Eight Temptations

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry coming to you from Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. No Compromise Radio is a program dedicated to the ongoing proclamation of Jesus Christ, based on the theme in Galatians 2, verse 5, where the Apostle Paul said, �But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

In short, if you like smooth, watered-down words to make you simply feel good, this show isn�t for you. By purpose, we are first biblical, but we can also be controversial. Stay tuned for the next 25 minutes as we�re called by the Divine Trumpet to summon the troops for the honor and glory of her King.

Here�s our host, Pastor Mike Abendroth.

Recent Travel, Family, and Ministry Updates

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry. My name is Mike Abendroth, and I have not been in the studio for quite some time. I have been traveling some. We went to Israel. It was a lot of fun. My brother and I led a trip, so that�s Omaha Bible Church and Bethlehem Bible Church led a tour there.

We�ll probably do it again in a couple years. No co-listeners were not to be found this year. I don�t know what happened to you. Maybe you probably were going on the deluxe cruise with First Baptist Church in Dallas or something.

And then I was home for a few days, and then off to the Shepherds Conference. While I love to go to the conference for fellowship, for worship, for edification, for relaxation, poolside, reading, it was great to see my son Luke and my daughter Maddie almost every day.

Luke was helping serve at the Shepherds Conference. You probably heard Luke here on No Compromise Radio. He was the right-hand man to the conference organizer, Mike Mahoney, and so Luke had his little earpiece on, and he was running around doing a bunch of things.

And Maddie was at registration just the first day. But it was great to see them, watch them serve, and I�m very thankful for the ministry of Master�s Seminary and Grace Church and the Master�s University.

Adam Ashoff is up at the university, and he gave me an email just a few days before the trip. I didn�t know if I was going to make the trip out or not because we were in between Nor 'easters here, the one, two, three, and four.

The one we just had a few days ago was like 22 inches of snow. Anyway, I was asked to speak slash preach at the Master�s University Chapel, and I said, �I would love to. They said, �Mohler canceled.

I don�t know what Mohler was doing, but he asked me about it, and I said, �Mohler who And I preached for Chris Mueller at Faith Bible Church in Marietta on Sunday. You can get that online if you type that in.

I was thankful to minister to the people there, a great group of people. Here�s the wild part about it, and then I�ll get back to Master�s University. I flew into San Diego on Saturday, went to Chris�s house, and then we got up for the worship service, and there�s two services, and they�re renting out a school while they�re saving money for the property.

I think they bought the property, but they�re waiting for the building, and Chris asked me to preach Romans chapter 8, verses 1 through 39, all of it, and I didn�t have a ton of time because two of my friends, Christian Andresen and Marco, were there, and they were giving a little spiel about their ministry at the EBTC, European Bible Training Center.

So, of course, that cut into my time. Thanks Marco. Thanks Christian. Anyway, when I walked into the church, Marietta, by the way, if you don�t know, is there�s San Diego, then there�s Orange County, and this is kind of in the middle, inland a little bit.

And I walked in, and I thought all the guys, I thought they kind of looked like me. What do I mean by that? They all had shorts on and like hurly flip-flops and sunnox, and they had little soul patches, and they just looked like they were all living the California dream, and Volcom shirts.

I thought, �Hey, that�s what I usually like to wear. I usually don�t wear it to church. I wear a suit or a sports coat and a tie. Maybe some hurly slacks though. I�ve been known to wear those in the pulpit.

Anyway, great opportunity to preach. I did finish Romans 8, 1 to 39, both services, and to see some old friends there, Troy and Kathy from the tour to Wittenberg, they drove up. My son was down there.

Anyway, thanks to the Faith Bible Church. Folks, you can just Google that, Faith Bible Church, Chris Mueller, Marietta, and if you live in that area and you want a Bible teaching church, there you have it.

Well, back to the story. Then Sunday afternoon, I drove up to Los Angeles, and Monday morning was chapel. Well, Adam Ashoff and Luke, my son, and I had breakfast. That�s Monday morning. And then the neat thing about the worship service at the chapel is I really liked the band.

