I have a friend who one day saw an unfamiliar dog sniffing
around in his back yard. The dog was a beauty ---- seemingly
thoroughbred, with clean lines and friendly disposition. My friend called
the dog over to him and saw there was a dog collar which had the name, address
and phone number of a person, presumably the owner, who lived on the other side
of town.
My friend said he had two conflicting thoughts. Should
he call the person identified on the dog collar to come and collect his
dog? Or, should he take the collar off and adopt this beautiful animal
for himself? Clearly, my friend was being tempted.
What is "temptation"? Webster says that to
"tempt" is "to entice to do wrong by the promise of pleasure or
gain." It seems to start when we become aware of a desire
inside of us. It may be a sinful desire, like the desire to get revenge
or to control others. Or, it may be a legitimate, normal desire, like the
desire to be loved and valued, or to feel pleasure. But
"desire" starts to become "temptation" when we think about
giving in to a harmful desire, or to fulfill a legitimate desire in a wrong
way or at a wrong time. Temptation always starts in one's mind,
not in the circumstances outside of us.
Next, in the progress of a temptation, some doubt arises
about whether what we are tempted to do is really wrong. Clearly, this
dog was the property of another person, but every dog needs shelter, food and
love, and my friend was ready,willing and able to provide those things
well. Would God really not want my friend to keep the dog?
Didn't God mean this prohibition for someone else or some other time?
Didn't God want my friend to be happy??!
The next step would be deception, a step that some
people attribute to the work of Satan. In this view, Satan has clever
ways to mislead us, and he is always ready to use them. Satan offers his
lies to replace the values God has already given us. One can expect
Satan's little voice inside us to say things like: "You can get away
with it. No one will ever know. It will solve your problem. Besides,
everyone else is doing it. It is only a little sin." But a
little sin is like being a little pregnant ---- it will eventually show itself.
Finally, my friend needed to act or not act,
on the thought he had been toying with in his mind. What will happen?
Will a mere idea now be born into behavior? Will he now give-in to the
desire to keep the dog?
Just understanding how temptation works is helpful in
itself. But there are specific steps one can take to prevent wrong
choices.
In his book, "The Purpose-Driven Life,"
Pastor Rick Warren says that some Christians feel ashamed just for being
tempted. This is a misunderstanding, says Pastor Warren. One never
outgrows temptation. It is not a sin to be tempted. Jesus was
tempted. Temptation only becomes a sin when one gives-in to it, says
Warren.
Pastor Warren goes on to urge us to recognize our patterns
of temptation and to be prepared for them. He says there are certain
situations that make us more vulnerable to temptation than others. Some circumstances
will cause us to stumble almost immediately, he says, while others don't bother
us much. Ask yourself, "When am I most tempted? At work?
At home? At a sports bar?" It may be when we are tired or
lonely or bored or depressed or under stress. It may be when our feelings
have been hurt, or when we are angry, or after a big success or on a spiritual
high. Wise planning reduces bad outcomes from temptation, urges Pastor
Warren.
Importantly, Rick Warren says that heaven has "a
twenty-four hour emergency hot line." Pastor Warren believes God
wants us to ask for assistance in preventing bad temptation choices. When
temptation choices develop, he says, you may not have time
for a long conversation with God --- you simply cry out!
Rick Warren concludes by asking, "If God is willing to
help us defeat the unwise temptation choice, why don't we turn to him more
often? Perhaps sometimes we don't want to be helped. We may want to give
in to temptation even though we know our choice is wrong. At that moment
we think we know what's best for us, more than God does. At other times
we are embarrassed to ask God for help because we keep giving in to the same
bad temptation choice over and over.
Oh, and what did my friend finally do about the temptation
to keep that handsome, wandering dog? Just then, his wife came home and
found him struggling with the temptation. "Don't be silly," she
said, "give me the dog collar so I can call the dog's owner!'
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These thoughts are brought to you by CPC's Adult
Spiritual Development Team, hoping to encourage your personal spiritual growth
this spring at CPC.
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