Resisting the Allure of Sexual Temptation
There’s a legendary story told in Greek mythology about the alluring but dangerous power of three seductive Sirens who lived on an island. These female Sirens, who were half bird and half human, sang songs that sailors in passing ships were unable to resist. They would become so bewitched that they would run their ships aground and perish as they were drawn toward the island of the Sirens.
But there were two wise captains who managed to get their ships along with the sailors beyond the dangerous island without succumbing to the Sirens deceptively enchanting songs.
The first captain to make it past the island of Sirens was Odysseus. He instructed his crews to place wax in their ears to prevent them from hearing their seductive singing. But he did not apply the same method on himself. He did not want to miss the opportunity to hear the singing of the Sirens so he had his crew tie him securely to the mast of the ship. Moreover, he ordered them to not set him free no matter how much he threatened them or pleaded. Odysseus' plan worked. Although he struggled like a madman to get free, the crew obeyed his orders and the ship made it safely past the island of the Sirens.
But there was a second captain with a different kind of strategy. A legendary captain named Jason and his famous crew, the Argonauts, made it past the island by soliciting the help of Orpheus. Orpheus was a renowned musician who played a lute so exquisitely that he could powerfully capture the hearts of his listeners with his beautiful music. He did just that for Jason and his crew. When the ship drew near, before they could hear the songs of the Sirens, Orpheus played his captivating music. The power of his music enabled Jason and his men to resist the alluring but dangerous songs of the Sirens.
Like the two captains, I want two submit to you that there are two strategies that we must employ to overcome the temptations of this life which look and sound so good, but will destroy our souls.
In Genesis 39, Joseph, who had a heightened awareness of the holiness of God, employed two essential strategies for resisting temptation. Joseph was in awe of God and he did what he could to avoid the seductress.
Joseph didn’t overcome the intense external temptation of the seductress because of low testosterone levels, rather, he overcame through a superior internal awareness of the captivating glory of God. But the captivating awareness of God that he had in that moment of temptation did not just arise out of nowhere. He had great thoughts of God in the heat of the moment because he set his mind on God in his everyday life.
What’s more, when the temptress tried to get his attention, he turned his attention to God—a God that he knew intimately—a God whom he was in awe of—a God who satisfied the deepest longing of his soul (Psalm 63).
In addition to Joseph’s awe of God, he triumphed over temptation because of his avoidance of the seductress. Under the circumstances (Joseph was a slave), he did the best that he could to stay away from the temptress:
“Joseph gave the temptress no time, no attention, no chitchat, no reason for hope…When her number appeared on his cell phone, he did not answer. When she texted a question, he didn’t respond. When she entered his office, he exited. He avoided her like the poison she was.” (Max Lucado)
It's been said, “He that would not fall ought not to walk in slippery places.” Don’t put yourself in positions that will feed your fleshly appetites. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.” Romans 13:14
Joseph did his best to avoid the temptress, but she was relentless:
Joseph did not try to talk his way out of this one. He did what we must all do in a heated situation like this: “Saturate the place with your absence” (Adrain Rogers).
When it comes to maintaining sexual purity, you must have clear boundaries. You can’t wait until the heat of the moment to decide how far is too far.
I appreciate these wise words from one Christian author in this article:
To overcome temptation, we need more than will power. We need an awe of God that gives us the strength to avoid and flee (2 Timothy 2:22). We need to experience the superior joy of close fellowship with God that comes from drawing near to Him and walking in His light to overcome the deceptive song of the Sirens of this world. (1 John 1:5-10)
Like Orpheus' song that overcame the sirens' songs, the saints in heaven sing, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain…” (Revelation 5:8-14). When we are redeemed by the blood of Jesus, we are set free from sin's alluring power to hear the voice of God and enjoy His presence, to join the choir of heaven. We come to know a Father who makes Himself known to His children and delights in them.
The prophet of the Lord revealed: “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). Knowing God, singing the songs of the redeemed, and hearing our Father’s song over us--His delight, His smile--is the power that overcomes the deceitfulness of sin.
The allure of temptation will lose its grip when we take time to listen to God’s captivating voice and enjoy His transforming presence—when we bask in all that God is for us in Christ. God is faithful! Not only can we trust Him to make a way of escape; living in His light and enjoying His fellowship is our escape.
-Pastor Marco
But there were two wise captains who managed to get their ships along with the sailors beyond the dangerous island without succumbing to the Sirens deceptively enchanting songs.
The first captain to make it past the island of Sirens was Odysseus. He instructed his crews to place wax in their ears to prevent them from hearing their seductive singing. But he did not apply the same method on himself. He did not want to miss the opportunity to hear the singing of the Sirens so he had his crew tie him securely to the mast of the ship. Moreover, he ordered them to not set him free no matter how much he threatened them or pleaded. Odysseus' plan worked. Although he struggled like a madman to get free, the crew obeyed his orders and the ship made it safely past the island of the Sirens.
