temptation, your soul would become lifeless and weak. Temptation is really the strengthener of the soul. A man who has stood true under temptation is worth all the more as a man. His powers of resistance have been increased; his spiritual roots have gone deeper into God. That which was intended to do him harm has actually done him untold and lasting good. So every temptation contains prospective power and vic tory, depending upon our own attitude and reaction to it. What should a Christian’s attitude be toward temptation? First of all, I think you should expect it. Since the Bible tells us plainly that we shall be tempted, then why not expect it? Why do we always play a backhanded game and express shock and sur prise when temptations come? Temptation will be with us every day of our lives. God has told us; why not believe it? The surprise will be if they don't come. This in itself is important so that we can be properly prepared and ready for them. Another attitude we should take is not to fear temptation. Many Christians have such a fatalistic fear of temptation, that they would give anything if it could be eliminated. Henry Drummond once wrote, “ The greatest of all temptations is to want to be without any.” Napoleon declared, “ He who fears be ing conquered is sure to be.” So we must not fear temptation, but we must always fear sin. Sin defeats us. It is sin that destroys us. It is sin that weakens and wastes us, so that sin is our enemy, not tempta tion. Our attitude should be that we desire to use and utilize every temptation. Temptation is an opportuni ty to defeat the devil. Every temptation is a chance to develop virtue in your life, a stepping-stone to building Christian character. The man who has the most temptations really has the most chance of grow ing in grace. You know that limp, fragile tomato vines can be grown in the controlled atmosphere of a hothouse, but it takes strong winds and storm to develop mighty oak trees. Now, you have to decide what you want to be: a limp tomato vine or a strong oak tree. The oak tree Christian will have the tempta tions. Every one draws us closer to God, and gives God a chance to confirm and demonstrate His vic tory over Satan. The Lord has already won this vic tory, but every temptation that comes to us and over which we can have victory gives Him another oppor tunity to demonstrate His triumph on the cross nearly 2,000 years ago. Thank God for temptations and all of their beneficial effects. What the devil designs for your destruction God uses for your development. What the devil plans for your pollution God uses for your perfection. God created Adam to have dominion over everything, to be above all that God had made; to be above circumstances, problems, temptations— not beneath them. We were made, my friends, to be above; we were made to be conquerors, not cowards. We were made to be the sons of God, not slaves of sin. We were made to be victors, not escapists. So while SEPTEMBER, 1 9 7 0
temptation is our battlefield, it is also a blessing. No wonder James says, “ Blessed is the man that en- dureth temptation” ! What a blessing this is and we ought to be able to thank God for it. To prepare adequately for temptation, we need to do three things: First, to decide ahead of time what your life purpose really is. Is it to please God, to do His will? Is this your highest goal, to glorify Him, and to let Him get a good return from His in vestment in you? Can you personally say with Christ, I seek not my own will, but the will of the Father which has sent me? Your over-all life purpose will determine how you meet daily temptations. If you waver at this point, then you will vacillate when temptation comes. Your goal in life must be to serve God and honor Him. Second, you must determine ahead of time what your response to temptation will be. You must be able to say before the temptation ever comes, “ I will reject anything that will enslave me— any prac tice, any habit, any indulgence, anything that would degrade me. I have been made in the image of God. I can allow nothing in my life to destroy or mar that image. My mind must be kept clean and sharp that I may think God’s thoughts after Him. My heart must be kept free from rival affections and loyalties. My soul must be kept unhindered from weakening choices and desires. My body must be kept strong and useful in the service of Christ to my generation. When there are questionable choices, I have already decided that I will choose the highest road. I will choose that which is conducive to good character, edifying to my spirit ual life, and that which will make a positive contri bution to my whole spiritual and emotional well being and outlook.” You can decide this ahead of time. You can determine in advance what your re sponses are going to be, and you must do this if you are to be adequately prepared for temptation. The third preparatory attitude is that you must discipline yourself in anticipation of victory. The Lord Jesus Christ was well prepared to face His tempta tions from the devil. He didn’t fight a backhanded battle. The Bible says that He was obedient to God; He was prayerful; He was Spirit-filled; and He was Scripture-saturated (Matt. 3-4). He did not wait until the fierce temptation was before Him before getting inner resources. He was surrendered to God before the temptation. He was under the mastery of the Holy Spirit before the temptation. The temptation did not reveal to Him His need to know the Scriptures. He already knew them and He used them in His battle against the enemy. So you must be prepared ahead of time by surrendering yourself to Christ, being filled with the Spirit, being saturated with His Word. Then when temptation comes, you will be ready and God will be able to make you a victor through His power. Dr. J. Allen Peterson is Founder and Director of Family Crusades. 4 1
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