What is it?
The Biblical word that we call temptation actually includes both temptations as we understand the word and trials or tests. This is why some translations of the Bible use the line, “And put us not to the test” in the Lord’s Prayer rather than “Lead us not into temptation.”
A temptation is an opportunity to sin. By that I mean it is a time to choose whether you will follow God or not follow Him. Temptations are trials or tests, specifically of the soul, not the body – your body isn’t tested; your willingness to follow your moral compass is tested, as is the compass itself. Temptations come from several sources: ourselves, the people around us, Satan and, very rarely, God.
Who is tempting whom?
God
When God puts us in a position to choose to follow Him or not, it is referred to as a test. The Bible tells us that God sometimes tested His people.
Genesis 22:1-18
Sometime later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied.
Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”
Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.
When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram a caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
When God tests His people, He does it for very specific reasons. God tested Abraham to show that Abraham would follow God completely, even to the death of the Son that God provided him in fulfillment of His promise. It wasn’t that God didn’t know what Abraham would do – He did. But Abraham didn’t know what Abraham would do. Nor, for that matter did Isaac. Both of them needed the concrete proof of Abraham’s commitment and obedience to use as a solid basis for teaching their descendants about God and what it means to follow Him. If God hadn’t tested Abraham, we wouldn’t have that example either.
More often, God allows us to undergo tests or trials from other sources. God specifically agreed that Satan could test Job with many trials. Paul was afflicted by constant trial to keep him humble.
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Therefore, to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
God did not torment Paul. God specifically allowed Satan to torment Paul to teach him a lesson that he could pass on to the churches, and on to us.
Luke 22:31-32
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
It is clear that God gave Satan permission to test the disciples when Jesus was executed. These passages make it plain that God the Father is the authority by which these things are allowed, and that they are allowed for very specific reasons. We don’t have enough information to question His decisions. Please read Chapter 5 – Good and evil.
Satan
As noted above, Satan is also a source of temptations for us. Satan has been given permission to do stuff to us. We don’t know what, and we don’t know why. We can guess that it is to force us closer to God. Just because Satan is working according to God’s plan does NOT make him good – He does these things because he is spiteful and evil, not out of any desire to help us. He is the author of sin and evil and must be rejected.
Matthew 4:1-11
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted a by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
Only Satan could have tempted God Himself. This event shows that we can be tempted in ways that can be very hard to resist. He tempted Jesus to use His divine power for His personal benefit and glory. He tested His humility and willingness to follow His Father’s directives. Remember that He was tired, hungry and probably cold. It also shows us how to resist those temptations.
Other people
Matthew 16:21-23
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
Jesus wasn’t calling Peter Satan literally, but figuratively. He was expressing the intensity of His emotion and the true significance of what Peter was saying. Peter himself was doubtless saying these things out of love for Jesus, but Jesus took it as a temptation just as significant as those in the desert, and probably more intensely felt – He knew this would involve His own death by torture and separation from God.
How do other people tempt us?
With anger
We live in a broken world filled with broken people. Many of them are Christian. We interact with each other all the time. We communicate with each other a great deal. A lot of that communication is less than perfect. It is easy to spark frustration, resentment and anger.
When we communicate with each other, we include emotional content, because we are emotional beings. We frequently deal with each other in language that is sarcastic, demeaning or casually insulting. This is especially true when we aren’t face-to-face or voice-to-voice, such as in online communications or texts. This is why many people prefer texts to phone calls or meetings – they don’t want to have to be careful how they communicate.
I have to avoid communicating with others in a way that will tempt them to anger, and recognize that they will tempt me to anger, frustration or resentment. When we feel these things, we have to stop and recognize them for temptation. We need to communicate in love. We need to not return anger for anger or hate for hate.
Matthew 5:38-39
You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.
With sex
Both men and, to a lesser extent, women are vulnerable to sexual images. Advertisements that use sexual innuendo or imagery tempt us to adulterous thoughts. When a woman goes shopping wearing form-fitting clothing that leaves little to the imagination, she is tempting a man who sees her to sin, whether she realizes it or not. Sexual imagery is all around us in the world. We need to change our thinking and our habits. Don’t look. If you find yourself looking, look away and ask God for forgiveness and the strength not to fall again.
