It's A Trap | Jason Martin

You're listening to a message to go from ax Church. We hope this message

will light up your tea. First slide, All right, how many of

you all know what this picture is. It's a funfair? Right? How

many of you all been to a fun fair before? Okay, so you

think about it, right, you've been to a funfair maybe as a kid,

and then now that you have kids, you go to a funfair as

an adult. Okay, same place, different experience. So when you're a

kid, right and you go to this kind of boots, what do you

what do you feel or what what? What's your expectation? Yes, the

kids say, hey, I want to get the biggest toy, and it's

so easy. All you have to do is give me money. I will

try and do it. It looks so easy, and all the parents would

be like hey, no, no, no need. But then as a

kid you'll be like, hey, I want to try. You know,

it looks easy, very easy. I just have the pop balloon, non,

So what's so difficult? Or throw the basketball in a ring three times?

Then you get a soft toilet or stuff like that, right, um,

And then when you are an adult, Right now, they're an adult

and taking my kids to this place. I'm like, hey, don't waste

money, lah, you know you're not gonna win one. You know,

you know you're not gonna win. And then the thing is you say it's

rigged, right, it's rigged, and sometimes we know it's rigged. But

as kids, you still have that expectation. You are very optimistic. I'm

sure I can win one, right, and this right leads us. You

know why kids feel this way, It's because again, like what I mentioned,

it's called optimism, right, but adults also have this optimistic train of

thought. How many of us, right, you feel that, hey,

don't worry la today, I'll eat cake. Tomorrow, I go Jim,

It'll be okay. One I will still remain healthy, you know. Or

I don't need to do my medical check up. I think I feel good,

I look healthy, don't need one. So you have this optimism right,

and this right, it's not all of us experience this, and it's

this thing called optimism optimism bias. Next line, So optimism bias, right,

is this thing where Okay, it's like having a positive outlook or expecting

things to turn out well, even if there may be reasons to be cautious

or worried. Any of y'all have optimism bias. Right, Sometimes I as

I have optimism bias. Ay, it can happen to you, what won't

happen to me? Lah, you know it can happen to anybody else?

Or you just think that a exam coming, don't worry. Still got time,

got time I study? Last minute also will pass on And then the

last minute you're like fasting and praying there how many us have been there?

Right? Like there you're like praying, like God, if I pass this,

I will serve you all my life. You know I've been there,

done that, that kind of thing. But but we when we have ample

of time, right, we were very optimistic, even though we think we

know that it's caused for consent, but we choose to be optimistic. Okay,

um. And you know the other big thing right is on why the

lottery is a big, multi billion dollar industry. Why is the lottery a

multi billion dollar industry? It's because, right, people have optimism. Buyas

you feel that, hey, I buy this honor. How you know,

maybe I can be a billionaire tomorrow. Tomorrow I can tender my resignation.

So last time, when I went for lunch, with my colleagues ex colleagues

in all this, right, So after lunch on Fridays, they will usually

go and buy their forty ticket. Then I say, I won't buy Lah.

They say, hey, you don't buy, it's okay, La.

You you pray for us LA to win, you know. So they're like,

I'm like, I don't think it works that way, but anyway,

and then they say, and maybe you buy, then God will bless you,

then we will get blessed or so. So they're very optimistic. That's

why I said the lottery right, it's uh it ties on op deepness,

optimism bias. Okay, So let me go to my next light. So

the next light, right, what are the odds? What are the odds?

So everything is if you watch like the Hunger Games or whatever, the

odds made the odds, you know, what are the odds? So being

named Jacob one in one hundred and seventy nine people have the name Jacob Okay.

So these are some stats I got. I got from the website.

Uh Okay, being a president of the United States one in two hundred and

nine million, because you know, there are two hundred and nine million residents

in America only one can be a president. Okay. You want to win

an oscar one in eleven thousand, five hundred. Okay, you want to

win the lottery one in forty five million, one in forty five million.

Let me think about a forty five million people. Why only one person wins?

