What Is Our Achilles' Heel?

No one is temptation-proof (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:5; 2 Corinthians 11:3; 1 Thessalonians 3:5). Even mature Christians have weaknesses in their spiritual armor that make them vulnerable to a wounding attack by the enemy of their souls (Gal. 6:1).

For example, our pride can provide the very opening needed for the sharp thrust of Satan’s darts (Proverbs 16:18). So can the love of money, a quick temper, a critical tongue, or chronic impatience.

What, after all, is temptation? It’s any enticement to think, say, or do something contrary to God’s holy will. It may be a weak impulse or a powerful urge. It’s anything that’s contrary to what God approves or desires for us.

The ancient Greeks told a story of a warrior named Achilles. His mother had been warned that he would die of a wound, so she dipped him as an infant in the river Styx. That was supposed to make him invincible. But she held him by one heel which the protective waters didn’t cover. And it was through that heel that he received his fatal wound.

Let’s ask ourselves, “What is our Achilles' heel?” We need to know our weaknesses, where we could easily be wounded spiritually. Then, as we rely on the Lord for His help (Ephesians 6:10-18), we will be protected from “the fiery darts of the wicked one” (Ephesians 6:16).

"Leave no unguarded place,
No weakness of the soul;
Take every virtue, every grace,
And fortify the whole." —Charles Wesley

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets