The End was nothing like I had ever imagined. There were endermen everywhere I looked, and I was scared. I spotted the dragon flying above and immediately started aiming at him with my bow. He was so high above me that I missed with each shot and accidentally looked at an enderman. Great. Now I have a dragon and an enderman trying to attack me.
I ran away and made a shelter to protect me from the endermen. It worked for a while, and then the dragon flew by and destroyed it.
The fight lasted much longer than I imagined it would, but once I was able to destroy the pillars that gave him health, he didn’t stand a chance. One final shot with my bow and he exploded into a glorious shower of experience points. I had conquered the biggest, baddest, scariest monster that Minecraft had to offer.
Real Life Dragons
We all have dragons that we have to face in our life. These come in the form of temptations and other challenges that try to defeat us. Thankfully, the Bible gives us a lot of information on how to defeat these dragons in our life. Paul says in 1st Corinthians 10:13:
“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
Paul wanted the Corinthians to know that although they would face temptations in their life, there would be ways to overcome them. They would be able to defeat their dragons.
The Big Dragon
Peter tells us in 1st Peter 5:8 that Satan walks around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. This is the dragon that we must defeat in our lives. Satan’s goal is to tempt us in so many ways that we give in to him and let him win.
He even tempted Jesus, God’s son, in Matthew 4 and wanted Him to give in to his wishes. Thankfully, Jesus was able to overcome his temptations and defeated him when he overcame death.
Defeating The Dragon
As Christians, our goal is to defeat this dragon by making sure that God is the ruler of our life. Once we obey His commands, and have our sins forgiven, the dragon, Satan, wants nothing more than to pull us away from God and have us grow closer to him.
James gives great advice in 4:7 when he says, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
This is how we defeat Satan. We cannot give him opportunity to come into our lives. He will tempt us every chance he gets and will do his best to defeat us. If we resist him, he will eventually give up on us for some time.
The Final Block
If we are able to resist Satan, we must put something in the place of him. The best thing to do is to study the Bible and let God’s word fill our lives. This is the same way Jesus was able to overcome Satan’s temptations back in Matthew 4. If I want to defeat the dragon, and keep him away, I must let God rule my life. If I do, there will not be room for Satan anymore.
Questions:
- What makes temptation so hard to overcome?
- Read 1st Corinthians 10:13. What do you think it means that there is always a way of escape with every temptation?
- What can you do to make sure that God is ruling your life?
Speak your mind...