Day 9: Overcoming Temptation
Day 9: Overcoming Temptation
“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” - 1 Corinthians 10:13
Temptation. The idea of it begins in Genesis and ends in Revelation. It is a persistent problem in scripture. Eve was its first victim. She had to decide who was telling her the truth: God or The Serpent. She saw that the forbidden fruit was pleasing to the eyes and the serpent said it would make her like God; on the one hand, God had told her that she would surely die if she ate it. Was God holding out on her? Was he telling her the truth? Could He be trusted?
The text here in 1 Corinthians 10 says any temptation that we face is not unique to us. It is “common to man.” Temptation is something the evil one fashions like a fishing lure is customized to the fish you want to catch. It promises something it doesn’t deliver and delivers something it never promises.
James 1:14 says “each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and when it is fully grown brings forth death.” Same outcome that God promised Eve in the garden. If you yield your heart to temptation, you will die.
Finally, our text turns us to look to the way through temptation. “God is faithful…” God is able, but you are not! Sometimes it is helpful to say it out loud to yourself: “God is God and you are not!”
The text here in 1 Corinthians 10 says any temptation that we face is not unique to us. It is “common to man.” Temptation is something the evil one fashions like a fishing lure is customized to the fish you want to catch. It promises something it doesn’t deliver and delivers something it never promises.
James 1:14 says “each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and when it is fully grown brings forth death.” Same outcome that God promised Eve in the garden. If you yield your heart to temptation, you will die.
Finally, our text turns us to look to the way through temptation. “God is faithful…” God is able, but you are not! Sometimes it is helpful to say it out loud to yourself: “God is God and you are not!”
Prayer Focus:
Ask God for strength to overcome temptation. “LORD, today I ask you to help me open my eyes to the lures that are before me. The temptation to hoard, to hide from accountability, to nurse secret sins, to put myself in situations that threaten to rob me of my relationship with Jesus.”
Reflection:
Stop for a minute and ask yourself, what are some common temptations that you fight? Are you aware of them? Can you name them?
Posted in 21 Days of Prayer