I thought the music was excellent. I thought the songs were very Christ-centered. And if you attend the Master�s University and your father is coming to speak at chapel, you get to introduce him. And Luke, this is his last year at the Master�s University, and he got up to introduce me.

I guess Maddie could have, but she�s got maybe other years if I�m invited back. I hope I am invited back. Luke introduced me. And as I was sitting on the front row just before Luke got up for the introduction, I thought, �This is one of the most� I hate to say the word �cool.

That doesn�t do justice. But this is one of the neatest things that�s ever happened to me in ministry. Here I sit on the front row at the Master�s University Chapel in the MacArthur Center, and I�m sitting next to Maddie, my daughter, Luke, my son, some of Luke�s buddies and Maddie�s friends, and Josh Bertrand.

And he attends the church that I pastor but now is a student. No longer Joshie B., it�s Mr. Dr. Reverend Joshua. And here we sat worshiping the Lord all together. It was just a really neat thing. Then Luke got up and introduced me, some tear-jerking moments and then some funny moments, and then I preached John chapter 3.

If you go to the Master�s, what is it, masters .edu, is that what it is? I don�t know. If you type in the Master�s University and you go to student life and chapel, you could pull up the messages there.

I think the Facebook one has the live story. I had to pause there a second because I was selling a bike on Craigslist, and I had the person meet me here at the church, so I had to come back in. I was selling this particular bike, and I said, �Cash only, no negotiation, and I�ll meet you at this public place.

And they brought in $20 less than what I said, and they said, �Oh, will you take a check for the rest I said, �No. �Oh, I don�t really have it, and I�ll have to go get it from my mom. I said, �Well, that�s okay.

I�ll be here all day. So they came back. I didn�t think they were going to come back, but they came back. If you buy Walmart bikes, you get junk. If you buy a nice bike, you can sell it on Craigslist.

What do you know? Okay, where was I? Luke introduced me. I was really glad to preach John 3. I wanted to talk about Jesus the evangelist because He, of course, was the great evangelist. Whether it�s John 4 with the Good Samaritan or John 5 or John 3, wherever you go, Jesus was a great preacher, a great evangelist.

I believe it was Dick Lucas, I almost said George Lucas, Dick Lucas, who said, �God had one Son, and He made Him a preacher. And I could easily say an evangelist. I believe it was Rick Phillips who wrote a book, did he not?

Jesus Christ, the Evangelist. Somebody else may have wrote a book, Jesus Christ, the Prince of Preachers. Anyway, I just went to a Volvo dealer today and got some service for an old Volvo that I picked up.

And the guy, one of my email, and I told him, �Mike at bbchurch .org. He�s like, �What�s a church thing So, he asked me if I knew anything about Acts 29. It is a small world, isn�t it? Very small world.

Okay. Oh, anything about Israel that was interesting to me? Well, I did talk to one very successful man, and I said to that particular man, �As far as I�m concerned, your problem isn�t unrighteousness, although if we look hard enough we could probably find some of that, but I know you�ve six decades been married to your wife, and you�ve got nice kids, and a nice house, and successful at work.

And I said, �I think your problem is unrighteousness. No, I think your problem is self-righteousness. You think you�re good enough, you don�t even need the Savior. What a pity to have Jesus die on the cross when you were good enough to get to heaven on your own.

So, I had a long, long talk about that, and I think it resonated. All right. What do we have here in front of me? I have, oh, additionally, if you want me to go to a couple shows per week, Fred and I were talking about this, Fred the Mailroom Guy at Grace Church, Grace to You Rather.

We were talking about maybe just a couple shows where I would go an hour and a half, two hours versus the 30-minute format. You can write me if you want, mike at nocompromiseradio .com or not. It�s so cold here.

There�s so, so much snow, and there�s going to be more snow coming. I�m recording this on March 16th. Yikes. Okay. What do I have in front of me today? Okay. Seven deadly sins. But according to this research that I�ve done here online, but the original eight temptations, but there were originally eight temptations of man.

So, seven deadly sins, but eight temptations of man. This says the original version came from a monk, Evagrius Ponticus, in the fourth century, through meditation and intuition. Oh, that�s how we get our theology, right?