Next, having triplets. It's easier to have triplets than to win the

lottery. It's easier to have different winning the lottery. So having triplets one

in sixty two thousand, five hundred. Okay, how many of you all

hacks cracked double egg yolk before? Ah? You see the odds are higher,

right, one in one thousand people. Let me even go one thousand

people. At least one person would have cracked the double before. So you

can see the odds. Okay, existing one in ten. I don't know

how many trillion partilions. You know why? Because right, how many sperms

are there? You are? You are a living You have beaten the odds.

Tap your neighbor and say you have beaten the odds. All right,

So this is just some facts. But what I wanted to bring across,

right, is that sometimes when we have this optimism bias, right optimism bias,

it fauss we fall into a trap, right, We fall into a

trap if we think that it a it if bad things happened, it will

happen to everybody else except me. If I be if I buy the lottery,

I will probably win, you know, And that's how they pull in

the money. Um, and y'all be thinking, how does this tie into

my message? Right? The title of my sermon today is it's a trap.

It's a trap. Okay. So it's a trap. And why am

I saying it's a trap? Right? Like for example, the fun fair

games, it's a trap. You know it's a trap. They will let

you win a bit, but majority will lose. Same thing. How do

casinos prosper? Why it is Las Vegas and contain doing very well because they

know it's a trap. They let you taste a bit. They wants to

get you in. You are stuck and you get sucked in, all right,

And same thing as the lottery. Okay. So it ties back to

the Lord's prayer. And this is the last part of the Lord's prayer.

So I have shared all about the Lord's Prayer for the previous semnths, and

this is actually the last part of it. So let me read it so

he said to them, when you pray, say our father in heaven,

Hello, Media, your name, your kingdom. Come. Your will be

done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our

daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is

adapted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us

from the evil one. Okay, so it says, lead us not into

temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. So what is temptation?

Temptation is a trap? Temptation is a trap? Next night? Okay,

how many of you all know what is this? Yes, it's a venus

fly trap. See the kids are yes, So a venus fly trap.

Right, y'all know this is a venus fly trap. How does a venus

fly track attract flies? Yeah? Through the nactar. So Jet is very

well experienced in the venus fly trap. I think he had one before.

So it produces nactar that attracts flies. And the flies what they do is

they come closer and closer towards the smell, and they will go in and

they will touch and take the nectar. But you know the venus fly trap,

right, it will not close immediately if you need to touch a few

of the receptors, and then only will close. So that way it conserves

energy. So right, you go in, you touch one time, you

think, okay, right, not dangerous. There you go in, you

touch again, and then before you know it, you are caught. And

that is how the venus fly trap is. Okay, So that temptation is

a trap. What is temptation? So temptation is to an invitation to engage

in sinful or harmful behavior, often influenced by evil forces, leading individuals away

from God's will and moral principles. So this is what temptation is. It

will lead us away from God, all right, and if you look at

it, right, it's sinful or harmful behavior. So temptation, right,

it will cause you harm if you engage. Okay, you think about the

funfair. How many of you all lost a lot of money. I was

like, oh, fifty ring it so fast? Can finish in the funfair?

You know? And there you come up with them cheap cheap key chains

or whatever it is. Yeah, So this is what temptation is. Okay,

So let me go into the verse next, So blessed. This is

from James one verse twelve. Blessed is the man who endures temptation, for

when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which

the Lord has promised to love to those who love him. Let no one

say, when he is tempted, I'm tempted by God. For God cannot

be tempted by evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone. But each one

is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then,

when desires conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is

full grown, brings forth to death. So this is what temptation is.

You look at the yellow phrase, right. Each one is tempted when he

is drawn away by his own desires and entice. So think about it,

right, your The temptation right is customized to you. The temptation is a

trap that is customized to you. It may work on you, but it

may not work on somebody else, you know, And it preys on your

desires. So when you have that desire, if you don't curb that desire,

right, what happens. It's conceived and then you when you you indulge

in that desire, it gives birth to sin and then ultimately is sin that.

