Nothing Quite So Tempting as Temptation

“I can resist anything – except temptation!” Have you ever heard someone say that? Have you ever thought that yourself, or felt that way?

 

Temptation is insidious. It’s also highly individualized. What tempts you might not tempt me, and vice versa. But temptation is as universal as air and gravity. There’s no escaping it. It made its presence known with the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, and it’s been plaguing humankind ever since.

 

If you ever wanted proof that the Bible is not a collection of varnished, idealistic stories and philosophies, look no further than the lives of biblical patriarchs like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Samson, David, Solomon, and even the apostles. Each of them looked temptation square in the face – and in various ways, succumbed to it.

 

This is why 1 Corinthians 10:12 candidly warns, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” We’re never to become so smug as to believe we’re immune to sin’s enticements. If David, who walked so closely with God for so long, or Solomon, reputed to be the world’s wisest man, could fall victim to temptation, why would we think we couldn’t become ensnared as well?

 

We don’t have to go around looking for temptations. They’re all around us – they’ll find us. They can appear with a click of the TV remote, a glance at our computer or smartphone screens, or as we walk down the hall at work. (That is, if you actually go to work in these days of Zoom meetings and virtual offices.) Temptations are everywhere – there was even an old Motown group by that name!

 

As I’ve met with men in mentoring relationships and we’ve discussed temptation and sin, as is almost always the case, we’ve realized several important realities. One is that there’s a big difference between being tested and being tempted: Testing is an opportunity to grow spiritually; temptation is to fall spiritually.

 

James 1:12-15 expresses this truth very clearly:

“Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.”

 

Look at it this way: If you go to a gym and start working out with weights, you start with a weight you can handle and then gradually work up to heavier ones, seeking to test your muscles and become stronger. Temptation, on the other hand, is when you leave the gym you stop by a local ice cream shop for a super-sized milkshake or banana split, thereby undoing the benefits of your exercise.

 

Another reality about temptation is that what we’re facing might seem as if we’re the only ones who have encountered it, but it’s not. The first part of 1 Corinthians 10:13 states, “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man….” Your particular temptation may seem especially burdensome, but you’re not unique. Others have faced very similar challenges – maybe encountering them right now.

 

In fact, we can’t even pray, “Lord, You just don’t understand!” Because He does. Hebrews 4:15 informs us, “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things just as we are, yet without sin.” If we’re wanting to offer the excuse, “I can’t help it,” Jesus can respond, “Been there. Faced that. Didn’t sin.”

 

There’s one more truth about temptation worth considering, one that’s very good news. The remainder of 1 Corinthians 10:13 states, “and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” 

 

If we’re willing to submit to the Lord in obedience by faith, He promises to deliver us from whatever form of temptation that’s confronting us. In fact, He will even provide “the way of escape.” This is not simply one of many possible ways, but THE way – through the power of the Holy Spirit that lives within us.

 

This is a far better option than trying to power through the temptation in our own strength, or even calling a friend or sponsor to talk us out of it. When we cry out, “Lord, I can’t!”, He nods and says, “Yes, I know, but I can – will you let Me do this through you?”

 

As Jesus said in another context – but a principle that applies here as well – “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God” (Mark 10:27). We all will have to deal with temptation, but that doesn’t mean sin is an inevitable result.