Mark 9:47
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell
The eye is frequently used in the Bible as a metaphor for looking at something or paying attention to something. We may need to pluck it out. We certainly need to control it. We also need to avoid situations that lead to temptation. Many websites that are not specifically sex-oriented use a lot of sexual imagery in their imagery or advertising. Don’t go to them. Many of the temptations we encounter are well within our control. We just have to exercise the willpower to use that control.
With reason (against our faith)
Some people tempt us with reasonable-sounding arguments to our faith. They create doubts in our hearts. These reasonable objections can be resolved. Very few of the objections people raise cannot be resolved easily by referencing the Bible, as Jesus did, or by looking up common answers online. Satan’s specialty is sowing doubt. This is especially easy when we are not very clear on what the Bible actually says.
Genesis 2:16-17
And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
Genesis 3:1-6
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”
“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
Satan knew that he couldn’t directly argue against the command, so he overgeneralized it. Eve (or Adam previously) added to God’s command. Once she demonstrated that she was not sure of God’s commands, Satan was able to attack the premise. He didn’t say, “God didn’t say that.” He said, “God didn’t tell the truth.” He was calling God a liar. Reason should have told her that God does not lie, so that couldn’t be true, but she didn’t follow her reason. She followed her emotion and yielded to the temptation. Note that Adam was with her, but he did and said nothing. Both Adam and Eve decided they should be in charge.
Satan was able to use doubt to deceive them because they did not firmly grasp what God said, but, more to the point, did not really believe it. We dare not criticize – only learn from their error. We have thousands of years of history in which God has shown us who and what He is – they had a few days.
But that also means that we have tools to help us resist doubts and temptations that they did not. We can look back at the written record of what God said and did. We can look at outside sources for evidence. There is much that we don’t understand in the Bible, but nothing in the Bible has been proven to be untrue. People have been trying to find faults with it since it was written but have not succeeded. Please see The Bible.
There are many resources to help us with specific doubts raised by those who refuse to believe what is plainly evident. If you don’t feel competent to discuss them with doubters and hecklers, don’t get into those conversations. Do not let those who would seek to destroy your faith succeed.
To jealousy
That we are tempted to jealousy in this society is self-evident. We are surrounded by people who flaunt their wealth or beauty or large social following with the specific intent of flattering their own pride by provoking our jealousy.
A beautiful woman wearing expensive clothing and jewelry will often spark feelings of inadequacy and jealousy in the women around her. Men flaunt their toys (boats, motorcycles, jet-skis and the like). They like it when people are jealous – they like to feel smug, like they are successful.
If you see these things, turn away. God has given us everything He thinks we should have. Remember that He is training us for an eternal future. The shiny toys and trinkets of this world mean very little in that context. If we feel ourselves tempted to feelings of inadequacy or jealousy, we need to remember that we have been hand-crafted by God. He made us exactly how we need to be. He us joyful and uplifted when He sees us, because He knows we are perfect according to His notion of perfection. Who else’s opinion matters?
With social acceptance
We are bombarded with advertising and social media pressure that tell us that if we want to part of the ‘in’ crowd, we have to do specific things, be specific things or have specific things. This is all perfectly true. But we don’t need to be part of the in crowd. The unspoken assumption is that this is a real need. It is not. It is a distortion of the desire God put into us from the beginning to live together as a people and support each other. Much of what the in crowd does is against how God wants us to live.
It is a spiteful, intolerant environment. Look at how they treat people who differ in their views. The replies are not reasoned responses or even neutral responses. They are full of hate and anger. They require conformity at the risk of being attacked and shunned.
Be shunned. Leave the groups. Find like-minded Christians and seek out their company. There are many groups online. Jesus told us that we would be persecuted for His sake. This is persecution. If you are unwilling to leave the group, yield to the mass and conform, you have rejected Christ. If you hide your views, you are behaving as though you are ashamed of Him. If you take that approach, He will behave as though He is ashamed of you at the judgment. I don’t recommend this.
Matthew 10:38
and anyone who does not take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.
With pride
When we are dealing with our fellow Christians, we are to help them in times of trial. We are supposed to tell them that what they are doing is wrong and work to help restore them. This tempts us to feel proud of or status as Christians or proud of the understanding God has given us. We need to remember that God has given us everything we have and everything we are.
