How come I'm tempted into sinning even though I pray to God to help me?

Caleb22

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
 
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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
Just one particular repeated sin?

Usually, sin means a multitude of bad behaviors, for example, drunkenness, drugs, inappropriate content, gambling, arrogance, meaness, e.t.c. The list of sins is almost endless of course, yet you repeat the same sin, very odd?
 
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SeventyOne

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Simple...
1. Die
2. Get new incorruptible mind and body

No one is promised lack of temptation, rather just temptation that isn't too tough for us to handle. The truth is that you have a choice in the matter, either dwell on the temptation and eventually give into it, or nip it in the bud and rebuke it. If you dwell on it, you're gonna do it. (James 1:13-15)
 
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Bluerose31

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
I am sorry you are struggling Caleb. I will pray for you. God bless you.
 
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Ken Rank

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
You're not the only one Caleb, we ALL face temptation, even Jesus did. What God expects of us is to remain focused on Him during those times (all times, but in particular those times) and often He uses those times to refine us, teach us... so that He might use us at another point in time. So, rather than fall into temptation, rejoice that you recognize what it is, stand against it, and know that God will use what you learn from the experience to help others and glorify His name.
 
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CallofChrist

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Romans 7

15For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

=====

Even Paul struggled with sin. We are being sanctified and one day we will be glorified. We will be unable to sin anymore when we are with the Lord :)

Don't be discouraged, just keep praying and struggle against sin like Paul did!
 
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Doug Melven

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
Jesus said in Matthew 26:41 "Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation".
Spend time communing with God.
David said in Psalm 119:11 "Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee".
Spend time with God in His Word.

As you behold Him in His Word, He will transform you.
 
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St_Worm2

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?

Hi Caleb, God is not a Cosmic Puppeteer. He never leaves us as He has promised to see us through this life to Glory .. Philippians 1:6, but He does want us to grow in Christlikeness and use the power we've already been given in Christ/through the HS to choose to turn away from temptation. As mentioned here, He regularly helps us by making sure that 1. no temptation is ever beyond our ability to turn away from and 2. we are provided with a way of escape (so that we can get out from under a temptation before it turns into a sin .. 1 Corinthians 10:13).

We need to resist Satan and his temptations as the Bible promises us that he will eventually flee from us when we do .. e.g. James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:8-9, but that doesn't mean that we won't have an ongoing fight on our hands for awhile, a long while sometimes .. cf Ephesians 6:10-17.

The moment you are tempted, take that thought "captive" and give it to Christ to deal (as was also previously mentioned above), again and again and again as necessary .. 2 Corinthians 10:5. Eventually Satan's demons will move on and leave you alone (for a time, at least ;)).

The Bible also gives us this instruction which may help:

How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Thy word. Thy word I have TREASURED in my heart, that I may not sin against Thee. ~Psalm 119:9,11

When you truly "treasure" God's word in your heart (which basically means coming to know and understand it VERY well, such that your heart/mind are filled with it), His word becomes the most important thing (the thing that is always in the very forefront of your mind), which makes it more and more difficult to give into temptation. When you have a mind that knows God's word this well, part of the HS's work in your life is made easier as He can them bring just the right verses/passages to mind to remind you why you shouldn't do/think the sinful thing you are about to do/think. It actually becomes difficult to sin most of the time :amen:

When I became a Christian more than 30 years ago, I left a VERY worldly lifestyle/sinful existence, but I was still plagued by all kinds of horrible, sinful thoughts from the garbage that remained up there in my memory of that time. It was, in fact, painful, almost unbearable at times. The answer to my problem, to clearing all of the garbage out of there once and for all, was Scripture memorization (the memorization of a small number of verses and passages to be specific).

These links may be helpful to you if you'd like to begin to commit some of God's word to memory. They certainly have been for me :)

Yours and His,
David

2 Timothy 3
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;
17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
 
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Greg J.

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
God is not controlling you. You are controlling you, but you are in a pit of your own (and others') making. We can dig ourselves into deep pits of habitual sin that we have to claw our way out of—which can take a long time. Fortunately God will help you and is helping you if you are asking for help and are resisting sinning. What you can do is ask others for prayer and persist in your effort in all of the following areas and you will overcome all sin.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; (2 Peter 1:5-6, 1984 NIV)

In Christ, you will overcome all obstacles the way God wants with his help.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, 1984 NIV)

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe
(bold mine, Philippians 2:12-15, 1984 NIV)
 
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Goatee

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Same as me.

I continuosly sin the same sins! However hard i think i am trying to resist those sins i continue to fail.

