Did the Devil Really Make You Do That?

“The devil made me do it!” Have you ever heard that cry? It became a national catchphrase in the early 1970s when Flip Wilson used it regularly in his stand-up comedy routines. You would hear it anywhere. And from anybody, young and old alike. It was funny. It was said to get a laugh.

Doesn’t that remind you of a child, though? He does something he knows he shouldn’t, and he blames a sibling…or the dog…or whatever his imagination comes up with. If he’s caught in the act, he shifts to another defense: someone else made him do it.

But you can’t blame kids (pun not intended). The blame game began in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve first disobeyed God. Adam blamed Eve because she gave him the fruit; Eve blamed the devil because he deceived her (Genesis 3:12-13).

It wasn’t so funny then. No one was laughing then.

Perhaps they were still figuring things out (this being the first instance of disobedience to God by mankind) and they thought they weren’t responsible for their own actions. Or maybe they knew deep down it was all on them. Either way, the results weren’t good. God dished out consequences to everyone—the devil, Eve, and Adam…and every person who has come along since then.

So who was to blame? Was it the devil?

Further on we read of another tragic event, this one involving Adam and Eve’s two sons. Cain, the firstborn, was a farmer; his brother Abel was a shepherd. They both brought offerings to the Lord. Cain brought food he had grown; Able brought gifts from his flocks. We are told, “⁴The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, ⁵but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast” (Genesis 4:4-5).

The Hebrew word for favor means the “act of turning the face or the inner attention toward someone or something. In Scripture it is never a casual glance; it signals decisive regard, whether in gracious favor…or stern refusal.” [1] Abel received the gracious favor; Cain, the stern refusal. Cain “burned with anger” [2], so much so that he killed his brother.

Between the rising of the flame of anger and the act of murder, “⁶the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? ⁷If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it’” (Genesis 4:6-7).

I used to read this and picture the devil crouching outside my door ready to pounce on me. Maybe Flip read that, too, and thought the same thing. But the Lord told Cain it is sin, not the devil. The devil and sin are not the same. The devil is a person. He tempts us to do wrong, but he is not the sin itself. Sin is a human condition. When we, like Cain, “do not do what is right,” we open the door to sin.

According to God, no one made Cain do anything. Cain had the ability to choose: do what is right or do what is not right. It was the same for Adam and Eve. When the devil tempted Eve, she could have chosen not to eat the fruit. When Eve handed the forbidden fruit to Adam, he could have refused it. They both had a choice. And their wrong choices opened the door to sin entering their lives…and our world.

The devil is a deceiver and a tempter. He is as evil as they come. But he doesn’t make us do anything. James says “¹⁴Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. ¹⁵Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin” (James 1:14-15).

It is our “own evil desire.” “specifically, desire for what is forbidden” [3] that leads to our wrong choices. The devil tempts us in areas in which we are weak. If we allow those desires to grow unchecked, they eventually will open the door and “give birth to sin.”

In this sin-filled world, sin will always be crouching at our door. The Hebrew word for crouching “depicts a lion about to leap.” [1] But God says “you must master it.” And whatever God commands us to do, he will enable us to do.

“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

So how do we master sin, or “stand up under” the temptation? Here are some actions we can take. [4]

Know what is right so you can do what is right. If we do right, the door remains closed to sin. We learn what is right by reading and studying the Scriptures and meditating on them.

Be aware of the strong pull sin has on your unrighteous desires and guard against it. We need to avoid triggers that weaken our resistance to controlling those desires.

Humbly listen for God’s voice and follow it. The Lord did not condemn or punish Cain at this point. He gave him a chance to correct his error by reminding him of what was right and warning him of what would happen if he didn’t make changes. Sadly, Cain didn’t heed God.

Seek friends who love God and will encourage you. It’s much harder to resist temptations when we isolate ourselves or keep our struggles secret.

Believe in Christ’s work on the cross. He broke sin’s dominion over us so we no longer have to be a slave to it.

Rely on Holy Spirit. We can’t resist temptation in our own power. Holy Spirit living in us makes obedience possible. He will warn us of danger and guide us away from it. He will empower us to make wise choices.

Take responsibility for your actions. God has told us how to live in order to gain his favor. He has conquered sin’s dominion over us. He has given us Holy Spirit to empower us and a community of believers to encourage us. But we must choose to master sin and not blame our wrongdoing on the devil or anyone else.

[1] Topical Lexicon

[2] Brown-Driver-Briggs

[3] Thayer’s Greek Lexicon

[4] Adapted from Biblehub.com

Scripture quotations are from NIV.

Commentary notes are from Bible Hub. See Resources.

Feature image by Jan van ‘t Hoff/Gospelimages.com