If I have worked hard for years and accumulated money and possessions, I am tempted to pride when those around me see them and remark that they wish they could have them too. I have to remember that the years and the opportunities and even the things themselves are all gifts from God. I need to ask myself if I have given enough to help the poor and support His church. I need to ask how I can be a blessing to others with what He has given me.
Even giving to the poor can present problems. I am tempted to give out of the generosity of my nature, out of the abundance of what I have built for myself. This is a very normal approach by society’s standards, but it is sin. The subject is all “I.” I need to share out of the bounty that God has provide, to honor Him and follow His commands, out of the compassion He has placed in my heart, and thank Him for the opportunity. I definitely don’t need to make a show of doing it.
Matthew 6:2
So when you give to the needy, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward.
Keep the focus on God, on His mercy and generosity, on his wisdom and His love, in everything you do. This is the only way to combat pride. Remember that He is on the throne – you are not.
Out of a twisted sense of humor
Not too long ago, a soldier returned from deployment. Some of his fellow soldiers though it would be funny to put a set of women’s underwear in his bags. When he got home, his wife discovered them and was rightly furious. It led to divorce. It didn’t matter that the soldiers admitted to the action – the damage was done. Fortunately, it didn’t lead to the soldier’s suicide.
Playing pranks on people usually tempts them to anger and can have consequences well-beyond the specific situation. Sometimes it is done maliciously, sometimes not. Regardless, it is reckless and dangerous – the consequences can be eternal.
Satan laughs.
We Tempt Ourselves
The overwhelming majority of the temptations we face are self-inflicted. We tempt ourselves. Satan doesn’t need to provide a demon to tempt us; he is living rent-free in our heads. We do most of his work for him. Many of the temptations by which we afflict ourselves are the same as those provided by the people around us.
James 1:13-14
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.
How do we tempt ourselves?
Most of our temptations start with the words, “I want…” or I don’t want…” Remember that our desires are to be killed – we have to live for Jesus. This means doing our duty even when we don’t want to. It frequently also means refraining from doing something we want to do. A lot of time, we don’t even realize the fight is going on, we just see the result. This is not unique to us, and doesn’t go away as we mature in Christ.
Romans 7:15-23
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.
This will not stop until we die. The sinful nature will die with the physical body. The part that God keeps alive is the part that delights in Him. This is a long-term fight. We have to train like we are training for a marathon – beat our bodies (including our sinful nature) into submission.
1 Corinthians 9:25-27
Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
With laziness
Procrastination must usually (but not always) be considered a temptation. It usually means that we recognize that we should be doing something, but choose to do it later. Self-imposed deadlines and optional or long-term tasks can obviously be delayed without sin. But tasks for work or in service to other people must not be delayed without good reason. It is the same with tasks for God.
Ecclesiastes 5:4-5
When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.
With anger or frustration.
We are often angry when we are interrupted or when we don’t get our way. These are the responses of children. I have seen a grown adult wishing plague and disease on workers at a government office because they didn’t bend the rules for her. She was in her 70s. This is nothing less than the temper tantrum of a three-year-old who doesn’t get the piece of candy she wants.
Sometimes I get a telephone call when I am in the middle of something absorbing or demanding. I get irritated, especially when it is a telemarketer.
Sometimes my wife interrupts me when I am in the middle of a project to talk to me about something completely different. I get irritated, especially if it is something that could have waited until later.
Sometimes, I am driving and one of the other drivers cuts me off. I get irritated.
I have to curb my irritation. I cannot control how I feel, just how I react. There is this truth, though – If I constantly curb my irritation and put on a nice, polite demeanor (as best as I can), I find that my instinctive reaction gradually grows less intense. The irritation is easier to manage.
It’s the same with frustration. Constant delays and problems when I am trying to get somewhere or accomplish something frustrate me, and I am prone to anger.
When I am trying to work on something and it keeps breaking, I get frustrated.
When people treat me with contempt or hate, I am hurt and angry. I am strongly tempted to respond in anger. I need to curb that response.
Most of the instant responses we have to things are responses of the sin-nature within us. This is the nature that is to be simply killed. The important thing is to restrain our responses until our Christ-nature has a chance to engage. It is not emotionally satisfying, but that is because that part that it would satisfy is also part of the sin-nature. We are trying to model Jesus in how we deal with others and the world, but we are also trying to become like Him. As we continually batter our sin-nature into submission, it slowly weakens, making it easier to manage. It will never go away in this lifetime.
