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Proverbs 30.8, 9 (NIV)
Keep falsehood and
lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily
bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, “Who is the
Lord?” Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
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| To be born of God means that I have the supernatural power of God to stop sinning.* |
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What
a roundabout way of saying, “Lead me not into temptation.” Deliver me from
evil, he says, so that I won’t be tempted to sin. Too much wealth could tempt
him to be prideful and lead to unfaithfulness, while poverty could tempt him to
be dishonest.* Just like Goldilocks, Agur (the author of this
proverb) wanted everything to be “just right.” As one writer puts it, he asks
for “grace sufficient and food convenient.”*
In
the model prayer, Jesus taught his disciples to pray, “Lead us not into
temptation.” (Luke 11.4) James tells us
that God cannot be tempted nor does he tempt anyone (James 1.13). He goes on to
say that we are tempted by our own evil desires and that one thing leads to
another. And yet, instead of fleeing temptation, we march right into it. It’s
all well and good to ask God to deliver us from tempting circumstances but we
need to understand that it’s much easier to avoid temptation than it is to
overcome it.*
Of
course, not all temptations are self-inflicted. Satan is after us. He knows our
weaknesses, but he is not stronger than the power of the Holy Spirit. Let
Paul’s words in I Corinthians 10.13 encourage you and direct your path: “No
temptation has seized you except that which is common to man. And God is
faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you
are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under
it.”
Finally,
we must accept responsibility for how we handle temptation. Finding ourselves
in a situation not of our own making does not give us a pass to sin. Nowhere in
the Bible are we told to stand and fight temptation; we are told to run from
it!
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| Too great an emphasis on “why” may indicate an attempt to find extenuating reasons for excusing conduct which otherwise must be described as sinful.* |
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