Overcoming the Pleasures of Sin with the Pleasures of God

We often take a very negative approach to fighting sin: don’t lie because it is wrong, or don’t lust because God forbids it. These are true, but don’t go far enough, nor do they represent the fullness of the teaching of Scripture. Furthermore, they often prove ineffective. Our sinful hearts bristle at naked restrictions.

In his chapter on lust in Future Grace, John Piper introduced me to the concept of fighting the fleeting pleasures of sin with the superior “pleasures forevermore” at God’s right hand (Ps 16:11). Sin promises us satisfaction, but it never gives what it promises. To give in to the temptation to sin, we must believe Satan’s lie that we will be happier with the forbidden fruit.

The most effective way to fight temptation is to remind ourselves of truth: that Satan is “a liar and the father of lies” and that God is the Father of lights from whom “every good gift and every perfect gift” comes. The promises of God are reliable: God always satisfies the heart of those who obey and seek Him. As Jesus said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

Pastor Chris Anderson reflects on this theme in two posts, showing that this idea is not new to Piper. Both Spurgeon and Owen taught this same approach to battling temptation.

Both of Chris’s posts are worth reading:

• Owen on Soul-Satisfied Sanctification
• Spurgeon on Joy’s Power to Defeat Temptation

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