We can, in part, train our reactions. It cannot be done completely. It is not easy and will take a long time, so start now.
With pride
Pride is among the most dangerous of our sins, partly because it is so hard for us to see, but mostly because it sets me up as the center of my life rather than God. Others can usually see it, but we can’t until we learn how to look for it. We have to monitor our thoughts and feelings constantly. When I start feeling that I have done a good job with something and feeling proud of what I have done, this is not a sin. The next step, however, is. When I then start feeling how good or smart or patient I am and start feeling proud of that, I am in trouble. I should be proud of what I do in service to Christ, but I must remember that He has provided everything about me that is good, and that the glory goes to Him, not to me.
When we are dealing with our fellow Christians, we are to help them in times of trial. We are supposed to tell them that what they are doing is wrong and work to help restore them. This tempts us to feel superior.
Galatians 6:1
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.
It is correct to speak with absolute certainty about what I know to be true. Other people call that arrogant but it is not – they just don’t like what you are saying. If I feel proud or smug because I have the answers and they don’t, I have strayed. This is why God allowed Satan to afflict Paul.
The best response to this is to immediately ask God to forgive my pride, remembering that He is the source of all good things, and to do so every time the situation arises – for the rest of my life. This will never go away.
The problem is that we are self-aware. We have a sense of who and what we are. As I sense myself becoming less proud and more like what God wants me to be, I start feeling proud of that and have to start over. I have to continually beat back my pride. It also helps to try and limit my own introspection about my spiritual state. I have to be aware of my problems and work on them, but I need to focus on thanking God for my successes and let Him worry about my growth. It takes practice and constant effort.
Don’t tempt others
It is equally important that we avoid tempting those around us. If I respond snappishly or sarcastically to a person, I am tempting them to anger. I need to think like the ones around me who fall easily to temptation – I need to be careful not to provoke them into sin. I need to behave with modesty and decorum so that I am a source of strength for them rather than weakness.
1 Corinthians 9:22
To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.
A woman has the right to dress as revealingly as today’s estimate modesty allows – and that allows a lot. She has to remember, though to be responsible. “Am I tempting the men around me to think lustful thoughts?” There is a difference between looking nice and inciting lust – wearing clothing that leaves little to the imagination is a source of temptation. She is clearly not responsible for the thoughts of the men around her, but she is providing a stumbling block to them over which they can fall. She is not emulating Jesus, who would not place temptation in anyone’s way.
Growing up means that we balance our rights with our responsibilities.
People have the right to put provocative bumper stickers on their cars, or to post provocative things online. There is a perverse pleasure in stirring things up – of causing people to react, usually in anger. This must be recognized as a temptation: I am sinning by causing others to sin.
If a man drives erratically and aggressively with a Christian bumper sticker on his car, he is inciting people to anger while bearing God’s name. Those outside will not see a broken Christian trying to subdue his sin-nature and failing. They will see a hypocrite who casually ignores what he says he believes. Be careful how you represent God – we are always on display.
If I behave irresponsibly yet declare myself to be a Christian – a follower and emulator of Jesus, I am teaching them to sin and driving people away.
Matthew 5:19
Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
I am ordered to love my neighbor. If I set him up to sin, I am reinforcing bad habits in him. I am teaching him to yield to temptation. I am not acting in love.
Following Jesus means giving up your rights. Truthfully, the only human right we have under God is the right to be destroyed. He has graciously granted us the privilege of adoption into His family. Our human rights are irrelevant. Usually, when we stand on our rights, we are acting in pride and selfish desire.
We need to kill those desires and act as He wants us to act.
How do we respond?
Each opportunity to sin is a separate decision. It is easier to do the right thing if that decision has already been made. It is absolutely necessary to make a firm commitment to following Jesus and His commands in a calm state, away from temptations. We lie to ourselves all the time and minimize sin and its effects. Indicators of problems are thoughts like:
“I wouldn’t normally do this, but…”
“I can make an exception in this case…”
“it wouldn’t hurt anybody if…”
They are all attempts to find exceptions to God’s rules. You cannot. God’s rules are absolute. If there is any question in your mind as to whether doing something is right, there usually is no doubt that you shouldn’t do it.
