Temptation

Posted on by korgrocker

“If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.”
1 Corinthians 10:12-13 NLT

People who have misinterpreted or misunderstood God’s grace have to face a problem with sin. Believers read 1 John 1:9, “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness”, and some of them then think that their sinful behaviour will be ok because God will forgive them anyway. But there are consequences to wrong behaviour. The thief next to Jesus on the cross was forgiven his sins (“today you will be with Me in Paradise”), but his excruciatingly painful death was going to happen anyway. God’s forgiveness wasn’t going to stop the consequences of his sin. No one can assume that salvation brings them immunity from the earthly consequences of their own behaviours. 

But Paul moved on to the subject of temptation. We are all tempted in some way. “Just one more cake won’t make any difference” could be the anguished cry of someone trying to lose weight, and the temptation of a muffin on the table before them being too much to resist. Our enemy, the devil, will know our weak spots, and he will always try to cause pain and disruption in a believer’s life. The “surely God didn’t say…” lie still reverberates around the recesses of human minds. But we may find ourselves fearing a situation in which we are unable to resist the temptation before us. Temptation is ubiquitous and experienced by all human beings, believers and non-believers alike; we need to remember that every believer who has ever lived has faced the same temptations that we do. Just because we have confessed our sins and now enjoy the experience of salvation as God’s children, it does not mean that temptations will disappear and no longer bother us. 

One Scripture that is always encouraging and helpful is Hebrews 4:14-16, “So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most”. Jesus, the God-man, was able to resist the temptations that we experience. He faced them all as a Jewish boy and young man growing up in Israel, but He did not sin. And so, when faced with temptation of any kind, we can call upon Jesus for His help to resist what is before us. 

Paul wrote that “God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand”. He continued, “When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure”. There was a dramatic moment in Joseph’s life that is recorded in Genesis 39. His master, Potiphar, had a wife who was determined to have sex with Joseph, but he resisted even to the extent of running away. Genesis 39:10-11, “She kept putting pressure on Joseph day after day, but he refused to sleep with her, and he kept out of her way as much as possible. One day, however, no one else was around when he went in to do his work. She came and grabbed him by his cloak, demanding, “Come on, sleep with me!” Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house”. Joseph escaped, only to find himself back in prison, where we read, “But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favourite with the prison warden” (Genesis 39:21). We pilgrims won’t all experience a Potiphar’s wife situation. But we might be overlooked for promotion in the office, or shunned in the community, all because we resisted the temptations that were arrayed before us.

Sadly, believers everywhere can refuse God’s help in resisting or escaping temptations. The consequences are sinful, and although God will be gracious and merciful in forgiving our sins, the outcomes might not be ideal. What if Joseph had succumbed to Potiphar’s wife’s charms? Genesis 39:9 recorded these words from Joseph, “No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God””. And that’s the thing. If we rebel against God through our sin, we must hurt Him terribly. When God observed the people’s sins on earth in the days of Noah, we read, “So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart” (Genesis 6:6). 

Paul wrote to the Philippians, “Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:12-13). We will never “show the results of [our] salvation” by continuing to give in to temptation. 

Dear Heavenly Father. You are so gracious and kind, and surely Your goodness and mercy pursue us through our daily lives. We pray that You do not lead us into temptation, in the knowledge that You know what’s best for us, and will deliver us from all the evil coming our way. We thank You. Amen.

The “Eye” Gate

Posted on by korgrocker

“They commit adultery with their eyes, and their desire for sin is never satisfied. They lure unstable people into sin, and they are well trained in greed. They live under God’s curse.”
2 Peter 2:14 NLT

This is an uncomfortable verse, particularly for us men. Our eyes, rather what we see, can potentially lead us into sexual sin, because anything with visual appeal can tempt us. In the context of this verse in 2 Peter, he is referring to the visual appeal of a woman to a man, and how the initial glance can develop into something more extensive, intrusive, and even sinful. As we read in Genesis 2, under what seemed to be general anaesthetic, God removed one of Adam’s ribs and created a woman from it. And in Genesis 2:23 we read Adam’s response, ““At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.’”” I think the Bible translators may have played down the excitement Adam felt when he saw his new companion! But as usual, our enemy, the devil, has come along and corrupted something that God intended for purity. 

