An Onslaught Of Temptation

Why do I yet yearn for forbidden fruit,
The evil lust that plagues my mind despite
Earnest efforts to dismiss and uproot?
Have I not placed Him first, with all my might;
Oft filled the pew; prayed both night and day;
My heart, mind, and soul fixed on holy things;
Old ways expelled; past habits willed away?
I have found that Satan much tempting brings,
A doubled onslaught when the convert's new;
He's always near me, even in the church,
Sitting alongside, in whatever pew,
Whispering slyly, hoping to besmirch!
Wonder not from where lusting rears its head,
Even in the pew, which devils ought to dread!

It is my hope and prayer that someone who reads my blogs will turn to Jesus Such a one must be warned that Satan attacks a new believer with redoubled fury, hoping to turn him back from God's "strait and narrow" to the "broad" path that leads to destruction. So long as one is drifting along in the grip of sin, the devil rarely approaches him. When one of his huge crowd seeks to turn his life around to God, Satan becomes an angry
tiger and does his utmost to reverse his course.

It comes as a surprise to the new believer to discover that the devil and his demons don't hesitate to invade any church. The non-Christian world generally believes that church members are perfectly righteous, or worse, they think they are. The fact is, church members are all sinners, both in their past lives and their present lives. They are still sinners; the difference is only that they have been forgiven by Jesus Christ, which includes even present and future sins, and, some more, some less, are trying to shed their old habits and to live more like Jesus did. The beginning Christian should be faithful in church attendance, because the truths of God are preached there, and Paul tells us that the way to build up meager faith in God is by listening to the preaching of the Bible; also, there are stalwart mature soldiers of Christ there who are eager to lend their encouragement and support.

It may surprise you to learn that sins can be committed in the mind; all sins are not physically performed. The sins of envy, covetousness, and a great many sexual immoralities are mental. Jesus said if one looks on another with lust in his mind, he/she has already committed the sin of adultery. But please understand this: Fleeting inappropriate thoughts enter the mind of every person; these are temptations of the devil and not sin. Dwelled upon; extended; recalled over and over; these are sins. Even in church, where God is closest to us, glimpses of "jigging bottoms and bosoms"; startling body language; suggestive remarks; etc., are temptations that induce us to sin, if we are not alert and don't put them out of mind quickly and completely.