James 1:12-15
“Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”
The temptation is a desire to do something, especially something wrong or unwise. Enduring through the temptation is not a simple task. It is like walking through a lake of fire. It can have an impact on our body, our dress, and even our life if we let it affect us.
How can we endure through the temptation?
- Remember your reward
Every test follows a reward. We can achieve them only if we pass with a good grade. None will give a gold medal to those who passed an exam with 40%. To get to the hall of fame, we need to excel and score a score greater than anyone else competing with us. The reward can be achieved only if we remain steadfast under trials. Steadfast means a state of unwavering.
What is the reward?
Crown of life. The verse says, ‘…which God has promised to those who love Him.’ A person who loves God can only stay intact in times of trials. Or we can say, if a man fails in times of the trial, he doesn’t love GOD cent percent. The love for GOD is the hinge that makes us strong in trials. Tight it properly or else we mail fail.
- Guard your heart.
Proverbs 4:32 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
As I said before, the walk through the temptation is like walking through a lake of fire. We have the choice to have a fire-resistant dress or we can go without it. The fire-resistant dress a true Christian must wear is the word of God. The time of temptation is the most vulnerable time to fall into sin and to go away from the plans of God. We can guard our hearts by a) filling it with the word of GOD; b) drawing more close to GOD.
- Remember, you are born of GOD
“No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.” 1 John 3:9 NIV.
A child follows the paths of his father. As we are born of GOD, we ought to show the character of GOD. Or we can say if we want to stay in the house of the LORD we have to show the standards according to the same. Our character/life shows our relationship with GOD. The depth of our relationship with GOD is seen when we are alone!
- Walk by the Spirit
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16 NIV
Walking by Spirit can be rephrased as “Maintain a companionship with Holy Spirit!” if we are around with people of good virtues, we always remember to be courteous in our behavior. When we walk with the Spirit, we are maintaining the behaviors that please the Spirit.
“Will God tempt us?”
I have heard this question many times from my church mates, friends, etc. The answer to that question is a big NO! God never tempts us, instead He tests us! Why GOD never tempts us? Temptation comes from the devil to uproot us from faith whereas the trials are to make us stronger in faith.
So now, another question arises. How a person is tempted?
A person is tempted when driven by fleshly desires. The root of temptation is desire. When we see something attractive to my eyes, and if we keep on caressing it, it starts to grow in us, just like the pregnancy stages of a baby.
When the inputs from the senses fuse with the needs of the flesh, a desire (fetus) is formed in our hearts. The heart is the womb where desire grows. (The heart in here is the seat of our thoughts.) When the fetus becomes fully grown, it needs to come out. It escapes out maybe as an action, word, touch, or a look-sinful action, sinful word or a sinful look (lust).
We still have the time to repent to God about this. But, if we not repenting and seeking forgiveness, this desire becomes prominent in us. The frequency to commit this sin may vary, but slowly, this sin becomes a part of our life. It is a state of spiritual death from God. A person can come out only with divine intervention. When it was in the growing stage; we can withdraw easily. But, as it became an addiction, we can’t withdraw from it all of a sudden. Always remember, the desires can set fire to our eternity and the modern media, the government provides all the facilities and protections to go against the law of the LORD.
Even though the world accepts a sin; it is still a sin in the eyes of the LORD.
Repent daily before God. We are not saints or angels. We may come across sinful visual or auditory media. Seek forgiveness before it is too late.