The Bible has several examples of what Peter was warning against. We remember David, and his episode with Bathsheba. 2 Samuel 11:2, “Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath“. Overlooking the thought of why a woman was bathing in public, and at a time when he should have been out doing battle with his enemies, David was lingering at home with time on his hands. His initial and casual glance exploded into a web of deceit and the death of a good brave soldier. After Uriah’s (Bathsheba’s husband’s) death we read in 2 Samuel 11 27, “When the period of mourning was over, David sent for her and brought her to the palace, and she became one of his wives. Then she gave birth to a son. But the Lord was displeased with what David had done“. God then sent the prophet Nathan to face David with his crime (a brave act because prophets usually didn’t survive for too long with such a confrontative word), to warn him that God had brought a curse over him and his household. 2 Samuel 12:10-12, “From this time on, your family will live by the sword because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own. “This is what the Lord says: Because of what you have done, I will cause your own household to rebel against you. I will give your wives to another man before your very eyes, and he will go to bed with them in public view. You did it secretly, but I will make this happen to you openly in the sight of all Israel.”” The child from the liaison with Bathsheba unfortunately died. David, full of remorse, wrote the Psalm we know so well. “Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. … Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just” (Psalm 51:1,4). In this Psalm, the thing David feared most was a barrier between him and God. “Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me” was his prayer (Psalm 51:11). 

Jesus taught about the dangers of the lusts of the eyes. Matthew 5:27-28, “You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”‭‭ The Pharisees would have felt very righteous in themselves because they, rightly, could claim that they had never committed adultery. The seventh commandment, “You must not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14) would have been very well known to them. But Jesus raised the bar to an extent that it would have brought condemnation to their doors. Even if they did not commit the act of adultery, did they perhaps have thoughts focused in that direction?

But fast forward to living in the 21st Century, with its easy access to all sorts of forbidden “fruits” via internet pornography sites and printed magazines. The Psalmist wrote a timeless verse, Psalm 119:9, “How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word.” A verse that applied in Old Testament days just as much as it does today, and a verse that applies to men of all ages, not just the young. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:22-24). There is a saying, regarding temptation, “You can’t stop birds flying over your head, but you can stop them nesting in your hair”. 

So what do we men do about the “lusts of our eyes”. As the Psalmist said, obedience to God and His Word is a good start, and the Holy Spirit will assist us on our journey. Jesus said in Matthew 5:29, “So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.” A drastic solution? Perhaps, but it indicates something that God takes seriously.

Dear God, all we can do is cry out “Please Help”. Thank You. Amen.

Belonging

Posted on by korgrocker

“Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarrelling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.”
Romans 13:13-14 NLT

We mustn’t forget that Paul was writing to the Roman Christians, early trail-blazers of the movement that has changed the world. The followers of Christ found themselves in a place that was totally incomprehensible to the pagans around them, and they would have been under constant pressure to join the customs prevalent around them. Paul lists a few of the darker attributes of this society, and he mentions “wild parties” and “drunkenness”, “sexual promiscuity and immoral living”. And the early Christians would have been invited to join in with the practices of their neighbours and previous friends. Only a strong person filled with the Holy Spirit would have been able to stand firm and give a resounding “NO!”. 

For those in our Western societies, Paul’s admonition is just as valid. I know from my own experiences in the workplace of the pressure to join the after-work drinking sessions, or the invitations to join in with the special functions to places of dubious morality. There was always the office banter that had its roots in the darker sides of life, and that merged with reality when guards were down. Inevitably I found myself on the outside of the social life promoted in the office environment, but that was ok for me. Unfortunately, I have known Christian friends who were less resilient.

Paul’s admonition to those early Christians, and to us, was and is clear. Because we are Jesus people we live in the light of His presence. Not for us the cohabiting with deeds of darkness. We belong to Jesus, a daytime experience that is there for all to see. Jesus Himself preached about living in the light. In Matthew 5:14-16 He said, “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your Heavenly Father”.

In our societies, our workplaces, our schools and colleges, and anywhere else where we find ourselves, what message are we portraying? Are we a Jesus-beacon, bringing His light into an otherwise dark place? Or is our presence not very illuminating? That is the challenge to Christians everywhere. To whom or to what do we belong? Paul’s message was clear – because we belong to the light we have to act in that way. So we don’t get involved in activities more suited to the dark places of life. We keep away from places of temptation. We shun promiscuous opportunities. If we have a predisposition to the love of alcohol, then become teetotal. If internet pornography is an attraction, then we block the websites, or even turn off the router. Paul wrote, “Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ”. And as we look into His face we will see Him clearly, and as a result “the things of earth will grow strangely dim”. We pilgrims belong to the light. With God’s help we can stay that way.

