Adam
& Eve (the first temptation) ~ “Now the serpent was
more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.
And he said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, “You shall not eat of
every tree of the garden”?’ … So when the woman saw that the tree was good
for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one
wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She
also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
… And the Lord God said to
the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’
The woman said, ‘The serpent deceived me, and I ate.’ … To the woman God said: ‘I will greatly
multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth
children; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over
you.’ Then to Adam He said, ‘Because you
have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I
commanded you, saying, “You shall not eat of it”: cursed is the ground for your
sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth
for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are,
and to dust you shall return.’ And Adam
called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living” (Genesis
3:1, 6, 13, 16-20).
Samson
& Delilah
~ “Afterward
it happened that Samson loved a woman
in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.
And the lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, ‘Entice
him, and find out where his great strength lies, and by what means we may
overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him; and every one of us will
give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.’
So Delilah said to Samson, ‘Please tell me where your great strength
lies, and with what you may be bound to afflict you.’ … Then
Delilah said to Samson, ‘Look, you have mocked me and told me lies. Now, please tell me what you may be bound
with.’ So he said to her, ‘If they bind
me securely with new ropes that have never been used, then I shall become weak,
and be like any other man.’ … Delilah said to Samson, ‘Until now you have
mocked me and told me lies. Tell me what
you may be bound with.’ And he said to
her, ‘If you weave the seven locks of my head into the web of the loom’ — So
she wove it tightly with the batten of the loom, and said to him, ‘The Philistines
are upon you, Samson!’ But he awoke from
his sleep, and pulled out the batten and the web from the loom. Then she said to him, ‘How can you say, “I
love you,” when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and have
not told me where your great strength lies.’
And it came to pass, when she
pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, so that his soul was
vexed to death, that he told her all his heart, and said to her, ‘No razor has
ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother's
womb. If I am shaven, then my strength
will leave me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.’ When Delilah saw that he had told her all his
heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, ‘Come up
once more, for he has told me all his heart.’ So the lords of the Philistines came up to her
and brought the money in their hand. Then
she lulled him to sleep on her knees,
and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. And she said, ‘The Philistines are upon you,
Samson!’ So he awoke from his sleep, and
said, ‘I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!’ But he
did not know that the Lord had
departed from him” (Judges 16: 4-6, 10-11, 13-20).
Peter,
the Apostle ~ “Having arrested
Jesus Christ, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest’s house. But Peter
followed at a distance. Now when they had kindled a fire in the
midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he
sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, ‘This man was also with Him.’ But he denied Him, saying, ‘Woman, I do not know Him.’ And after a little while another saw him and
said, ‘You also are of them.’ But Peter
said, ‘Man, I am not!’ Then after about
an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, ‘Surely this fellow
also was with Him, for he is a Galilean.’
But Peter said, ‘Man, I do not know what you are saying!’ Immediately, while he was still speaking, the
rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and
looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him,
‘Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.’ So Peter
went out and wept bitterly” (Luke 22:54-62).
Ananias
& Saphira
~ “But
a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. And he kept
back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a
certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has
Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the
price of the land for yourself? While it
remained, was it not your own? And after
it was sold, was it not in your own control?
Why have you conceived this thing
in your heart? You have not lied to men
but to God.’ Then Ananias, hearing
these words, fell down and breathed his last.
So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. And the young men arose and wrapped him up,
carried him out, and buried him. Now it
was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had
happened. And Peter answered her, ‘Tell
me whether you sold the land for so much?’
She said, ‘Yes, for so much.’
Then Peter said to her, ‘How is it
that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your
husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.’ Then immediately she fell down at his feet and
breathed her last. And the young men
came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. So great fear came upon all the church and upon
all who heard these things” (Acts 5:1-11).
The
Divine Temptation (Jesus
is tempted of Satan) ~ “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the
wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was
hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If You are the Son of
God, command that these stones become bread.’
But He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”.’ Then
the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the
temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself
down. For it is written: “He shall give
His angels charge over you,” and, “In their hands they shall bear you up, lest
you dash your foot against a stone”.’
Jesus said to him, ‘It is written again, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God”.’ Again,
the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the
kingdoms of the world and their glory.
And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will
fall down and worship me.’ Then Jesus
said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For
it is written, “You shall worship the Lord
your God, and Him only you shall serve”.’
Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him”
(Matthew 4:1-11).
~
Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT
LIFE NOW
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