Well, since I'm living in a place filled with as much filth as there is
going on every day around me I have a lot of opportunity to deal with
temptation. I decided to look up the major verses on dealing with
temptation in the Bible, and share my thoughts on dealing with
temptation.
Matthew 25:41
Watch and pray, that ye not enter into temptation: the spirit indeed
is willing but the flesh is weak.
1 Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken thee but such as man can bear. But God
is faithful, who will not suffer ye to be tempted beyond that ye are
able; but will with the temptation make also the way of escape, that
you may be able to endure it.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he
hath been approved, he shall recieve the crown of life, which the Lord
promised to them that love Him.
Based on these verses, I think of three ways to deal with teptation.
Only one will pan out in the long run though. First, there are those
who put themselves in dangerous situations intentionally to 'harden'
themselves to temptation. Sorry, but looking at dirty magazines to
strengthen yourself is just lying to yourself and you're giving into
your selfish desires. Second, there are those who try to blanket off
any opportunity of temptation. The problem with this is, eventually
you will be tempted, but you won't know how to resist temptation. God
can use temptation as a way to "test us by fire" so to speak. Then
thirdly, the best way to deal with temptation. Look at temptation as a
necessary evil, one that can't always be avoided, but not something we
should be looking for. Look at yourself and question- am I really
strong enough to be in this situation without giving in to the fleshly
desire to sin? If yes, proceed with caution and don't give in, because
that is not the most effective resistance training. If no, you need to
do some prayer and work on standing up to the little temptations
without giving in. There are many times whee a perfectly fine thing to
be doing can evolve into a mirey pit of sin if you can't resist the
temptation to begin with. All to many times I've found myself in the
first group and ended up further away from a true faith-based ability
to defeat sin than people from the second group.(no, I've never looked
at dirty magazines, I'm just using that as an example) The key is
listening to the Holy Spirit through your concience and knowing when
you're in too deep and back out of a situation that you may fail in.
Basically, defeating the flesh does not mean fleeing temptation, it
means fleeing from sin. Be bold and courageous when facing temptation,
and remember that if you keep your eyes on God, He won't let you fall
into sin. However, we have the choice to ignore God's escape path and
plunge ourselves in too deep and end up sinning. Hope that makes
sense! Please keep me in your prayers as every day I'm met with the
opportunity to fight, or to flee, and pray I'll have wisdom to know
which to do in those situations.
God bless!
Your friend, matthew.
5 comments:
Here are a few other verses that came to mind.
Flee from sin as from a serpent that will bite you if you go near it; It's teeth are lion's teeth, destroying the souls of men.
Sirach 21:2
Wisdom instructs her children and admonishes those who seek her.
He who loves her loves life; those who seek her out win her favor.
He who holds her fast inherits glory; wherever he dwells, the LORD bestows blessings.
Those who serve her serve the Holy One; those who love her the LORD loves.
He who obeys her judges nations; he who hearkens to her dwells in her inmost chambers.
If one trusts her, he will possess her; his descendants too will inherit her.
She walks with him as a stranger, and at first she puts him to the test; Fear and dread she brings upon him and tries him with her discipline; With her precepts she puts him to the proof, until his heart is fully with her.
Then she comes back to bring him happiness and reveal her secrets to him.
But if he fails her, she will abandon him and deliver him into the hands of despoilers.
Use your time well; guard yourself from evil, and bring upon yourself no shame.
Sirach 4:11-20
Use discernment and you'll be fine. :)
also, stop using the word crud. It's as bad (to me) as the other word I told you to stop using. (I could think of SOMETHING else to use other than that word, how about you? Please?
me :)
Thanks for the verses. And sorry my family never considered that a bad word but I'll quit using it anyway. :)
wow that was very thought provoking! Thank you for putting out all this effort! Lately I've been faced w/ friends/family that want to go to a college (and it not even be a Christisn one at that) just so they can face temptation and 'prove' they can. I dont see where they find that in the Bible. Rather, I see to stay away from that as much as possible ("deliver me from temptation"-and many others). Of coarse the LORD allows temptation to make us stronger, but that will be in His timing and we do not have to hunt it out for ourselves(like you said). Am I saying this right? Please let me know if I have said anything 'wrong'. And if you hav any othe versee for this let me know! God bless, and please dont think I am saying I am 'above' anyone-far from that, I need more prayer than a lot of people-hint! :-)
Thanks for reading.
In Christ Jesus
Oh I totally hear you! You're correct. The way I read the bible is we should stand strong and resist the urge to sin when it crosses our path, but not go out of the way to prove that we can. That's called pride, and pride goes before a fall. God only allows us to be tempted so much, but if we're out looking for sin to resist, it's almost like saying we know better than God how to resist sin. Luke 22:40 and 22:46 tell us to pray that we not fall into temptation. I guess it all depends on your level of faith and when you're tempted and such. There are many times where I can't do things with my friends not because I feel any temptation, but more because they could be tempted and in Romans 14 Paul tells us not to do anything that could be a stumbling block that could cause a brother to sin. So going to a secular college to be a witness is great if you know you are close enough with god not to fall is fine, but going to prove you can resist temptation is asking to fall. Hope that makes sense! I'll keep you and your friends in my prayers!
Blessings,
Matthew
Thanks so much! (your words and you praying for me!! :-) ) You are in my prayers too! I know how hard being in the army can be. But thanks and may God be always with you. Okay...that sounds weird.. MAY He be..He always is anyhow.... ?...confused...LOL..just my blonde hair I guess. hah
A friend in Christ
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