So think about the venus fly trap. The fly is attracted to the

nectar. The nectar smells good. The fly decides to go and reach for

the nectar. Right and slowly, but surely, it leads to the flies

death. You know. So that is what temptation is, and temptation right

as soon as we were born, temptation was there. So if I go

to the next line, Genesis tree. Now the serpent was more crafty than

any of the wild animals the Lord God has made. He said to the

woman, did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the

garden. And the woman said to the serpent, we may eat fruit from

the trees in the garden. But God did say you must not eat fruit

from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must

not touch it, or you will die. Next line, you will not

certainly die, the serpent said to the woman, for God knows that when

you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be

like God, knowing good and evil. When the woman saw that the fruit

of the tree was good for the food and pleasing to the eye, also

desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave

some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. Then

both of their eyes were opened and they realized they were naked. So they

so thick leaves together and make covering for themselves. So you can see it

right. Temptation was there from the start, and the devil is the mastermind.

He knows what makes us stick. So when he went to Eve,

what did he do? He put in the desire to one wisdom, and

then he also planted the doubt that God. Did God release it? But

if Eve decided to cut it off there and not talk about it all,

this would not have happened. We'll probably still be in the garden of eden

La maybe you know. But this is how this temptation is nothing new.

Okay, It's there from the start. So this so you'll understand what is

temptation right now? Okay, So next line, will I be tempted?

How many of y'all say you will never be tempted? Tempted? Okay,

I will get Okay. They are trying to get the note into the form

that they have there. But that's why I'm trying my best to give it

in their point form. Hempsteady. So will I be tempted? How many

of you all think you will not be tempted? Everyone will be tempted.

Jesus was tempted. You know that Jesus was tempted, but he did not

give into temptation. And this morning when you got up in the morning,

how many of y'all hit snooze your alarm? Rank? How many of you?

All? Right, you're the time of person your alarm rings, you

automatically spring out a bit. How many of y'all hit the snooze? Yeah?

So, so you see it right, every decision we make, we

have we attempted. We have a decision to make, whether it's to the

flesh or towards what God wants us to do. All right, even coming

to church today, how many of us are tempted to not turn up to

church? To be honest, I mean, I although I'm preaching here,

right, I was like this morning, I woke up this morning, then

preparing the sermon, then I check my WhatsApp, Right, oh, my

friends all going cycle. I'm like, man, am I like I'm just

being honest because I'm like, I'm like, I was tempted, so that

temptation will always be there. Temptation is always there. You know. You

cannot uh uh this, uh, you cannot escape from temptation. It will

always be there. Whether you go to work. You go to work,

whether you do your work well or decide to take to chill, that's up

to you as well, whether in you'd want to decide to do what God

wants you to do or not, like, for example, eating well.

Even if you have a salad versus eating healthy, then you'll be like,

oh, I'm tempted, you know. Then you'll be like, hey,

don't tempt me. Then you blame the tempted, you know. But actually

the choice is you, right, So will you be tempted? Okay?

So next light, So I go back to Genesis three, so I highlight

it right. Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in

the garden? So the enemy has two strategies in temptation. First of all

is to make us doubt that God is good. Because this is what he

did. He made Eve doubt that God was good. That means right,

he caused Eve to change her view. Eve had the whole garden of Eden.

Imagine that she had the whole garden of Eden, but the devil made

her focus on what God told her she could not do. So this morning,

right, remember when we sang the worship song. I want to see

the world through your eyes. Are we seeing the world through God's eyes or

are we seeing the world through the eyes of temptation? Because when we see

through the eyes of temptation, you'll be like, like, this morning,

I told you, right, I cannot cycle. Oh my friend's going cycling.

I cannot go cycle. And I'm like, if I'm looking through my

eyes it's about flesh, I feel that I am losing out. But if

I am looking at it through God's eyes, a I have a privilege to

serve God with the talents that he has given me. So focus on how

good God is and what He wants to do with you, rather in terms

of the devil will cause you to focus on what you cannot do, which

is the lie of the enemy. All right. Next John ten ten,

the teeth comes to kids still kill and destroy. I have come that life

that they may have life and have it to the full. So this is

another lie of the enemy that he has managed to put into our lives.

