"WHAT'S YOUR APPLE?"

Written and preached by David P. Nolte



GENESIS 3:1-19

They say that everybody has his or her price. That means that there is that gain, real or imagined, for which one would sell out. There is that desire which surpasses all other considerations: ethics, morals and goodness. That price may be paid in terms of pleasure, possession or position. It may be presented to us in the dulcet tones of a tempting seductress or in the ominous note of fear or in the hypnotizing vision of imagined benefit. Be sure of this: Satan is seeking your price! He is constantly calculating what it would take to make you sell out. He is estimating what will turn your eyes from Jesus. Eve's price was hope of equality with God combined with the luscious appeal of the forbidden fruit. For Adam it seems to have been to stay with Eve. Now, note that the Bible does not say the fruit was an apple. Likely it was not. But for simplicity sake I just ask, "What's your apple?" What is it that Satan dangles before you to tempt you? What is your price? For what would you sell out? Note some things about the Devil's apple:
  1. THE DEVIL'S APPLES APPEAL TO DIFFERENT APPETITES:
    1. Different apples taste different. Some are crisp and juicy and sweet; some are mushy and bitter. Gravensteins don't taste like Delicious or Winesaps or McIntosh. Some like one, some the other.
    2. Just so, not all temptations attract all people. James reminds us that: "Temptation comes from the lure of our own evil desires. These evil desires lead to evil actions, and evil actions lead to death." James 1:13-15 (NLT). Each has a different sort of desire and Satan appeals to it to lead us to sin: What tempts me may be no attraction to you and vice versa. Let me illustrate the individuality of temptation:
      1. For Korah it was to be equal to Aaron as high priest, though God had not so designated him. Numbers 16:1-3.
      2. For Achan it was forbidden spoils of battle which he took anyhow. Joshua 7:1.
      3. For David it was illicit sexual relationship with Bathsheba. 2 Samuel 11:1-4.
      4. For Ahab it was Naboth's vineyard for which Jezebel had Naboth murdered. 1 Kings 21:1-4.
      5. For Ananias and Sapphira it was money for which they lied to the Holy Spirit. Acts 5:1.
      6. For Demas it was love for this present world for which he forsook his faith. 2 Timothy 4:10.
    3. What is the appeal of the Devil's apples?  For some:
      1. There is pride and desire for glory and prominence.
      2. There is greed and desire for more and more material things.
      3. There is envy and desire for what the other fellow has.
      4. There is sexual lust and an insatiable appetite and desire for sensual pleasure.
    4. The forbidden fruit itself (money, sexual pleasure, recognition) may not be inherently evil. But the illicit desire for those things is evil. Wanting and gaining that to which we have no right is evil.

So, what is your apple, anyhow? Satan will fit it to your own taste and desire. Beware. But note further:

  1. THE DEVIL'S APPLES LEAVE A BITTER AFTERTASTE:
    1. One thing we all ought to know about apples is that they sometimes contain a worm. And do you know what is worse than finding a worm in the apple? It's finding half a worm! Check for the critter that ruins the fruit. Biting a worm leaves a bitter aftertaste.
    2. Remember that Snow White bit into a poisoned apple and fell into a coma. When we bite Satan's poisoned apple, we fall asleep and unconscious to the things of God. That's a bitter aftertaste.
    3. That which is evil may seem at first taste, good. That which is forbidden may seem sweet. But bite the Devil's apple and get indigestion! When you take the Devil's apple you may think you've got a good deal, but you've actually been sold a bill of good. You may think you've made a bargain, but it turns out to be bondage. What is offered as a bonus turns out to be bogus. Remember those guys I told you about awhile ago? See the bitter aftertaste they experienced:
      1. Korah who wanted high position got swallowed up by the earth for his sins. Numbers 16:31-33.
      2. Achan was executed. Joshua 7:25.
      3. David became severely ill by God's chastening. Psalm 32.
      4. Ahab was cursed by God. 1 Kings 21:19.
      5. Ananias and Sapphira were stricken dead. Acts 5:5, 10.
      6. Demas lost his soul. Mark 8:36.
    4. There are always consequences, negative results, and there is always a bitter aftertaste when we bite the Devil's apple. Sometimes a temporal consequence, sometimes an eternal. In China if a person shoplifts, he gets a brand on the forehead or may get his nose cut off. In Cambodia an unfaithful wife has the picture of a man tattooed on her face. That is a pretty bitter aftertaste if you ask me, or even if you don't ask me.

So, what is your apple? Just make sure it won't have a bitter aftertaste. But notice also:

  1. THE DEVIL'S APPLES SPOIL QUICKLY:
    1. All the things Satan offers you are by nature temporal and are perishable. They won't last. They won't live up to expectations. They won't endure. They won't stand the test of time. Hold out for that which is good for now and forever.
      1. Hold onto godliness: Paul reminded Timothy: "godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 1 Timothy 4:8 (NIV).
      2. Hold onto the intangible eternal things:
        1. "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." Colossians 3:1-2 (NIV). Why is that good advice?
        2. "For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV).
    2. People seem slow to grasp that fact. Professor Irving Fisher of Yale University said, "Stock prices have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau." Oh yeah? He said that in October of 1929 a couple of weeks before the stock market crash which ushered in the Great Depression! Things of this world don't last. The Devil's apples spoil quickly.
    3. So, when the Devil dangles his apples, here are some things to remember:
      1. "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world - the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does - comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." 1 John 2:15-17 (NIV).
      2. "What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" Mark 8:36-37 (NIV).
      3. The Psalmist considered those who gain a lot in this world but are poor to God: "This is what the wicked are like - always carefree, they increase in wealth." "When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!" "Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you." Psalms 73:12, 16-19, 25 (NIV).
    4. The Devil's apples always spoil quickly. They don't last. Think about this: A man had a dream in which an angel came to visit him. The angel promised to grant him one request. The man asked for a copy of the stock-market quotes for one year in the future. The angel handed him a newspaper dated a year from that day. As he studied those future prices, he gloated about his intended riches. He had gotten a real insider glimpse of the market. As he read the newspaper, he glanced across the page to the obituaries. He saw his own picture with a notice of his death. He awoke from his dream realizing that in light of his impending death, mere money was not the highest consideration. Money, possessions, material things, worldly position never lasts. The Devil's apples spoil quickly.

If you have already bitten the poison apple, and we all have at one time or another, there is an antidote. Repent of that sin, turn from it. Turn your heart back to God. Give your heart and life to Jesus. He will replace the Devil's apple with Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Come to the tree that has fruit that produces life; come to Jesus: believe and confess that belief. Be baptized for the forgiveness of sin. Determine to avoid the Devil's wiles and to serve Christ faithfully. Don't sell out for the Devil's apples. Jesus offers fruit that lasts, that has no bitter after taste and that has no worms. Come to Christ for what He freely offers.

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