“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” – 1 Corinthians 10:13
Ah, temptation. It happens to all of us! Every person experiences temptation. Our temptations may change over time but we’ll never be entirely free of the Devil’s work this side of heaven. However, if you’re a Christian, you have everything you need to resist temptation every temptation. The Devil literally can’t make you do anything, so don’t bother making that lame excuse!
In this life, you’ll experience temptation, but in Christ you have the power you need to resist or flee. The critical question is will you? God doesn’t want His people giving in to temptation, so He empowers us to avoid falling into sin and ALWAYS provides a way out of even the most powerful temptation. The challenge for our stubborn pride is that the way out can be terribly embarrassing.
In the Old Testament, Joseph fled temptation and lost most of his clothes in the process. It wasn’t merely embarrassing, but resulted in his suffering a great injustice. Nonetheless, God was glorified and used Joseph mightily because of His proven faithfulness. Pursuing holiness and resisting temptation might be inconvenient, embarrassing, or costly, but it’s SO worth it!
Resisting temptation isn’t just about gritting our teeth and suffering silently. It often requires fleeing, sometimes publicly and in a humiliating fashion. When you next battle powerful temptation will you take God’s offered way of escape for the sake of His holiness?