I was struck by something Oswald Chambers wrote that got me thinking about how we view sin. He made the comment that “Satan does not tempt us to do wrong things, he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us by regeneration; the possibility of being of value to God.”
As I thought about that I began to consider why God still has me voicing the message He has placed deep in my heart many years ago. It all tracks back to Romans 8:29-29 and what our purpose is for our time here in our journey through this world … spiritual maturity. Yes, we are to spiritually mature in God’s eyes, but a key part of our journey is discovering, using, and maturing the gifts we have been given to bless our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Satan is continually tempting us to turn away from that path and ignore or misuse the gift(s) we have been given. He does not come directly at us with our sins, he just reminds us of them and lets our old nature feed on them. He is more interested in shifting our point of view by tempting us to lose our focus on what counts and, in the process, use our gifts for our own self-centered advantage and benefit. Our only defense against that is to stay in communion with the only One who can keep us on the narrow path; the Holy Spirit.
Jesus was tempted in the very same way. Immediately after He was baptized, He was led into the wilderness and Satan tempted Him to use His gifts for His own personal gain. But in the end, Satan lost that battle. Jesus knows exactly where we are when the tempter comes and His Spirit is there to lead us in the right direction. That, I am sure, is a key part of the reason Paul included it in his letter to the worldly Corinthians:
1 Cor 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Before we were born again into the family of God, our temptations came in a whole different realm. As a member of the bride of Christ our temptations come in the realm of those that faced our bridegroom. They are not the temptations of a man; they are the temptations of God as a man … and we can identify with that.
Heb 4:15-16 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
But first we need to determine Where We Are and turn to the only One who can guide us through the enemy’s temptations; the One who faced them all as a man and never failed? It’s a life-long journey and His Spirit is the only One whose directions we can safely follow; through the deep valleys and the highest peaks He is always there to lead us.