A lot of us feel that God is too strict and the devil. If

I give into temptation, I will lose out on fun. You know.

So, which brings me to my next slide is a visual be alert of

sober mind your enemy. The devil prowls around looking like a roaring lion looking

for someone to devour. We think that giving into temptation is cool. We

think, a I want the pleasure. God is depriving me of my pleasure.

But the devil is a roaring lion. He is like the venus fly

trap. He is giving you a taste of the nectar, but it will

lead you to death. How many of you all want to go and pat

the lion? To be honest, A lot of us are A lot of

us? Are we come and say, hey, the lion won't bite me

on. The lion won't attack me, won't devour me. I think I

can go a bit nearer. I think I can go a bit nearer.

So I remember, don't yeah, see Mica, I say, don't go

near the lion. Okay, yeah, So so I remember last time we

were on we were on this uh top show panel Jess and myself for campus

students where they were asking us one of the questions you will ask us is

like how far is too far? You know, it's an age old question.

How far is too far? When it comes to like um, when

you're dating, whether it's physical or whatever, it is right, So the

when I thought about it, right, I'm asking us thinking that A think

of it as a cliff Okay, how close do you want to go to

the cliff before you die? It's the same kind of question. You want

to stay as far away from the cliff age as possible. And why you

want to go near to the cliff age is because, oh, you just

want to test God and you want to you want to say that A.

I can do it. I won't fail. But low and behold, a

lot of us fall off the cliff. And the closer you go to the

cliff, the further you go from God. So the question is not how

far is too far? Is how far away do I am I comfortable being

away from God? Right? Okay? Next line? Yeah, so this

was the worst. Same verset. Be alert and of sober mind. You

have to be of sober mind when you you see right a lot of times

right now in this time and age is I am what I feel? I

am what I feel, and you're you know your feelings right? How many?

How many are y'all? If you love to live by feelings alone,

you think about it, right, Oh, I feel like not going to

work today, I don't go along, or I feel like eating McDonald's every

day. Then you do that. If you live by feelings right, you

will lead through a path of destruction. Because that's why it says be alert

and of sober mind. Okay, all right, Next Matthew twenty six forty

one, watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The

spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. This is true. We

have to know that the flesh is weak. The flesh is weak. That's

why I think I shared it before New Year's resolutions. Everyone starts, but

by Chinese New Year you'll be like, no more New Year's resolution. Ye

have to be like, okay, I'll start again next year, you know.

So the flesh is weak? All right? And next light So this

is Paul. So Paul says, I will not boast about myself except about

my weaknesses. So Paul right recognized his weaknesses. So what we need to

do is we need to recognize a weakness. When you recognize your weakness,

you can prepare, but if you just say that, hey, it will

not happen to me. How when you read like recently, right, you've

been reading a lot on people who have succumbed to different kind of scandals,

and a lot of times right when they interview them, they say, I

have no idea how I ended up here, you know, because you thought

you are strong enough. But the Bible clearly says the flesh is weak,

and we have to acknowledge a weakness and then we can ask God to be

our strength. So you see, even in Paula, I was given a

tone in my flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me. So Paul

acknowledged it, and the weakness, right cape kept him close to God.

So that's why sometimes you said, hey, I'm a self made men,

But then who made you? God made us? So how self made can

we be? You know? In terms of right? That's all right?

So this is the last question, So how do I overcome temptation? So

you know what is temptation? You know that you will be tempted, and

now the question is how do I overcome temptation? Okay, so James one

verse twelve. Next, So blessed is the man who and your's temptation,

For when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life,

which the Lord has promised to those who love him. Let no one say

when he is tempted, I am tempted by God. For God cannot be

tempted by evil, nor as he himself tempt anyone. But each one is

tempted when he's drawn away by his own desires and entices. And when the

desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin it is

full grown, brings forth death. Gay. We mentioned this earlier, So

he says there, right, Let no one say he is tempted, and

say I am tempted by God. So a lot of times we feel that,

say that a I'm tempted by God. Okay, which so, which

brings to me to my next verse right, which was a bit more controversial.

