A pastor argues that Christians shouldn't debate temptation but flee it. The sin nature is deceptive and addictive, he says, so reasoning with it is a losing game. Honest self-assessment and avoiding tempting situations altogether is how you win.
Okay, so here's the strategy for actually overcoming this temptation once and for all, that thing you've been battling with for years. You have to flee. The moment you begin to debate with the devil, you've already lost. Far too many Christians overestimate their own personal strength, and the moment the devil begins to tempt them, instead of just running from the temptation, they try to see how close they can get. Now, let me tell you something about yourself you may not have realized. That sin nature, which is not your true identity, but still something you have to battle every day. That sin nature is very, very deceptive. And so in the back of your mind, on a subconscious level, that sin nature is trying to get what it wants. It is addicted to sinful pleasure, and you are battling with that nature. You are battling with that aspect of human reasoning. And so that addict, that sin addict, is going to lie to you in order to get There's a part of you that's trying to reason away boundaries because ultimately it doesn't want the boundaries because it wants what it wants. You have to be honest with yourself. You have to stop thinking that you can debate when you put yourself in a place of temptation. We are taught to flee temptation, not to put up a good fight when we put ourselves in temptation. So don't even put yourself in tempting circumstances. This is the first mistake, especially when you're still heavily battling with the problem. Stop putting yourself in places where you're tempted. Stop giving yourself opportunity to fulfill sinful desires. Flee, run from that temptation. Don't go anywhere near it, and you've already won a portion of the battle.
