David Diga Hernandez - How to Overcome Sin and Temptation

Well, I’m coming to you on an assignment from the Lord. Right now, it’s time for you to say, «Enough is enough!» The power of sin is broken in your life, and I want to teach you from the truth of Scripture how to subject the flesh. If you’re tired of battling the same habitual sin over and over again, then you need to listen to this word. You are not watching by accident. As I said, I believe I am on assignment; this is prophetic, and this is for you. God has sent me here to speak a word of deliverance and freedom. I’m talking about how to overcome the power of sin and temptation. I’m going to give you seven keys that will set you free. Stephen Moctezuma is here with me, as usual; he’s going to lead you in some anointed worship. Remember, you’re watching Spirit Church here on the Encounter TV Network.

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your love for God and others. So, if you’re tired of dealing with your flesh and frustrated with your behavior, I want to teach you some truths from Scripture that will liberate you from those sins that so easily beset you. Now, I know that you can be set free from addictions. I know that you can be set free from demonic powers. I know that you can be set free from spiritual bondage. But the truth of the matter is this: you will never be completely delivered from the flesh. That is, you will not be free from the flesh until you’ve been glorified, until you’ve gone home to be with the Lord. Until then, the flesh does not come and go; it strengthens and weakens. Therefore, we must keep in mind the nature of sin and the nature of temptation. You see, the nature of sin, first of all, is that it attaches itself to our human nature. We are inclined to a free will; we are inclined to prefer pleasure; we are inclined to self-preservation, which ultimately becomes selfishness if we don’t keep it in check. The nature of sin, as I said, attaches itself to human nature, and while you will never be completely rid of the flesh until you go home to be with the Lord, you can learn to subject the flesh and keep it mastered. So, I want to first talk to you about the nature of sin, then I want to discuss the nature of temptation, and then I want to give you seven keys on how you can subject the flesh, how you can overcome, and have victory over sin and temptation. First, I want to read to you 1 John 2:16, where Scripture states, «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.» No matter what it is that you are being tempted by, regardless of your struggle, it can be broken down categorically into either the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life. All sin ultimately falls under one of these categories. So, whatever your struggle—whether it is a struggle with lust, whether it is a struggle with pride, whether it is a struggle with internal sin, iniquity, jealousy, hatred, perversion, or addiction—whatever it is that your sin is manifesting in your life, the root will ultimately be found in what sin essentially is. All sin is the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life, as we just read in 1 John 2:16. So, no matter your struggle, I want you to find comfort in knowing that there is no temptation you are facing that someone else hasn’t faced before. You are not bizarre; you are not some unique case that cannot be helped. No matter what it is, no matter how perverse or wicked, I can promise you this: ultimately, sin is sin. While some believe there are degrees of sin and others do not, we are currently studying how to overcome it—that’s another study for another time. But I want to make it clear to you that whatever you’re struggling with, it really comes down to the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. Now, what are these things? We see them manifested—actually revealed—in Genesis 3. If you look at the very first temptation, the very first time anyone was tempted with any sin or disobedience in all of Scripture, you will see these three things manifest. So, let’s read Genesis 3:1-7: «The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord had made. One day he asked the woman, ‘Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden? ’ Of course, we may eat the fruit from the trees of the garden, ” the woman replied. „It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said you must not eat it or even touch it, or you will die.“ „You won’t die, ” the serpent replied to the woman. „God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.“ Here, the serpent is promising certain trade-offs for the sin he is tempting the woman with. Then, in verse 6, Scripture says, „The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful, and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her.“ Now, let’s break that down. Look at this verse: „The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful”—there’s the lust of the eye—“and its fruit looked delicious”—there’s hunger, or the lust of the flesh—“and she wanted the wisdom it would give her”—there’s the pride of life. So, here, even at the very beginning, from the first time that human beings were tempted, we see the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. Why am I telling you this? I’m telling you this so that, first of all, you know that the struggle you are facing is something someone has faced before and has overcome. Ultimately, all sin is one of these three things, and breaking it down even further, all sin is selfishness—it’s the love of self over your love for God and others.