again.

When we deal with temptation one of the greatest dangers we face is the assumption that we are safe from certain sins, that particular temptations hold no danger for us, and so we don’t guard against them. We leave the door to the balcony unlocked. This tendency is what James was addressing when he wrote, No one undergoing a trial should say, "I am being tempted by God." For God is not tempted by evil, and He Himself doesn't tempt anyone. But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death (James 1:13-15, HCSB). Temptation very rarely is a danger because of our outward circumstances. Yes, someone may make us an inappropriate offer. Yes, we may find ourselves in a difficult position where doing something wrong is easier than pushing through and doing the right thing.  But the circumstances in which we find ourselves are not the most important factors in temptation. Our own desires are what trip us up.

When we refuse to acknowledge those hidden desires, those things that linger in the hidden recesses of our hearts, those things no one else knows about, we fail to guard against those particular temptations. After all, what is the point of locking a door nobody can get to? What is the point of reinforcing a foundation that isn’t in danger of fracturing? If we think we are safe, we do nothing to safeguard ourselves. Thus, it is vitally important that we acknowledge those areas where our desires might get us into trouble.

If we yearn for the latest technological gadget but we don’t have the money to spend on it, we might need to avoid Best Buy for a while. If we have trouble controlling lustful thoughts, we might need to avoid being alone with that good-looking co-worker we’ve caught staring at us recently or even stay away from the internet entirely. But when we refuse to acknowledge our own desires, we end up putting ourselves in unsafe positions, positions that will eventually see us yield to a temptation we could have guarded against.

Be honest about the desires that lurk within you. Hiding and denying them only sets you up for failure. Acknowledge them and guard against them. Confide in someone who can hold you accountable and help you set up safeguards. Maintaining a pretense of super spirituality is difficult when your temptation sneaks in through your balcony.

Typhoons and Temptresses

Suggested Reading: Genesis 39:1-10

In Karate Kid, Part II, Daniel and Mr. Miyagi go to Okinawa to visit Mr. Miyagi's dying father. Almost immediately upon arriving they both find themselves confronted by angry rivals seeking to demonstrate how much better they are than the heroes of the movie. Near the climax of the film, in the middle of a typhoon, Daniel's rival, Chozen, refuses to go help a little girl caught in the storm. Instead, Daniel has to save her. Upon seeing Chozen's cowardice and his refusal to help the little girl, his mentor Sato tells him, "Now, to me, you are dead." Chozen had wronged the little girl and her family by not helping but, worse, he had dishonored Sato by being a coward. Sato took Chozen's failure to help the little girl as a sin against himself.

As odd as that interchange may seem to most Americans, a similar kind of honor can been seen throughout scripture. In Genesis 39, Joseph, whose brothers had sold him into slavery, had worked his way up through the ranks at his owner's home and Potiphar had placed him in charge of everything. Potiphar's wife took notice of Joseph and repeatedly tried to seduce him. Joseph's response to her is found in Genesis 39:8-9: Look, my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has put all that he owns under my authority. No one in this house is greater than I am. He was withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God? (HCSB).

For Joseph, while sleeping with his master's wife would be wrong because of his relationship with her husband, Joseph spoke of the situation as a sin against God, not his master. Joseph would not have denied that sleeping with this woman was a sin against her husband, but he understood something deeper and more important: maintaining our integrity must be seen first, and foremost, in terms of our relationship with God.  If we are only concerned about not hurting people or not sinning against people, there may be times we think we can get away with something because no one will never find out. We can cheat on our spouse on a business trip because we are 300 miles away and she will never know. We can fudge our mileage when listing our tax deductions because no one will be able to prove us wrong. But that thinking only works if our focus is on the people involved. When we turn to consider God, who holds us accountable whether people know or not, who sees every hidden act and every desire of our hearts, we must view our behavior in a different light.

While it is important that we avoid hurting people and that we honor people's trust, it is more important that we live a life of integrity before God. We must remember that we ultimately reflect the One who sees everything we do and think, even if no one else ever knows. Does what you do in secret bring God shame or reflect his glory?

