Experiencing Temptation?
Warning: I’m about to rant…
I saw a sign in front of a church yesterday that said, “God will not give you more than you can handle.” Now where is that scripture? Because the implication is if you’re sick, broke, or overwhelmed, God is the one who gave it to you, but don’t worry, He knows how much you can take.
ugh.
I don’t care how clever the saying is, this kind of thinking is destroying the Body of Christ –because they believe it! Especially when it’s coming from those who are supposed to lead us in His Truth. The closest scripture this statement could possibly be pulled from is 1 Corinthians 10:13, which says:
“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.”
In the Greek, the word temptation generally describes the trial of one’s character–and by implication, means the trial of one’s virtue or a solicitation to sin, especially from Satan. What? Not God? (Sorry, I’m being sarcastic.) It goes on to say, “When God is the agent, peirasmós is for the purpose of proving someone, never for the purpose of causing him to fall. However, if it is the devil who tempts, then it is for the purpose of causing one to fall” (Complete Word Study Bible–Greek definition).
In other words, the devil is the one tempting us by trying to put more on us than we can handle. God, on the other hand, is the one strengthening our character and showing us how to escape the snare of the devil. For example, consider the prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 that Jesus taught His disciples:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
Jesus, the one who came from the Father and knew the Father’s heart, contradicted our human theology that God would lead us into any form of trial. Instead, He made it very clear where and from whom the trial comes –and WHO would deliver us out of it.
In the garden, before the crucifixion, Jesus prayed for His disciples (including us today). “But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one” (John 17:13-15).
The “world” in this passage simply describes the influence of the devil, whether that be people or the operating system by which we live under. Jesus made it clear there would be trials because of the devil’s influence but His prayer was that GOD would help and deliver His children from the traps of the enemy.
I’m here to tell you: God can’t be the oppressor AND the deliverer. Jesus said a house divided cannot stand.
So the next time you’re TEMPTED to think God has put too much on you, please stop yourself and remember who the “tempter” really is–because it’s not God. He’s your deliverer! The devil is the one putting too much on you. GOD IS THE ONE SHOWING YOU THE WAY OF ESCAPE! And each time, you should be growing stronger and stronger so you can stand in the day of adversity, resist the devil, and show others the way of escape also!
This article was written by Daphne Delay who is an author, speaker, and podcaster with a passion to help this generation discover who they are in Christ. She is the author of Facing the Mirror, Facing the Enemy, and Facing God. Daphne also blogs nuggets of spiritual growth and encouragement regularly at daphnedelay.com
