Introduction : Recently, the thief Cho Sae Hyoung received much publicity from the press. He stole money or articles from the wealthy or from those with high positions, equivalent to a few hundred thousand dollars per night, and he shared this money with poor people. He was known as the Hong Gil Dong of the present age, but police arrested him in 1982, and he spent 15 years in prison. When he was released from prison in November 1998, he got married, became a Christian, and started a new life. He got a job at a security company and lived a spiritual life, but when he visited Japan to share his testimony with other Christians in November 2000, he robbed an empty house again and was shot by police. Therefore, he had to stay in prison for another three years and six months, and he came back to Korea in March. However, he was arrested again for robbing the empty house of a dentist. We were so happy because we thought he was completely reformed, but we are struck with amazement at seeing his corruption. The Bible warns us about "those who ended with flesh after they had begun with the Spirit," because it could happen to anybody.


1. Those who ended with flesh after they had begun with the Spirit
    1) King Saul in the Old Testament - God chose him, and he became the first king of
        Israel by the anointing of the Holy Spirit (1Sa 10:1)
        (1) Fell into the test of the lust of the flesh - God told them to attack the Amalekites
            and totally destroy everything that belonged to them, but Saul and the army
            spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs
            --everything that was good (1Sa 15:8-9)
        (2) Fell into the test of the lust of the eyes - Saul spared Agag and set up a monu-
            ment to show his power (1Sa 15:12)
        (3) Fell into the test of self praise - Did not believe and disobeyed the word of God,
            because of riches and honor from the world (1Sa 15:22-23)
            - The Holy Spirit of God left him. He suffered from evil spirits and died in battle
                (1Sa 16:14)
    2) Judas Iscariot in the New Testament
        - He was a disciple of Jesus who had brains and passion
        (1) Fell into the lust of the flesh
            - Judas had charge of the money, but started to steal money (Jn 15:5-6)
        (2) Fell into the test of the lust of the eyes - He had an impure mind that he wanted
            to carry Jesus and bring independence of Israel to become a hero
        (3) Fell into the pride of this world - He was dreaming of riches and honor from
            the world, but he betrayed Jesus with anger and turned him over to the chief
            priest for thirty shekels of silver as soon as he heard that Jesus would turn to
            the cross to accomplish heaven (Mt 26:14-16)

2. The devil who always prowls around us
    - The devil even tested Jesus who is the Son of God
    1) Passion of the flesh
        - Fill the mouth and stomach first through the power of the Son of God (Mt 4:3)
    2) Passion of the eyes
        - Gain honor by performing a miracle through the power of God (Mt4:5-6)
    3) Self praise - Gain riches and honor by bowing down before the devil (Mt 4:8-9)
    4) This is the test that Cho Sae Hyung had to face (2Pe 2:19-22, 1Jn 2:16)

3. In order to overcome the temptation of the devil
    1) Do not go over the fence of laws and commandments
        (1) Disregard laws and commandments
        (2) Going over the fence of laws and commandments
    2) Win against the passion of the flesh by communicating with the Holy Spirit and be
        revived spiritually by listening to and reading the Word of God (1Jn 2:14, Eph 6:18)
    3) Get help by having fellowship and prayer with other Christians
        - United we stand; divided we fall. (Heb 10:23-25, 3:12-13, Gal 6:1)
    4) When you fall into temptation, repent quickly and return (Isa 55:7)


Conclusion : The story of Cho Sae Hyoung is not the story of other people. If we do not be careful, we could commit the same sin by falling into the temptation of the devil. Moreover, the devil will find out the weak points and tempt a person who got out from the swamp of sin in the past. We must always write God´s commandments on the tablet of our heart, take care of ourselves, and help our neighbors.