Intuition. He listed and defined the eight temptations of man. They were also known as evil thoughts, as all a soul had to do to activate this energy was think of them. Could it help you with your grammar?

Could it help you with your grammar? Would that be a deadly temptation? My secretary asked me, do you want to renew your subscription to Christianity Today? I don�t want to. I don�t want to give them money, but it�s low-hanging fruit for radio shows.

So, I said, I�ll take three years. If they�re even around in three years. It�s kind of like Moody Bible Institute, Moody Church, didn�t, for the Moody Founders Conference Week or whatever, Moody�s Week, Founders Conference Week, what�s it called?

You know, in �23 or something, Machen Speaks, and now we have Ann Voskamp. Ann Voskamp. See, if you put Ann Vos like the first name and then camp as the last, that works too. Ann Voskamp, Ann Voskamp.

Here are the original temptations according to Evagrius Ponticus. Gluttony, fornication, avarice. We don�t usually say that word anymore, but that�s a word. You can look it up. I know, I actually know what it means.

Avarice. Sorrow, that�s a temptation. Maybe sorrow leading into something. Anger, discouragement, vain glory, and pride. I don�t know what the difference between vain glory and pride would be. I�m not quite sure of that.

My research goes on. In the sixth century, Pope Gregory modified the original temptations of man. He combined avarice and sorrow into sloth and renamed the eight temptations of man the seven deadly sins.

That�s kind of interesting. By making them sins, breaking them became a one-way ticket to hell, which is how they became deadly or how they become deadly. Lastly, still quoting, Pope Gregory�s version of the original temptations.

Didn�t the Stones cover one of their songs? We�re also aligned to the seven holy virtues. Oh, see how that works symmetrically, which are chastity, temperance, was there an amendment, 18th amendment? Charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility.

Now, who wrote this last sentence? If you live your life following these holy virtues, you get to heaven. We study spiritual wisdom, but this is how the church taught them and how they have come to be known as the seven deadly sins to this day.

That is awful writing. That�s horrible. But it�s worse theology. If you follow these virtues, you get to heaven. All right? So, I have a question for you, whoever wrote this, and maybe the Roman Catholics that would agree with it, or anyone else.

How�s it working out for you? Remember, God requires obedience. Do this and live. God requires personal obedience. God requires entire obedience. God requires perpetual obedience. God requires perfection, obeying the law.

How many times do you have to break the law before you don�t make it to heaven? Well, the answer would be what? One. James 2 verse 10 would help you understand this. When I consider Galatians chapter 3, that will also play into the picture here.

What does Galatians chapter 3 say? �For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse, for it is written. Why are they under a curse? Well, the Bible would tell us, quoting from Deuteronomy, is it not from Deuteronomy 27?

�Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law. And then emphatically, �And do them. It is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for the righteous shall live by what?

Obedience, faith and obedience, and obedience, love. Of course not. That messes it all up. That, Norman, shepherdizes everything. �But the law is not of faith, rather the one who does them shall live by them.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written. Here's another for it is written. �Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree. Deuteronomy 21. �So that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility.

Of course not. �So that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith. Any system that is designed for you to go to heaven, do these things to get to heaven, is bankrupt. It's corrupt. It cannot hold its own weight.

Why? Well, we could consider Adam's first sin immediately imputed to our account by imputation, by reckoning, by this decision of God to do that very thing. As Adam was our federal head, he acted as a public person.

Some of the old Puritans would spell public, P-U-B-L-I-K, public. And then consequently, we become sinful in our nature. But if we're sinful now by nature, and we are, then how can we do all these things?

Chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility. Well, what if we did those things for 40 years and slipped up once? How would that work out for you? What are you going to do?

Well, my 40 years of perfect obedience outweighs my one disobedience. That's like someone saying to the judge, you know, for 40 years I didn't kill anybody, but last night I did. So, I got 40 years of not killing my neighbor, thou shalt not kill.

I obeyed that. For 40 years I obeyed that. I obeyed that morning, noon, and night for 40 years. But last night I did kill my neighbor. Aren't you going to let me off the hook? I wonder where that came from, the etymology of off the hook.

