Over the past millennia, human society has invented new ways to distract its members. As human beings, our world is full of enticements and distractions. Yet, you may be oblivious to any of the temptations or enticements holding you captive. If you want to know the litmus test to determine what is enticing you, look at what behaviours, habits, or desires hinder you in either your physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual health. Continue reading to learn how to begin forsaking all enticements that may come your way.
Don’t Entertain Any Bad Habit
Before continuing on how to forsake the enticements of the world, you must be able to identify what they are. There must first be a diagnosis before there is a treatment.
And, you must first be confident in your relationship with God. Too often, do I hear people claim to have a good relationship with God yet not know who is God. But, to clear all misunderstandings, let’s set the record straight.
The God of the Bible knew how all humans sin. Therefore, no one is fit to enter Heaven as Heaven is only for those who haven’t sinned.
So, God came down in the flesh as Lord Jesus Christ with a ministry of healing, deliverance, and more. Yet, jealous religious leaders decided to pressure the ancient Roman government to crucify Lord Jesus Christ.
But, it was God’s plan to let Himself, Lord Jesus Christ, suffer humanity’s punishment for sin on the cross. In this way, God transferred His righteousness to those who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
Therefore, accept Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour.
Romans 10:9 King James Version (KJV)
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Moving on, in the case of distractions or enticements, one can identify it by seeing how its nature affects you. If you notice that behaviour, habit, or idea comes in-between you and Lord Jesus, then, get rid of it.
Matthew 5:30 World English Bible (WEB)
30 If your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off, and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish, than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna.[a]
In fact, Lord Jesus Christ said in the above scripture, to cut off whatever causes you to stumble. So, when you see a sinful behaviour or an act of the flesh within your lifestyle, forsake it. Now, when Lord Jesus Christ said to cut off one’s hand if it causes one to stumble, He did not literally mean amputating a God-given part of your body. He just meant to immediately get rid of any sinful behaviour immediately.
Crucified with Christ for a Reason
This means that if you see drug addiction within your life, then, stop it, pray to Lord Jesus Christ, and seek the proper help. I also talk about addiction in this post. If you see a tendency to get angry very easily within your life, then, stop it, ask Lord Jesus Christ the grace to come out of it, and seek His counsel through the Holy Bible.
Start forsaking whatever appears to be against the nature of God within your life. That’s why the Bible says to flee anything so as long as it appears to be evil.
1 Thessalonians 5:22-24 King James Version (KJV)
22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
24 Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
Furthermore, the Bible makes it clear to have a fear of the Lord. I talk more about the fear of God in this post. And the main thing to know about the fear of the Lord is that it is when one respects God enough to know that he/she ought not to do certain things which displease Him.
When you honour God with your entire being, you know that He loves you and by nature, it hurts you to hurt God. Since you love God, prioritize Him over all things. If He says not to hold unforgiveness towards anyone, then, start forgiving. Or if He says we ought to be kind to others because God is kind to us, then, start showing kindness to those around you.
The bottom line is that when you have the fear of the Lord, His love develops a desire within you to please Him through whatever you do. And to get that fear of the Lord, you should ask Him for it.
Proverbs 1:7 World English Bible (WEB)
7 The fear of Yahweh[a] is the beginning of knowledge;
but the foolish despise wisdom and instruction.
Forsaking all Enticements
In conclusion, stay away from evil because you know that God loves you and you should make it your utmost priority to do what pleases Him. If there’s something that pleases you but displeases God, then cut it off, because, it will not benefit you.
Rather, do what is good and what you know is not going to hurt you physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually.
1 Corinthians 6:19 World English Bible (WEB)
19 Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
So, make it a constant habit to start forsaking everything you do which ain’t right.
We’re all not perfect, but as children of God, it should be our goal to focus on Lord Jesus Christ and begin forsaking every evil that distracts us.
Hebrews 12:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
The scripture above perfectly summarizes what ought to be our mindset concerning worldly distractions and temptations. What the above scripture means is that we should fix our eyes on Lord Jesus Christ because He fixed His eyes on the joy set before Him. His joy was to see us saved, blessed, redeemed, and His as He suffered the pain of the cross.
Remember that you were crucified with Christ and that whatever distracts you now has no foothold on you because Lord Jesus Christ already defeated every temptation on the cross.
Galatians 2:20 King James Version (KJV)
20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
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