...And Lead Us Not Into Temptation.
Dearly Beloved in Christ,
I know I have written before that the best way to live a life free from the hurdles of temptations is to flee from it. I have come to the realization that there is no such thing as a "temptation free life". What is even more shocking is that "Temptation is actually a good thing"😱.
Temptation - Is a good thing?
Yes, It is..
As one walks and discover more about God through Christ Jesus by the help of the Holy Spirit, certain truths begin to become clearer and this comes as a result of maturity in the Spirit.
Truths that would have destabilized your walk with Christ at an early stage will be easier to absorb as you mature..Just as an infant needs milk at its stage and over time, grows to accept semi-solids and then graduates to chewing meat/cracking bones, so it is with the things of the Spirit.
To accept this truth - temptation is a good thing, I had to ask the Holy Spirit what this meant and by His help (through a minister in the Consecration to Jesus program I currently have the opportunity to attend) received this lesson:
Temptation is an opportunity to make a choice to honor God, our Holy Father in Heaven, proving to HIM that you are aware of the Holy Son's sacrifice - which makes HIM pleased.
Being tempted is for our own benefit. HOW?
It makes us humble (poor in spirit.."Blessed are the poor in spirit for they shall see God"🙂). It reminds us of our frail human nature and our natural inclination to sin..bringing us to a place of total surrender to the Abundant Grace & Mercy of our Loving Father in Heaven.
It purifies us..Just as Iron is purified in Fire, so is a Just man with temptations. Overcoming temptations strengthens us spiritually as we are filled with the joy of the lord. Recall, our Lord Jesus after overcoming his temptations (If Jesus can be tempted, so can you brother!), was ministered to by angels..Hw was refreshed by Heaven!
It instructs us.. Once we have endured and overcome a temptation, we are then instructed by the spirit strengthened within us on how to make holy choices as well as to avoid occasions of sin. It will also reminds us that we are conquerors by Grace through Christ Jesus.
If God is good, why does HE allow us to be tempted.?
Well, I have had this question in my mind for a while and the simple truth is GOD DOES NOT TEMPT. Nope! HE permits the devil to tempt us, and this is depicted in the story of Job. God boasted about Job's faithfulness and the devil sort of challenged God to test Job's faithfulness. Now the point here is that God "entrusted" Job with the opportunity to prove to the devil of his faithfulness to HIM. Job after enduring and making God proud, got double of all the devil had taken from him. - What is that thing you think you'll miss out on or loose because you have decided to honor God? Remember that this is the God who made the heavens and the earth and all that is within it. so are you really going to worry about it?
The sources of temptation are the devil, the world and the flesh - and the flesh is the greatest of them all. If the flesh does not give consent to the other two, it won't be affected by them. That is why we always tend to quote the words "The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak". The flesh plays a very MAJOR role in us being tempted. It contains with it, all our senses that can be so easily enticed by the world and the devil.
Temptation usually starts from a small thought, which grows into a strong imagination, which gives rise to a delightful feeling, that eventually leads to us to giving our consent to it and then falling..face flat!.This is the usual pattern of a natural human. Recall that we in Christ Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit are converted into supernatural beings! Hence just at the very thought of it, we cancel it out..immediately!
How do we overcome temptations?
We overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony...wait..that is a song playing in my head as I typed🤣..by Jeremy camp..well..It is true. However, in the practical sense, we overcome temptations by Humility and Patience.
- Humility - Constant reminder that it is not your strength or 'evading skills' that will help you overcome it. Keeping your lifestyle as simple as possible. We humans have a knack for complicating things as well as desiring things we don't need which leads us to "in most cases" unnecessary temptations.
- Patience - Wait it out. Sometimes, there is a purpose in that temptation; that you would come out victorious through Christ Jesus, which would take you to a higher level in your walk with him. As you would patiently go through lectures/exams in an academic institution to graduate to a higher level, so you must be patient when our Loving Father permits us to go through "Life tests" bearing in mind that HE is cheering for us that we might come out to a higher level in our walk with Christ.
It is best you make up your mind to choose to honor God at the very moment you are met with temptation rather than "play" with it first before attempting to make the right choice.
Final words...
So, it has been established that we cannot run away from temptations..however, let us not despair, trusting that God our Father who permits us to be tempted is ever faithful not to allow us to be tempted beyond our capabilities..and that HE is waiting on the other side rooting for us to overcome by the Grace HE has always freely made available to us through Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior.
Comments