There are many situations between God’s rules. Sometimes we are faced with moral choices that aren’t immediately clear. In these cases, it is helpful to remember that we are trying to follow Jesus’ example. The overused cliché, “What would Jesus do?” is actually quite helpful in these situations.
Take a situation where I have an unpleasant or burdensome chore that I have to do. I also have the opportunity to go outside and spend time with my family; I haven’t done enough of this lately with the demands of work. The better choice depends on the circumstances. Sometimes it is to perform the unpleasant task and see the family time as a temptation. Sometimes, it is to see the family time as more important and the task as the temptation. It depends on a large number of factors and is entirely situational. In God, duty comes before pleasure, but there are different kinds of duty. Praying, and asking God to show you how to best model Jesus in the situation will help.
We all yield to temptation. We all fall short of the glory of God. God is teaching us how to be strong and follow Him. It takes time and practice. When building muscles, you start with the small weights and work your way up. You continue a disciplined regimen of lifting the weights and not quitting until you have reached your goal, then continue to maintain your strength.
God will not let us encounter temptations stronger than we can resist. Whether we choose to resist them is a different matter.
Generally, when we are tested or tempted, we should start with prayer. Pray that God give us the strength to follow Him and avoid sin. Just praying in Jesus’ name usually helps a lot.
James 4:7
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
This is absolutely true of Satan. Resist him in Jesus’ name using the scriptures and he will flee. But it is equally true of temptations from other sources. Resist them and they will lessen or cease altogether – temporarily. The same situation that allowed them the first time will allow them again.
It is critical that we avoid situations that might lead to temptation. I resist temptation when I stay well out of the way.
A businessman working late, alone, with a female co-worker is in the way of temptation. It certainly provides the opportunity for others to assume the sin. Sometimes this is unavoidable, but often it is not. We have to be creative in the way we avoid bad situations.
Listen when God is rebuking us.
2 Chronicles 32:24-26
In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. He prayed to the Lord, who answered him and gave him a miraculous sign. But Hezekiah’s heart was proud and he did not respond to the kindness shown him; therefore the Lord’s wrath was on him and on Judah and Jerusalem. Then Hezekiah repented of the pride of his heart, as did the people of Jerusalem; therefore the Lord’s wrath did not come on them during the days of Hezekiah.
Hezekiah was a good king, and followed the Lord’s commands all his life until the end, when he stumbled. God is loving and kind, but He is also faithful and just. He will help us keep to His path when we start to leave it. If He sees that our possessions are causing us to stray, He may take them away. If He sees that we rely too much on a human to the exclusion of reliance on Him, He may take that person away. Remember that He is taking the long view, training us to what we need to be.
So when I encounter hardships or challenges, I have to ask myself:
Is this happening because I am not following God in some related way?
Have I been disobedient?
Is there a specific lesson He is trying to teach me?
Is He letting me deal with the results of my own actions?
I will usually not know the answers to these types of questions until after it is all over, but asking them helps pull me out of myself and my own self-pity. It helps me look for God. Sometimes it isn’t really related to me, but somebody else. Often, I have created the problem for myself, and these are just the inevitable consequences of my own decisions. If I look to God for help and ask Him to show me what is really happening, He will frequently show me and help me to correct it. God always wants us to turn to Him. He will honor our efforts, even if He doesn’t change the situation.
Look to the Bible
Find a reference to the issue you are facing. When Satan tempted Jesus, He responded with scripture, and Satan had no answer. It effectively blocked that line of attack. If you have a problem with a specific temptation, find an applicable Scripture verse and commit it to memory. Quote it to yourself when you encounter that temptation. You will find that makes it easier to keep yourself straight.
1 Corinthians 10:13
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.
God will never keep us from all temptation – He uses it to help us grow. He will keep us out of temptation He hasn’t equipped us to deal with. If we find ourselves tempted beyond our ability to withstand, we have brought it on ourselves.
Remember that when we fall, God is quick to forgive. We need to be just as quick to forgive each other, and ourselves. We all fall to temptations of one kind or another. No one has room to criticize or feel superior.
Ask God to help. Ask Him to forgive you for falling. Ask Him to restore you – ‘Don’t give up on me, but continue to work on me to make me what You want me to be.’
There but for the Grace of God go I.