WWJD By Dr. Richard Youngblood
Question: Lately I have been facing a strong temptation
toward a behavior that I know is wrong.
How can I overcome this temptation?
We must never be naïve and careless about the power
of any temptation to sin. We have been
warned that our “enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion
looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter
5:8). However, believers in Christ have
been told: “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man.
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 stand
up under it” (1 Corinthians
10:13).
With this in mind, we must accept personal
responsibility for what happens to us by maintaining a degree of self-control,
resisting the devil, standing firm in the faith and taking the way out that God
provides (1 Peter 5:8-9). James
explained: “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’
For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is
tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away
and enticed” (James 1:13-14).
Since Jesus himself was “tempted,
he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:18). You need to commit
your life to him in faith and pray for him to help with the specific temptation
that you are facing. Also, I propose
that you learn from the account of Jesus’ temptation (Matthew 4:1-11; Mark
1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13).
For example, Jesus did not willingly go into a place
of unnecessary temptation. He went into
the wilderness only when driven by the Holy Spirit to face Satan for our sakes. He did not go on his own (Mark 1:12). Our temptations may be inevitable, but when
possible we should always avoid willfully placing ourselves in situations we
know will tempt us. The New Testament teaches to “flee from”
sexual immorality, idolatry, the love of money and the “the
evil desires of youth” (2 Timothy 2:22;
2:22; 1 Corinthians 6:18; 10:14). Stay away from temptation whenever possible.
In addition, Jesus used the word of God to deal with
Satan’s temptations. He answered Satan:
“It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that
comes from the mouth of God’”
(Matthew 4:4). Satan also
used the Bible to tempt the Lord, but the knowledge of God’s word helped Jesus
resist Satan’s attacks. When temptation
comes, fill your heart with thoughts of the Lord and allow his message of hope
to push out evil thoughts of sinful behaviors.
Jesus
also understood Satan’s ability to deceive.
For Jesus to use his powers as Satan proposed was not evil in itself. However, had
Jesus done as Satan proposed, he would have bypassed God’s plan to save the
world. Humility and trust in God’s way
will keep us safe from such temptations.
The apostle Paul warned that we should not be surprised by Satan for he
“masquerades as an angel of light” (2
Corinthians 11:13-14). Don’t allow
yourself be seduced through impure motives to accomplish even good things in
wrong ways.
Finally, never assume that your spiritual warfare is
over with one victory. After the
temptation in the wilderness, the devil only left Jesus “until
an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). Satan never gives up easily. But throughout his ministry, Jesus repeatedly
demonstrated that his power was greater than the power of the devil and his
demons. To give into temptation can lead
to death (James 1:15); but if we follow Jesus, we can also overcome by his
power both now and forever.
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