The writer of Ecclesiastes said, “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). This was true then and the same is still true today.
Consider when Eve was tempted. She “saw that the tree was good for good, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise” (Genesis 3:6). When Jesus had fasted for forty days He was then tempted. “The tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread” (Matthew 4:3). “Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thy self down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone” (Matthew 4:5-6). [The devil quoted scriptures, but misapplied them. Jesus would be hurt both physically and mentally later on at the close of His life.] “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; and saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me” (Matthew 4:8-9). There is about four thousand years between these two events and yet these temptations can be divided into three basic categories.
John writing by the direction of the Holy Ghost almost to seventy years later said, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any many love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (1 John 2:15-17). Those three categories are 1) the lust of the flesh; 2) the lust of the eye; and 3) the pride of life. The first pair was tempted in these three areas. Christ was tempted with these same three areas and even today we are tempted in this fashion. There is nothing new under the sun!
Yes, there are different ways of travel today, yet man has traveled since he was created. Man has looked for and found new ways in which to travel but it is still travel. In the future we may travel much faster than we do today, but this will not change the way in which we are tempted.
Yes, there are faster forms of communication. Just think of all that we can do now that fifty years ago seemed impossible. The computer has progressed to the point that it is amazing. Telephones have come such a long, long way. Can you remember the first time you saw a telephone in a car? Can you remember the first cell phone that you had? How big was it? Now look at the communications of today. How much further can we go? Yet, even with all the mass, fast communication we are still tempted in the same way as Eve was during the dawn of time. There is nothing new under the sun!
The lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life has plagued man from the beginning of time. How we deal with these temptations has not changed either.
The first pair was not successful at overcoming the darts of the devil. When Eve saw that it was good for food, she tasted. When Eve saw that this fruit was pleasant she plucked it from the tree. Somehow she also found out that it would make one wise. Eve obtained the information that it would make her and Adam wise from the devil. “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5). Satan has informed Eve that it would make her wise and she would be as gods. This is not the kind of wisdom Eve needed. This is the background for false gods and man making himself god. The devil is still working in the same way, so Solomon statement is still true, there is nothing new under the sun.
Jesus was successful in overcoming Satan’s snares. We are to follow in Jesus’ footsteps (1 Peter 2:21). Jesus hid the Words of God within His heart and He used these Words to win over the snares placed before Him. “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 119:11). Not only did Jesus hide the Word in His heart, but He also meditated upon the Word of God. The blessed man is one who can “meditate day and night” on God’s Word (Psalm 1:2).
When that old serpent came to Him, Jesus quoted scriptures to him and rightly applied them. Each time Jesus said “It is written.” One finds that Jesus was “tempted in all points like we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). The student of the Bible also finds, “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye are healed” (1 Peter 1:22-24). Jesus won over the every temptation that was placed before Him.
We too, can have success over the devil by using this tried and true method. We must know God’s Word well enough to have it hid in our hearts and so that we too can meditate upon it anytime we need to. Thus we can take the shield of faith, wherewith we shall quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” (Ephesians 6:16). Jesus was successful and we know how He was successful in overcoming temptation. If we will apply these same principles to our own lives we too can overcome the wicked one and not succumb to the wiles of his devilish ways. You see there is nothing new under the sun!
Love, Keith
