The Other Side of Temptation

Reflection:  As Paul continues to counsel this young church, he gives them some “spot on” teaching about temptation.  If you were to remember one verse in regard to temptation this would be it. Paul says, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  But God is faithful and will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear, but will provide the way out so you can stand up under it!”

This verse provides super practical advice for when trials come!  Sometimes we give so much power and focus to the temptation itself that we eventually just give in to it.  Paul gives us a different strategy for dealing with it.  First of all, note the same Greek word for "temptation" is the root word for "testing".  So one way to look at it is that every temptation is a testing of your faith, and an opportunity to grow stronger and smarter in dealing with it.  Paul wants the Corinthians to learn from others past mistakes just like we can today.  No one of us is perfect yet, so learning and becoming smarter in the way we handle the temptations that come are way is Paul's goal here.  And to do this, Paul gives us four promises and how we can lean on God in the time of trial:

1.)    No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to others.  You are not the first person to be tempted in this way, and others before you have gone through this and so will others after you.  This helps one to realize that temptation is part of everyday life.

2.)    God is faithful!  Notice where the focus is!  God is faithful.  As we rely on God in difficult circumstances, He can be trusted.  If we rely on ourselves, or sheer will power, the results are pretty inevitable.  Sometimes we try to "white knuckle" it through temptation. but this will only last for so long. 

3.)    God will never not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.  Notice again the focus in on God.  God knows you better than anyone, and there is a never a point where you just have to give into a particular temptation, it is always a choice. We can't say like Flip Wilson, "The devil made me do it!" 

4.)    God will provide the way out, so you can stand up under it!  Here is probably the most critical piece of the strategy.  Many of us run into temptation and keep going down the same path that led astray before.  You know how they define insanity, "Doing the same thing over and over expecting different results!"  Sometimes we set ourselves up for old behaviors by blindly going down the road that fooled us before.  We become quite predictable in this way. Nothing changes if nothing changes!  But what does this verse promise?  Look for an alternative route.  When you know you are headed for trouble take an alternative path.  Again this is a choice, but a choice God has given us and through the power of the Holy Spirit we can execute it. We are not robots! 

I am by no means perfect, but I have found that if I intentionally pursue this kind of strategy, guess what? It works!  Where are you tempted to trust in yourself rather than God?  What routines lead to old behaviors that don’t glorify God in your life?  Most importantly claim that God is faithful, and as we rely on Him, and He is the means by which we can stand up under trials by finding the alternative route!  This is the route of freedom and when we experience it is quite liberating!  We discover we don't have to be stuck in the path! We don't have to live that way!     

Psalm 57:1-6

For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” Of David. A miktam. When he had fled from Saul into the cave.

1 Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me,

    for in you I take refuge.

I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings

    until the disaster has passed.

2 I cry out to God Most High,

    to God, who vindicates me.

3 He sends from heaven and saves me,

    rebuking those who hotly pursue me—

    God sends forth his love and his faithfulness.

4 I am in the midst of lions;

    I am forced to dwell among ravenous beasts—

men whose teeth are spears and arrows,

    whose tongues are sharp swords.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;

    let your glory be over all the earth.

6 They spread a net for my feet—

    I was bowed down in distress.

They dug a pit in my path—

    but they have fallen into it themselves.

Job 39

“Do you know when the mountain goats give birth?

    Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn?

2 Do you count the months till they bear?

    Do you know the time they give birth?

3 They crouch down and bring forth their young;

    their labor pains are ended.

4 Their young thrive and grow strong in the wilds;

    they leave and do not return.

5 “Who let the wild donkey go free?

    Who untied its ropes?

6 I gave it the wasteland as its home,

    the salt flats as its habitat.

7 It laughs at the commotion in the town;

    it does not hear a driver’s shout.

8 It ranges the hills for its pasture

    and searches for any green thing.

9 “Will the wild ox consent to serve you?

    Will it stay by your manger at night?

10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness?

    Will it till the valleys behind you?

11 Will you rely on it for its great strength?

    Will you leave your heavy work to it?

12 Can you trust it to haul in your grain

    and bring it to your threshing floor?

13 “The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully,

    though they cannot compare

    with the wings and feathers of the stork.

14 She lays her eggs on the ground

    and lets them warm in the sand,

15 unmindful that a foot may crush them,

    that some wild animal may trample them.

16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers;

    she cares not that her labor was in vain,

17 for God did not endow her with wisdom

    or give her a share of good sense.

18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run,

    she laughs at horse and rider.

19 “Do you give the horse its strength

    or clothe its neck with a flowing mane?

20 Do you make it leap like a locust,

    striking terror with its proud snorting?

21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength,

    and charges into the fray.

22 It laughs at fear, afraid of nothing;

    it does not shy away from the sword.

23 The quiver rattles against its side,

    along with the flashing spear and lance.

24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground;

    it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.

25 At the blast of the trumpet it snorts, ‘Aha!’

    It catches the scent of battle from afar,

    the shout of commanders and the battle cry.

26 “Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom

    and spread its wings toward the south?

27 Does the eagle soar at your command

    and build its nest on high?

28 It dwells on a cliff and stays there at night;

    a rocky crag is its stronghold.

29 From there it looks for food;

    its eyes detect it from afar.

30 Its young ones feast on blood,

    and where the slain are, there it is.”

1 Corinthians 10:11-22

11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Idol Feasts and the Lord’s Supper

14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf. 18 Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? 19 Do I mean then that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. 22 Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

Your steadfast love, O Lord, endures for ever. Do not forsake the work of your hands. Psalm 138:8

We are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life. Ephesians 2:10

We are yours, Creator God, the work of your hands. We owe you ceaseless praise. May your steadfast love be evident in our every thought and action so that we are living testimonies to your mercy and grace. Amen.