Temptation

It is uncommon now to talk about the Devil.  But sadly he is very real.  The Devil is usually thought of as a grotesque 'Hellboy' looking character.  Instantly recognisable and terrifying to behold.  The promotion of this (false) image is, in fact, one of his cleverest strategies.  The Devil is far more subtle.

The Devil is discreet but he is easy to find if you know what to look for.  The Devil exists in you most powerful temptations.  Temptation has always been the Devils province.  In the Bible we read how Satan tempted Christ in the wilderness.  This story, at first glance, seems harmless enough.  We are always sure that Jesus will not succumb, why would he? The temptation to show his power was not that great - or was it?

Perhaps for Jesus the temptation to display His great power (to turn stones into bread, to defy death) was the greatest temptation of all.  How much easier to control the world than to die for it?

The Devil attacks us in the same way that he attacked Jesus: by finding our most powerful temptations and using them against us.  Big temptations, to commit unspeakable crimes, are easy to spot and resist.  But some temptations seem too trivial to bother resisting - but those are the most dangerous ones!  The temptations to make us mean in a petty way, or lustful, or boastful, or unkind, or selfish.  These are the real dangers because they ‘slip in under our guard’.

We must always be aware of the workings of the Devil lest he should turn us aside from heaven, which has always been his intention.

N