Monthly Study
February 2025The Truth About Temptation
The world, the flesh, and the devil. These, I learned growing up, are the three sources of temptation in the Christian life. The “world” means outside pleasures and distractions. The “flesh” means our own sin nature—temptations that come from within. And the “devil,” of course, means Satan, the enemy of our souls.
We are not alone as we fight temptation. With God’s help, we can battle this unholy trinity, the ultimate victory assured! As you study with us this month, I pray you will:
- Recognize and respond to temptations with biblical insight and wisdom
- Learn from and apply biblical examples of resisting temptation
- Imitate Christ to fight temptation and as a way of life
Your devotional author,
Brad Baurain
Volume 38Edition 2
Managing Editor: Jamie Janosz, Senior Editor: Elena Mafter, Contributing Editor: John Koessler, Writer: Brad Baurain, Graphic Designer: Rachel Hutcheson, Marketing: JD Hamby, Production: Rhonda AuYeung
About the Author
Brad Baurain
Bradley Baurain is Professor and Program Head of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) at Moody Bible Institute.
View MoreFebruary Devotional Calendar
Podcasts
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Can We Resist Temptation?
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Temptation. It is something we all struggle with, and it traces back to the very beginning of humanity. Temptation has persisted to this day. Whether we are young or old, rich or poor, new believers or seasoned saints, we have all experienced the desire to do the things that we know we shouldn’t.
February 1, 2025
Follow the Example of Christ
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Each of us faces different types of temptations. Maybe you struggle with gossip—you can’t resist telling your coworker what you just learned about your office mate. You may be tempted to buy things you can’t afford. Or you fight sexual temptation, the computer offering illicit material at the touch of a key.
February 2, 2025
God Does Not Tempt
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“Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is,” wrote C. S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. “[Christ] was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means—the only complete realist.”
February 3, 2025
Jesus Understands Our Struggle
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When nineteenth-century preacher Charles Spurgeon considered that “Jesus was tempted as I am,” he said it was “nectar to the weary heart”: “It is a dark room which you are going through, but Jesus went through it before.
February 4, 2025
Tempted in Every Way
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On June 28, 2023, New York Yankees pitcher Domingo German threw a perfect game against the Oakland A’s. A “perfect game” in baseball is when the pitcher gives no walks and allows no hits. No other pitcher had accomplished this feat in over a decade!
February 5, 2025
Guard Against the World
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When I was young, while fishing with my father and grandfather, I hooked a large muskie. My little fishing pole bent under the strain, but I managed to reel it in close to our boat. But the muskie escaped before we could get it in the net, and it became “the one that got away” in family stories for many years after.
February 6, 2025
Guard Against Materialism
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Money has always been tremendously important to humans. The oldest handwritten document ever discovered in England was about a personal loan. In 57 AD, a freed Roman slave named Tibullus promised to repay another freed slave, Gratus, the sum of 105 denarii, or in today’s money perhaps around $4,500.
February 7, 2025
Guard Against False Teachers
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Every day for over 700 years, a bugle has been sounded from the steeple of St. Mary’s Church in Krakow, Poland. This commemorates a heroic trumpeter who blew his horn to call people to the city’s defense until the enemy killed him with an arrow. To honor him, the last notes on the bugle are always muted and broken.
February 8, 2025