Then Jesus was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted

by the devil. It's like, how come the worst before says that God

will not tempt you, but in the worst year the first verse he says,

then Jesus was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted

by the devil. How come so God will always be walking with us.

He wants to walk with us, and he wants us to do his will.

But when you look at this line, right, the tempting was not

done by God. The tempting was done by the devil. And like I

mentioned earlier, every single day we go through temptation. Every single day we

go through temptation. But God is walking with us. And we have to

acknowledge our weakness, because when we are weak, he is strong. You

say so, when Jesus was tempted, right, he says yeah. When

he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards, he was hungry.

And now when the tempter came to him, he said, if you are

the son of God, command that these tones become bread. But he answered,

and he said, it is written. Man shall not live by bread

alone, but every word that proceeds from our mouth of God. And I

think I appreached this in give us this day our daily bread. The only

way we want to overcome temptation is by having daily bread from God. If

we depend on our own strength and look for our own bread, we are

getting it from a different sauce. Right, So we need God to be

the sauce of our daily bread. Okay. Next, and then so Jesus

answered, I mean the other two ways that Jesus answered the tempter is do

not put the Lord your God to the test. And the last one was

worshiped the Lord your God and serve him only. And then the devils left

him, and the angels came and attended to him. So you can see,

right, how did Jesus overcome temptations. He depended on God. He

depended on the whole spread the word of God. He did not depend on

his own strength. If he depended on his own strength, he will just

make bread. And then you fall into the trap of the enemy. And

sometimes right, the devil wants us to depend on our own strength, because

the more we depend our own strength, the less we depend on God.

Hey, So next one, Psalm twenty three. So this is a popular

psalm. Right, so earlier so it is that God, the Holy Spirit,

led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. But you

see here in some twenty three, right, God is continuously leading us.

He is leading us. Was God with Jesus in the desert. He was.

He was because God, the Holy Spirit is the one that led Jesus.

So the Holy Spirit to him. So he says, here he makes

me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters. He

refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right path for His namesake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of that or the darkest

valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your

rod and your staff. They comfort me. Walking with Jesus. Sometimes we

will have to walk through the darkest valleys as well, but He will leaders.

And that's how that's when we walk. When we are hit with temptation,

we always have a choice. God will always be with the will be

with us to help us overcome it if we choose. Okay, So these

are just some examples of facing temptation and overcoming it. So you know the

story of Job. He had every reason to curse God. He when he

the amount of temptation that he won when through was crazy. But he's still

believed in God. He did not doubt God's goodness no matter what happened.

Next one Joseph Joseph when from Yeah the prison to the palace, so many

opportunities to be tempted. You know, poty fast wife, poty fast wife,

prison, to the palace, the three piece, at every point,

he can be tempted. Daniel Shadrack michek and the bending Shadrack miche and be

right, they say, even nevertheless, if God does not save us,

we will still not bow down. They they were tempted. Was Daniel tempted?

Hey, you can eat meat or you can eat go vegan? How

many of your That's like the ultimate temptation room from the start, and but

they still stuck to it. And Jesus so one of the people, right,

what I was looking for, Okay, that I came across this story.

You know, one story of someone who gave into temptation, Sampson.

He depended on his own strength. He depended on his own strength. He

didn't depend on God, and he thought he's invincible, and that's when he

fell. So that's why it says, lead us not into temptation, but

deliver us from evil. We have to pray this daily because we have to

recognize that God. Without it, I cannot do. I need you.

Okay, So this is a verse that I memorized as a kid through the

Donut Man song. Y'all know the I'm not sure whether y'all know the Donut

Man right. So it says here, submit to God, resist the devil,

and he will flee from you. Let's all say this together, right?

Is the memory verse for today? Okay, the memory verse for today?

How do we overcome temptation? James four seven? Submit to God,

resist the devil, and he will flee from you. So a lot of

us what we do is we forget the first part. We just resist the

devil on our own strength. But just resisting the devil on our own strength

is not enough. We need to submit to God, resist the devil,

and he will flee from you. Amen. We hope you've been blessed by

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week is going to be a good week. I hit for you. God bless