But there was a second captain with a different kind of strategy. A legendary captain named Jason and his famous crew, the Argonauts, made it past the island by soliciting the help of Orpheus. Orpheus was a renowned musician who played a lute so exquisitely that he could powerfully capture the hearts of his listeners with his beautiful music. He did just that for Jason and his crew. When the ship drew near, before they could hear the songs of the Sirens, Orpheus played his captivating music. The power of his music enabled Jason and his men to resist the alluring but dangerous songs of the Sirens.
Like the two captains, I want two submit to you that there are two strategies that we must employ to overcome the temptations of this life which look and sound so good, but will destroy our souls.
In Genesis 39, Joseph, who had a heightened awareness of the holiness of God, employed two essential strategies for resisting temptation. Joseph was in awe of God and he did what he could to avoid the seductress.
“And after a time his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master's wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” Gen. 39:7-9
Joseph didn’t overcome the intense external temptation of the seductress because of low testosterone levels, rather, he overcame through a superior internal awareness of the captivating glory of God. But the captivating awareness of God that he had in that moment of temptation did not just arise out of nowhere. He had great thoughts of God in the heat of the moment because he set his mind on God in his everyday life.
What’s more, when the temptress tried to get his attention, he turned his attention to God—a God that he knew intimately—a God whom he was in awe of—a God who satisfied the deepest longing of his soul (Psalm 63).
In addition to Joseph’s awe of God, he triumphed over temptation because of his avoidance of the seductress. Under the circumstances (Joseph was a slave), he did the best that he could to stay away from the temptress:
“And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her.” Genesis 39:10
“Joseph gave the temptress no time, no attention, no chitchat, no reason for hope…When her number appeared on his cell phone, he did not answer. When she texted a question, he didn’t respond. When she entered his office, he exited. He avoided her like the poison she was.” (Max Lucado)
It's been said, “He that would not fall ought not to walk in slippery places.” Don’t put yourself in positions that will feed your fleshly appetites. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.” Romans 13:14
Joseph did his best to avoid the temptress, but she was relentless:
“But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house." Gen. 39:11-12
Joseph did not try to talk his way out of this one. He did what we must all do in a heated situation like this: “Saturate the place with your absence” (Adrain Rogers).
When it comes to maintaining sexual purity, you must have clear boundaries. You can’t wait until the heat of the moment to decide how far is too far.
I appreciate these wise words from one Christian author in this article:
“When I was young and dating, I remember thinking, 'Well as long as you don’t actually do the thing that makes a baby––you’re ok.' And truth be known, many of my Christian friends were under this same delusion. Maybe you think this is a fair standard as well. The problem lies in not understanding your sexuality.
Hebrews 13:4 says the marriage bed is undefiled. God created our bodies to enjoy the act of marriage. And He made our bodies to respond to foreplay leading up to intercourse. (You may be uncomfortable, but stay with me here.) What happens when singles enjoy 'make-out sessions' is they are actually involving themselves in foreplay, that act God designed to prepare our bodies for sex.
When unmarried couples play with this kind of fire, their bodies are thinking, Ok, I am preparing for sex. So, depending on how long this type of interaction occurs in their dating relationship, eventually, the couple’s defenses let down, and they give in to what their actions have been preparing their bodies to do.
In other words, foreplay is sex. It’s all sex. And in the marriage bed, it pleases the Lord. Outside of marriage, these actions will take you down a path that is not Spirit-led, confuses your emotions, and tempts you to have sex before you wed––even though you may have committed to staying pure.
When a Christian couple has sex before marriage, the Holy Spirit will convict their hearts of their sin. Many miss-matched couples have married out of guilt (or unplanned pregnancy) which leads to all kinds of difficulties in marriage.
And if you’re caught in the habitual sin of immorality, your actions quench the Spirit’s leading in your life. Imagine the trouble that can come from not being Spirit-led while making the most important decision of your life––choosing with whom you’ll marry and raise a family.”
To overcome temptation, we need more than will power. We need an awe of God that gives us the strength to avoid and flee (2 Timothy 2:22). We need to experience the superior joy of close fellowship with God that comes from drawing near to Him and walking in His light to overcome the deceptive song of the Sirens of this world. (1 John 1:5-10)
Like Orpheus' song that overcame the sirens' songs, the saints in heaven sing, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain…” (Revelation 5:8-14). When we are redeemed by the blood of Jesus, we are set free from sin's alluring power to hear the voice of God and enjoy His presence, to join the choir of heaven. We come to know a Father who makes Himself known to His children and delights in them.
The prophet of the Lord revealed: “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). Knowing God, singing the songs of the redeemed, and hearing our Father’s song over us--His delight, His smile--is the power that overcomes the deceitfulness of sin.
The allure of temptation will lose its grip when we take time to listen to God’s captivating voice and enjoy His transforming presence—when we bask in all that God is for us in Christ. God is faithful! Not only can we trust Him to make a way of escape; living in His light and enjoying His fellowship is our escape.
-Pastor Marco