3 years i have been falling, getting up, asking forgiveness only to sin again. Rinse and repeat!

The most important thing is to keep getting up and turning to God. Again and again!

Satan may win the battle/s but he aint going to win the war!

Stay strong. If you sin, get up and turn to God. However many times you fail, dont give up on God! God is mercy and love. Remember, Jesus came to save sinners.

God bless you
 
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dreadnought

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?
Naturally, it is up to us to resist temptation. I don't think temptation ever disappears. I have been wrestling with temptation a lot over the last few years and have lost some battles, but I never like where sin takes me, so I always repent. It sounds like you are going through the same thing. Still, I'll say it again, it is up to us to resist temptation, not up to the Lord to remove temptation.

So, what's the answer? I haven't gotten to the point I can give you an answer. Whenever I give in to temptation, I try to figure out why and fix the problem. Maybe I can give you some tips:

Remember that when we obey the commandments, we are safe. The Lord WILL protect us from all harm.

The Lord gives us great glory when we obey his commandments. Enjoy that.

Last, walk with the Lord and embrace the life he gives you. He wants us to enjoy ourselves.
 
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NothingIsImpossible

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Though we may be saved and born again...etc. It doesn't mean we are perfect. These fleshy bodies are still very weak. And sometimes even though we pray like crazy for strength and to stop screwing up, it doesn't always mean we are going to be able to stop screwing up forever. This is why we pray for forgiveness and move on. Though just remember never sin/screw up only because you know you can "pray" for forgiveness later. If you purposely sin knowing you can pray later about it, it abuses Gods grace and I don't believe He forgives in that case.

Not saying you do that of course. Just saying in my past I used to be like "Man I really want to look at inappropriate content. Hmm. Well I can always pray for forgiveness after!". Then I'd go look at inappropriate content. God never forgave me because He seen my heart and that I was using forgiveness as an excuse to sin. Obviously I don't have that line of thought now.
 
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aiki

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Satan always nags me with temptations to sin. And I keep repeating that same sin. But even though I pray to God to help me not turn to it, I eventually fall apart. If God really was controlling my life and wanted me to not sin, then how come I still do it? And how do I prevent it?

I just wrote the following for the discipleship class that I lead. I think it may be of help to you:


Victorious Christian Living


2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.
4 For the weapons of our warfare
are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,
5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,


For the Christian, there are three basic – and vital - elements to victorious Christian living:

1). The Word of Truth:

Psalms 119:11
11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You!

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJV)
16 All Scripture
is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.


Ephesians 6:17
17 And take...the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;


Holy Scripture is vital in the fight against temptation and sin. King David was not mistaken when he drew a direct connection between an intimate knowledge of God's Word and success in avoiding sin. Scripture was Jesus' first line of defense when Satan tempted him in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11). Every time he was tempted, Jesus said the same thing: "It is written..." The Word of God tells you what is true about God, about you - and about sin. Scripture exposes Satan's lying temptations for what they are and pierces through them with the truth which sets us free. The Bible is the sole offensive weapon God has given us in the spiritual armor we are to wear each day. We must, if we are to have any victory over the Enemy and the “law of sin in our members” (Ro. 7:23) follow God's commands to memorize His word (Ps. 119:11; Prov. 3:1-3; Col. 3:16a), meditate upon it (Ps. 1; 119:48; Phil. 4:8), and obey it (Matt. 7:21; Ja. 2:26)!

2). The Power of God:

You cannot be "holy as God is holy" in your own strength. In fact, God doesn't want you to try to be holy, He wants you to let Him be holy in and through you. Your job is to get out of His way, to submit to His will and way and be a vessel that He can use (2 Ti. 2:19-21). No amount of Bible memorization or quoting of Scripture in the midst of temptation will help you if you aren't living in full submission to God. Satan and/or the impulses of our own flesh cannot be properly and effectively resisted from a position of independence from God. We must first submit to God and then we are in the right place to resist the devil.

Philippians 2:13
13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Romans 6:12-13
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof.
13 Neither yield you your members
as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

Romans 12:1
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

James 4:6-7
6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."
7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.


Christ described being his disciple in terms of a branch on a vine (Jn. 15:4, 5). He said that a branch, so long as it stays connected to the vine, will bear fruit. The branch doesn't have to fight and strain to do so, however; it doesn't grip the vine with all its might and quiver with the strain of sucking the sap out of it; it doesn't work hard to force fruit from itself. No, all that is required of the branch is that it remain in intimate and continual connection with the vine. And as it does, the life-giving, fruit-producing sap of the vine flows into the branch, enlarging it and producing its fruit through the branch.