Does that let me off the hook? Is that some big meat hook? Driving in Israel on the bus through Palestinian-controlled areas around Jericho, lots of meat hanging from the street. It's fascinating to me.

Of course, the Palestinians would say, or the Arab-controlled areas would say, it's because of Israel's oppression. But when Israel is occupying places, when Israel is, I know that's incendiary, but when Israel is in the land and their government controls it, then it's pretty nice.

It's very nice, very Western, very modern. But when the Muslims are in control, it's pretty bad. You can tell the difference. All you have to do to get to heaven is be perfectly chaste. Now that means with your mind too.

If you ever looked at someone with lust, you have to have temperance. Would that mean alcohol, food, iPhone usage, surfing the internet, charity, love, always loving people, always wanting what's best for them, never being selfish, diligence, patience.

Who came up with this list? This is just so stupid. Kindness and humility. Well, I've kept them all. Well, okay, now I haven't kept that last one. Any system, any covenant of work system, any system that says, do this and live, and the rich young ruler runs up to Jesus, gets down on his knees, what must I do to be saved?

You know, legal questions. Get legal answers. And the answer is Mark 12, Matthew 22. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Love your neighbor as yourself. Now, those are actually two biblical commands, two biblical laws, unlike this crazy stuff here with these temptations.

What are some of the hits of the temptations? Did they write miss you? The stones and the temptations blend into one. Did one of the temptations just die? Anyway, even biblical commands, they must be obeyed, but they can't be obeyed by us.

That's why we need the work of another. That's why we have Jesus, the last Adam. That's why Jesus can perfectly obey and live, do this and live. He perfectly can. You know, there's two ways to get to heaven.

There's the legal method and the faith method, and the legal method is perfect obedience, perfect, entire, perpetual obedience. I think I'm forgetting one word. It starts with an E from Westminster Confession.

Who could do that? Only one, Jesus. Perfect obedience. You might call that the act of obedience of Christ. The other is the faith method, trusting in Jesus who did that on behalf of all those that the Father had given Him.

That's true. That's absolutely true. Well, I'm trying to figure out a way to get some new intro music, but by the time I think of it, it never gets done. So, I'm working on it. I'm working on the S. Lewis Johnson Colossian thing.

I'm working on a book with Evan. I'm working on a book with who knows who. Too old. Books are overrated. My books at least are. Bovink might not be. Calvin's might not be, but mine are. I've been reading some Olivianus lately and some Bezer.

That's been very good. And I was going to have lunch with R. Scott Clark when I went to San Diego, but then I got asked to speak at the Master's University Chapel, and I said to Scott, toodaloo, tortellini.

Pope Gregory, eight temptations. Isn't there anybody who was tempted, never failed? No wonder in Matthew chapter 4 and Luke 4 and Mark chapter 1, the temptations of the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember Satan tempted Jesus?

Not in the wilderness. Yes, in the wilderness. Not in the garden is what I meant to say. Not in paradise, but in the wilderness. Three times Jesus responds with the Word of God, and He perfectly obeys and does not succumb to any of these.

What's the point? Use Deuteronomy to hide God's Word in your heart so you don't sin against God when you're tempted? Of course, that's not it, although that's a nice principle, but that's not what the passage is teaching.

The passage is teaching that there is someone, unlike Adam, when tempted, did not fail. Unlike Israel, when tempted, did not fail. Unlike David on a rooftop, when tempted, did not fail. Unlike Peter by a fire, when tempted, did not fail.

And that's the Lord Jesus. That's when it comes to temptation, the original temptations. He, Jesus, was tempted to a degree we'll never know because He never yielded. That's amazing. It just never stopped for Him.

Our temptations, you know, stop when we give in, right? Because then we acquiesce, and then we have what we want. Oh, they might come back later, but at least the full force has been muffled, muted. My name's Mike Abendroth.

This is No Compromise Radio. We might do another hour and a half show or two hours or whatever sometime, but not today. Today is 24 minutes and 30 seconds.

No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible-teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life-transforming power of God's Word through verse-by-verse exposition of the sacred text.

Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 1015 and in the evening at 6. We're right on Route 110 in West Boylston. You can check us out online at bbchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.