Devil can’t make you do anything you don’t want to do
I know that I am dating myself; however, some of you may remember the comedian Flip Wilson and his character Geraldine. She created the trademark phrase “the devil made me do it” in order to justify her questionable behaviour.
The truth is, the devil cannot ‘make us’ do anything. All he can do is tempt us.
C.S. Lewis, the British novelist, is well known for his work “The Chronicles of Narnia”; however, there is another book that may not be as well known. “The Screwtape Letters” is a book about human nature and the anatomy of temptation. Screwtape is a senior demon who is offering encouragement and advice to his more inexperienced nephew Wormwood who has to win the soul of a young man by encouraging him to turn away from his Christian faith.
Screwtape offers guidance to his nephew in the ‘art of temptation’.
One piece of advice is foundational to all of the rest: “But do remember, the only thing that matters is the extent to which you separate the man from the Enemy (God). It does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing... Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one— the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts” (C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters).
C.S. Lewis reminds us that ultimately, the devil tries to weaken our faith by sowing the seeds of discouragement that lead us away from the light into ‘the nothing.’ As we move away from God, we gradually become more vulnerable to discouraging thoughts from within and from other persons. This can lead to despair as we begin to see little good in ourselves and the world around us. In this spiritually weakened state, we fall prey to other temptations. We should never feel discouraged by this because even Jesus was tempted.
After his baptism, Jesus entered the wilderness in order to prepare for His public ministry.
After fasting for 40 days and 40 nights he was tired and hungry. Anticipating vulnerability and weakness, the devil came to tempt him.
In the Gospel of Matthew we are told that the temptations focused on the three Ps – pleasure (satisfying hunger), pride (prove you are God), and finally power (all the kingdoms of the world will be yours). Jesus is able to rebuke the devil and says, “Away with you satan” (Mt. 4:10). Jesus offers us the greatest hope against sin and temptation.
In the First Letter of Peter we read,
“Stay sober and alert. Your opponent the devil is prowling like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, solid in your faith.” (1 Peter: 8-9).
The devil is our enemy; however, we need not live in fear because he has been defeated by Christ and the sign of his victory is the cross. We put our faith in the cross of Christ and believe that evil has no power over us. It is a strong faith that becomes the greatest defence against temptation and sin.
Christians who faithfully proclaim Christ must also acknowledge the presence of evil in the world, for the devil’s greatest deception is to convince us that he does not exist.
He is the purveyor of ‘fake news’ and the author of ‘alternative facts’ so we defend ourselves with the truth. The closer we remain to Christ the more we will know the truth, for he is the way, the truth and the life (Jn. 14:6). Armed with this reality, we will never believe that “the devil made me do it.”