A believer who is abiding in the Vine, who is living in constant, conscious surrender to, and union with, Christ, is one in whom the flow of the transforming power of God moves unimpeded. Such a person will find victory over sin a natural and inevitable consequence of their submitted communion with God.

3). The Armor of Righteousness:

Sin cuts us off from the power and full fellowship of God. (Ps. 34:16; Isa. 59:2; Ja. 4:4) If you don't keep short accounts with God, you will soon find yourself spiritually weak and easy prey for temptation. When you sin, as soon as you sin, confess it (1Jn. 1:9) and move on. You are running a race of sorts spiritually. Does a runner who wants to finish the race well, perhaps to win it, bemoan his situation and remain down when he has fallen? Absolutely not! There is no time to waste in a race! He gets right back up and continues to run. And so must the believer who has fallen into sin. Consider the apostle Paul's words:

Hebrews 12:1
1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

Philippians 3:12-14
12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.
13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing
I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.


Too often, believers think they must grieve their sin and condemn themselves before God so that He will forgive them; they must show themselves, by the degree of their upset over their sin, worthy of God's forgiveness. But this is to attempt to earn God's forgiveness and thus to contribute to the perfect atoning work of Christ on the cross! Certainly, a believer ought to feel sorrow over their sin (Ja. 4:8-10), but never with the view to making themselves thereby worthy of God's forgiveness. “Jesus paid it all,” the old hymn says; there is nothing that remains for us to do to obtain God's forgiveness. And so, when we sin, we confess it to God so that the forgiveness that is already ours in Christ may be applied to us. Having done so, all that remains is to resume the “race” and “press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

The Bottom Line:

Although there are three factors that have been emphasized as vital to living in victory over sin, they all rest upon what Paul explains in his letter to the Philippians:

Philippians 2:13
13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

It is because the believer has been indwelt by the Holy Spirit and by him made both willing and able to do God's will that the believer hungers for the word of God, and desires to submit to the will and way of God, and is eager to keep short accounts with Him. It is because the believer has been indwelt by the Holy Spirit that these desires may be positively acted upon. The Holy Spirit is the power source of the Christian life, working in and through the believer to fulfill God's will His way. There is, then, no genuinely born-again child of God who cannot live a victorious Christian life. It is their spiritual birthright and ought increasingly to be the daily experience of every true disciple of Christ.

Jude 1:24-25
24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
25 To God our Savior, Who alone is wise,
Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.
 
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brinny

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:heart: Awwwww Caleb, that's what Satan does, to ALL of us. It's what he does. Don't focus of him or yourself, just take the struggles and temptations and thoughts to God, in the name of Jesus. HE is your Rock, your High Tower, your Shield, your Defense, and the Lifter of your head when you are downcast or overwhelmed or doubting or distracted by that ol' enemy. Praying for you Caleb. Hang in there (((hug)))
 
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Doug Melven

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The best advice I can give you is for you to remember that all your sins are forgiven.
God forgave you long before you were born.
He knew exactly all of the sins you would commit and when you committed them He was not surprised, grieved, but not surprised.
All of your sins were forgiven when Jesus took all of the wrath that was meant for you upon Himself.
Psalm 103 says that He does not deal with us according to our iniquities, but He has cast our sins away as far as the East is from the West.
In Psalm 32 David describes the blessedness of the man who's sins are forgiven and to whom the LORD will not impute sin.
Then in Romans 4 Paul quotes David saying this is referring to those who believe and are justified.
So whenever you sin, thank Him for His having forgiven you and continue on your walk with Jesus knowing how much He loves you.
Some of my favorite songs.
Watch what happens to the chalkboard at the end of the video.
Check out what he does to the guitar at the end.
Notice how he takes a bunch of worthless things and creates art
Really listen to the words to this song.
 
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aiki

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While it is true that every believer is a "new creature in Christ," it also true that such a state was made possible by the terrible, excruciating, agonizing and atoning sacrifice of Christ. Your sin has a price that must always be paid. And it was paid by your Saviour - in full. There is, then, a place for feeling deep sorrow over your sin, grief over your wicked selfishness that cost Christ his life.

James 4:8-10
8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
9 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.


Those who shed no tears over their sin are those who least understand the enormous and awful price of their salvation.
 
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Caleb22

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Hi Caleb, God is not a Cosmic Puppeteer. He never leaves us as He has promised to see us through this life to Glory .. Philippians 1:6, but He does want us to grow in Christlikeness and use the power we've already been given in Christ/through the HS to choose to turn away from temptation. As mentioned here, He regularly helps us by making sure that 1. no temptation is ever beyond our ability to turn away from and 2. we are provided with a way of escape (so that we can get out from under a temptation before it turns into a sin .. 1 Corinthians 10:13).