Bustin' Up the Devil in a Game of Strategema

Suggested Reading: Ephesians 6:10-20

In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Peak Performance," the Enterprise's android second officer, Data, is challenged to a game of Strategema (think really fancy chess) by a renowned grand master who is visiting the Enterprise. Data, despite the fact that he has a computer for a brain, loses and loses bad. Initially, he has something of a robot pity-party because, after analyzing his performance during the game, he cannot find any mistakes and therefore believes that something is wrong with his programming. So he shuts himself in his quarters and refuses to come out until he can figure out what is wrong with his programming. But after being encouraged by a friend that it is possible to lose without making any mistakes, Data emerges and challenges the grand master to a rematch. Reluctantly, the grand master accepts but just moments into the match, the grand master becomes flustered. As the match continues, the grand master's frustration grows until, finally, he throws down the game controls in disgust and stomps off.

When Data is questioned about the outcome of the game, Data explains that the first time he played he was trying to win and played aggressively. As a result, when the grand master set up traps for Data based on his desire to win, Data fell into them. But the second time, Data chose to play for a stalemate, playing just to stand and make certain that he didn't lose. As a result, according to Data's friends, Data "busted him up."

In a lot of ways, Data's second strategy is exactly the way we should live our lives when battling our greatest enemy, the Devil. In Ephesians 6, Paul instructs us about the spiritual war we face and he commands us, "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes" (Ephesians 6:11, NIV). Then, he repeats, "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" (6:13, NIV).

Paul's instructions for our war with the Devil and the evil forces at work in the world say nothing about attempting to defeat the Devil. Paul is only concerned with making sure that we stand, that we don't fall. The Holman Christian Standard translates verse 13 "so that you may be able to resist in the evil day...to take your stand." James uses similar language when he says, "Resist the Devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7, HCSB).

You see, we don't have to worry about defeating Satan and the forces of evil. That is God's job and that war is already won. All we have to worry about is standing, making certain that we don't fall. We resist temptation. We resist evil when we see it. We resist the forces of darkness when they come against us. But we must never begin to believe that we must defeat them. We must simply remain standing by living lives of integrity and refuse to allow evil a foothold in our lives. The war doesn't depend on us. We just have to hold the line.

Becoming MacGyver Christians

Suggested Reading: Luke 4:1-13

One of my favorite television shows when I was growing up was the original MacGyver. If you aren't familiar with the show, it centered around a man known as MacGyver who was continuously sent on covert and sensitive missions and used common, every day items to create what he needed or to solve problems. Once he used chocolate bars to seal up an acid spill and another time he used a paper clip and a stick of bubble gum to disarm a nuclear weapon. MacGyver never had to worry about the supplies he didn't have. Whatever MacGyver had was enough to save the day. And he had a pretty catchy opening theme song too.

Christians have a lot to learn from MacGyver about how to look at what we have versus worrying about what we don't have. As Satan was tempting a very hungry Jesus , he suggested that Jesus should turn a nearby stone into bread in order to deal with his hunger and thus prove that he was the Son of God. The temptation was multi-faceted and a masterful stroke, not only did he attempt to goad Jesus' ego by saying, "If you are the Son of God…" but he played on Jesus' hunger and tried to focus Jesus on the fact that he had no food. Jesus' response to Satan was "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone'"(Luke 4:3-4, NIV).  Rather than allowing himself to focus on his lack of bread and be drawn in, Jesus reminded both himself and Satan that he had other things at his disposal that could sustain him, referencing Deuteronomy 8:3 which tells us that we can also survive on "every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord."

So my question to you today is: what do you have? So often we focus on the things we don't have. We don't have enough money. We don't have enough time. We don't have enough help. We don't have enough experience. We don't have enough space. We don't have enough opportunities. It is very easy to focus on the things we don't have. But as people who claim to trust in a sovereign God who provides for all of our needs, we spend a lot of time focusing on what we don't have rather than, like MacGyver,  looking around at what we do have and finding that we have exactly what we need.

Sometimes, our focus on what we don't have is a result of simply being narrow-minded - we are so convinced that only this thing will meet the need that we don't even consider other options. But ultimately, focusing on what we don't have demonstrates a lack of trust in God. If we really believe that God provides for all of our needs, our reaction to coming up short ought not to be to moan and groan about not having enough but to look around at what God has given us and believe that, whatever we have at our disposal, God has given us exactly what we need to deal with the situation while we place our trust in God.

If you keep thinking about what you don't have, find an old episode of MacGyver, get some inspiration, and then look around to see what God has given you. You never know when the little you have will be exactly what is needed for God to save the day.