Read this verse very
carefully:
"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure."
- 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure."
Many people misinterpret this verse by saying that God
will not give us more trials than we can bear. Clearly, this is not addressing
hardships, but is about the temptation to sin. Every recognized version of the
Bible, which you read will give you this same word…tempted.
God does not
diminish our trials, because He uses trials to work character in our life
(James 1:3). He does, however, strengthen us to resist the temptation to sin.
He wants us to walk away from temptation as victors, rather than to succumb to
Satan’s trickery as his victims.
Temptation is
common to all of mankind (1 Corinthians 10:13) and does not affect our
Salvation. The first unholy thought is not a sin; it is a temptation. It is
Satan’s tool to draw you away from spiritual pursuits. We only sin when we
agree with and entertain those ungodly thoughts and quests. When we are
tempted, God always gives us His wisdom to see right through Satan’s lies, if we
will just take the time to pay attention.
One way we
withstand temptation is by renewing our mind (Romans 12:2) with the mind of
Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). Another way to outsmart the devil is by pursuing
eternal matters rather than allowing issues in the earthly realm to consume us.
This is easier said than done.
Since we live in
this world, its shackles continually pull us back to earth. Some people are
spiritually immature and do not recognize Satan’s wiles. They give in to a
wider range of fleshly, degenerate, fraudulent behavior that ends up bringing
God’s judgment on their lives.
Others are less
overtly sinful; yet, they are still excessively preoccupied with worldly
pursuits. Some people are just idle gossips or full of anxiety or prideful
about their own accomplishments. These are all sins, however, that God always
gives us a way to escape from, if we will listen to His still, small voice.
If we make a
commitment to follow Christ, then withstanding temptation gets easier every
day. As we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, read the Bible, listen to the
preaching of God’s Word, worship with fellow Christians and share with others
what Christ is doing in our life, then Satan will find very little that he can
use to tempt us to sin. This is especially true if we renew our mind by putting
on the mind of Christ (Psalm 27:11).
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank You for the tools You give us to live a faithful life, which is victorious over sin. When Satan attacks, prepare us to do battle using Your armor (Ephesians 6: 11-14) as our defense.
Thought for the
Day:
Our defense against temptation is to be fully dressed for battle
(Ephesians 6:10-18).