Father God. We thank You for Your help in righteous living. Please help us to stay away from temptation. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Living In Sin

Posted on by korgrocker

“Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.”
Ephesians‬ ‭2:1-3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Paul starts the second chapter of his Epistle, looking back at what his readers, entitled the Ephesian church, used to be like. He pointed out that they “used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil”. And he continued, pointing out the status and work of the devil and his demonic resources. He rounds up these three verses by exposing the fallen state of mankind, with no one escaping their lot in life, being “subject to God’s anger”. But how did it all come to this? As we know, it all started in a garden in an episode that must have broken God’s heart. When the devil exposed his strategy and through his temptation led the first couple into sin. And so the door opened, allowing sin to enter the world, infecting every human being who has ever lived. Everyone follows “the passionate desires and inclinations of [their] sinful nature”. Paul chose his words carefully, he didn’t use the excuse “the devil made me do it”, as some try to do.

It can be hard to get over to godless people the fact that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “But I’m a good person” is a response often heard. “I pay my taxes”, “I try to help others”, “I give money to charity”, and so on, are reasons for the “good person” response. But four words in the verses above expose the real issue – “refuse to obey God”. Sin is all about rebellion to God. Notice that living in sin is a choice and is not inevitable. We can choose to be obedient to God, a choice that starts at a place called Calvary.

We live in a world infected by a sin pandemic. As Paul said, the word “All” implies that everyone catches this disease, and it is inescapably fatal. No ICU or Nightingale hospital will save us from the consequences of our disease. And there is no vaccine other than that supplied by God through His grace.

In our earthly pilgrimage, we journey in an atmosphere of sin. Temptations often and unrelentingly crop up, trying to draw us away from the right paths into the mud and mire of all sorts of transgressions. But God is always there to help us. In 1 Corinthians 10:13, we read, “ The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” What a faithful, loving and gracious God we serve!

But we have a Heavenly Father who loves us too much to leave us at the end of verse 3 – there’s more to come in the next verses in Chapter 2.

Lost Sheep

Posted on by korgrocker

“I have wandered away like a lost sheep;
    come and find me,
    for I have not forgotten your commands.”
Psalm 119:176 NLT

Psalm 119 ends with a strange verse. How can the Psalmist find himself in this position, describing himself as a “lost sheep”, after such a cornucopia of expressions of the greatness of God and His wonderful works and laws, and His relationship with the writer, who had been clever enough to devise a Psalm of sections, each of eight verses and each beginning with a letter in the Hebrew alphabet? What happened to him?

Sheep are animals with a predisposition to get lost. They wander off, steadily grazing their way into places where they shouldn’t be. And then they can’t find their way back to the rest of the flock or a safe place. A lost sheep is very vulnerable, at the mercy of predators and prone to get caught up by its wool in thickets or trapped somewhere by a difficult terrain. In spiritual terms, we can be like “lost sheep”. We wander off the track marked out for our pilgrimage through life, and before we know it we are in a place of great danger, in a place of temptation and sin.

Jesus was very aware of the challenges facing us, God’s “sheep”. In Matthew 18:12-13 we read, “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away!“. There are two significant pieces of information here that are worth considering. Firstly, Jesus Himself searches for His lost sheep. He calls, He looks, He goes to extraordinary lengths to find us when we stray. Secondly, finding us is not guaranteed – we also can go to extraordinary lengths to avoid being found by Jesus. We can ignore His calls. We can hide away from His gaze. I have known good men and women who have wilfully deserted their Christian faith, no longer counted in Jesus’ flock.

A sheep gets lost when it abandons its familiar territory. When it thinks the grass elsewhere is greener and more palatable. And so it is with us. We can leave the familiar territory of God’s Word and be attracted to something new. Then we can become “lost”, and the frightening thing is that we might not even know it. I think the Psalmist ended this Psalm, with a warning. Don’t abandon God and get lost. Always keep home in sight by checking things out with His word. Always be aware of dangerous terrain, where sheep should never go.