We need to resist Satan and his temptations as the Bible promises us that he will eventually flee from us when we do .. e.g. James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:8-9, but that doesn't mean that we won't have an ongoing fight on our hands for awhile, a long while sometimes .. cf Ephesians 6:10-17.

The moment you are tempted, take that thought "captive" and give it to Christ to deal (as was also previously mentioned above), again and again and again as necessary .. 2 Corinthians 10:5. Eventually Satan's demons will move on and leave you alone (for a time, at least ;)).

The Bible also gives us this instruction which may help:

How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Thy word. Thy word I have TREASURED in my heart, that I may not sin against Thee. ~Psalm 119:9,11

When you truly "treasure" God's word in your heart (which basically means coming to know and understand it VERY well, such that your heart/mind are filled with it), His word becomes the most important thing (the thing that is always in the very forefront of your mind), which makes it more and more difficult to give into temptation. When you have a mind that knows God's word this well, part of the HS's work in your life is made easier as He can them bring just the right verses/passages to mind to remind you why you shouldn't do/think the sinful thing you are about to do/think. It actually becomes difficult to sin most of the time :amen:

When I became a Christian more than 30 years ago, I left a VERY worldly lifestyle/sinful existence, but I was still plagued by all kinds of horrible, sinful thoughts from the garbage that remained up there in my memory of that time. It was, in fact, painful, almost unbearable at times. The answer to my problem, to clearing all of the garbage out of there once and for all, was Scripture memorization (the memorization of a small number of verses and passages to be specific).

These links may be helpful to you if you'd like to begin to commit some of God's word to memory. They certainly have been for me :)

Yours and His,
David

2 Timothy 3
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;
17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
If I resist and fight hard enough that Satan and his demons leave? Will that take away the fear, sadness, doubt, and regret with it? Also, if I'm tempted into to doing something and I'm fighting as hard as I can to prevent it, I get really stressed and anxious... is this a good thing? Also... just thinking about the temptations give me anxiety and make me feel anxious.
 
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aiki

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If I resist and fight hard enough that Satan and his demons leave?

The apostle James wrote that we must submit to God first and then resist the devil (James 4:7). You cannot successfully resist him otherwise. You see, your submission to God, to His Spirit, is the key to opening up the flow of God's power into your life. And it is only when you are full of His power that you will be able to effectively resist the devil.

Will that take away the fear, sadness, doubt, and regret with it?

The cure for these things is love - love for God. When you love God deeply, fear, sadness, doubt and regret dissolve. But the way to come to love God is through knowing Him well (by studying His word) and, again, by submitting to Him in every area of your life (Romans 12:1; James 4:7). When your life is under His will and way, the flow of His love into your life through the Holy Spirit will be full and powerful. And when this is so, fear, doubt, and sadness are swept away and replaced by joy, peace, and contentment.

Also, if I'm tempted into to doing something and I'm fighting as hard as I can to prevent it, I get really stressed and anxious... is this a good thing?

No. If you're fighting as hard as you can, you aren't depending upon God's Spirit to free you from your sin and transform you. The way to victory over sin is not God's power plus some of your own. No matter how hard you try, you can only produce more of you. If you want to be holy and righteous as God is, you must depend upon Him to make you so. And He does that as you surrender yourself to Him in the midst of temptation, ask Him to make you a godly man, and wait on Him to do so. You see, God doesn't need your help; His power is more than sufficient to free you from sin and transform you into a holy, faithful guy. But to the degree you try to do for God rather than letting Him do for you, to that same degree you hinder His power to change you. When you simply "let go and let God," when you take a place of humble submission before Him, "trying hard" is not necessary.

Philippians 2:13
13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Romans 8:13
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Jude 1:24-25
24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
25 To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.
 
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Ancient of Days

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"Satan always nags me with temptations to sin."

Sometimes but usually its your flesh that drags you away. You need to watch your "thoughts" like a snake in the grass.

14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Its the "initial thought" of the sin that has to be corrected immediately otherwise we get dragged away.
 
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lastofall

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"But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." (James 1:14-15)

Which is to say in plain talk:
Every person is tempted (to sin) when they are attracted of their own eagerness to possess or consume and flattered. Then when their eagerness to possess or consume has invented or imagined the idea, it brings forth a voluntary departure from the morality prescribed by God: and when it is accomplished, brings forth dead works.
 
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