Good Tuesday Morning Blog Family. What a beautiful morning full of sunshine and all created by our Heavenly Father for us to enjoy. Praise God.
This morning I want to talk about a word that a lot of us do not like and that word is TEMPTATION. Although, we are all tempted by something every day whether we realize it or not. First, lets find out what the definition of the word temptation means. In the dictionary it reads; “temptation is the desire to do something, especially something wrong and unwise.” Then Wikipedia reads, “temptation is a desire to engage in short-term urges for enjoyment that threatens long-term goals. In the context of some religions, temptation is the inclination of sin.” So, we have the definition of temptation from two different sources. So now, what is the biblical definition of temptation? In the Bible the word temptation primarily denotes a trial in which man has a free choice of being faithful or unfaithful to God; only secondarily does it signify allurement or seduction to sin. We have the worlds definition of what temptations is and we have the Bible’s definition of what temptations is.
As I said in the above paragraph, we all are tempted everyday, knowingly and unknowingly. Temptation can be something as small as being tempted to eat something that you should not be eating, tempted to go somewhere you should not be going or tempted to do something you should not be doing. Temptation can lure you into cheating on your spouse, foolishly spending money set aside for bills, buying things you know you can’t financially afford, etc. The biggest temptation of all is giving in to the flesh, that is a lot of our downfalls. Temptation is all around us and God was very much aware that temptation would be around, but He did not leave us unequipped. Sometimes temptation can show up in our weakest moments, but God. Philippians 4:13 reads, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” So, that scripture tells me that temptation is something we can beat through Christ.
There are a lot of scriptures in the Bible that tells us that God has given us the tools we need to stand against temptations. Galatians 5:16 reads, “So, I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Titus 2:12 reads, “It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.” James 4:7 reads, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Ephesians 6:17 reads, “Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” These are just a few scriptures that God gives us when we are tempted to do things we know are wrong. Scriptures that will help us stand strong in the face of temptation in Christ and say no to the flesh. Praise God and God Bless 🙂
Prayer
Heavenly Father, we come to you this morning in the mighty name of Jesus. Thank You for helping us to be able to know when we are being tempted and to be able to walk away from it. Thank You Father. Amen