Scripture

The temptations in your life and no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

Observation

The ancestors who went through the wilderness were guided by a cloud moving ahead of them. They were baptised in the sea and in the cloud. A rock followed them, providing water in the dry places.

The history in the wilderness is given as a warning to us in the end times. They celebrated by indulging in pagan revelry and 23,000 died in one day. They put God to the test and died of snake bites. They grumbled against God and were destroyed by an angel of death.

The temptations we face are no different to what others experience. God is faithful. He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we can stand. He will show us a way out so we can endure.

Application

We often think that our temptations are unusually strong, and that is why we fail. We live in a society that is obsessed with sex, possessions, and pride. These things are all around us and make it hard to stay faithful to Christ. But many societies have shared the same obsessions and perversions.

C.S. Lewis reminds us that temptation only seems strong when we give in to it. When we resist and overcome it, we realise how ludicrously weak it is.

Temptation only has the power over us that we yield to it.

Even in our greatest struggles, God is with us. The Holy Spirit provides a way to stand and and endure. We have the Holy Spirit in us, and so we have direct access to the Holy One who makes us holy.

Prayer

Lord, I confess to you my weakness in withstanding temptation. I give in far too quickly. Please help me to stand firm in you. Amen.