Temptation

There is an older man I know who acted as a mentor to me when I first got saved. He was a married man with 4 children and he had a personal rule that he wouldn't allow himself to be alone in a car with a female. He shared with me that he set up this boundary to simply protect himself from himself. But he also shared that more importantly, this was his own personal rule. He was always careful to not impose this rule on others. He said you always need to err on the side of grace and not presume that all others struggle with the same temptations that you struggle with. Since then, I've met Christian men who will not go to the beach because they know the limitations of their own thought life. Yet they recognize this restriction doesn't apply to all. I've met married women who will not engage in a friendship with a man. Yet they recognize this restriction doesn't apply to all. Overall, the message here is that we need to understand our own temptations and yet, at the same time, not presume all others struggle with the same temptations. As a Christian brother or sister, it's OK and loving to warn others of potential temptations. But at the same time, don't presume all others will fall into sin. We need to recognize that some others can ride in a car with someone from the opposite sex… others can go to the beach… others can be friends with the opposite sex… If we presume that everyone will fall to the same temptations we struggle with, we pass too quickly from a loving warning to presumptive judgement.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Temptation

Do you encounter temptation on a daily basis? If you acted on every impulse, would you be fired… divorced… homeless… arrested… broke???

Oscar Wilde once quipped "I can resist anything!!!... Except temptation."

As we pray about temptation this Wednesday, let's reflect on the temptation of Jesus in the desert. First, I think it's pretty neat that our creator, the maker of the universe, has first-hand experience with the same temptations we struggle with day in and day out. Second, don't fail to notice where the temptation comes from. Third, whether you read the account in Matthew 4 or Luke 4, you'll see that with each temptation, Jesus resisted by quoting scripture. The word became flesh… and then used the word as a weapon against the enemy.

We need to be in the word on a regular basis. Listen to good preaching on the radio as you drive in the car. Read the bible as a part of your daily routine. Commit passages to memory. Write God's word on your heart by Meditating on scripture. Discuss the word with believing friends. Pray about the word. Fill yourself with Christ. This is how we prepare to resist Satan / temptation.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob