Temptation: Not If But When

Something that many people forget is that while we are here below, we are subject to the same temptations that Christ experienced and those of men and men of the past. Nowhere in scripture does it say that we are exempt from these temptations and nowhere does it say that, as Christians, our lives will always be easy. While we will always have Christ with us, there will be trials and tribulations that we will go through and this is true regardless of social status and/or amount of money you have.

The fourth chapter of the book of Matthew gives us details about what Christ went through while He was in the wilderness and being tempted by Satan. Matthew 4:3 reads “And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” As Christ stood on Earth, God in the flesh, He was tempted and the wording of the scripture is amazing as we should recognize the use of “when”.

Matthew did not leave any room for doubt about the tempter coming.
When bad things happen, people often wonder how God could allow this or that to happen and I am no exception. While I have learned to live in faith, there are still things that happen that I wonder about. This is the way it is for each of us despite where we are in our journey with Christ. Yes, temptation can be a very hard thing to overcome regardless of what we may be up against and while temptation is hard to fight off, the good news is that we can overcome the odds and stand in victory over any obstacle before us but it takes faith, obedience, and the armour of God.

God gave us the best line of defense, His word: “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). God did not give us His word so we could glance through it occasionally but rather, He intended for us to use it. He is our creator and while we are made in His image, He also knew that we are flawed and would need guidance and direction while we are here below. Therefore, we need to use His word in every situation as temptations and trials are not about ifs but rather, when.

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart”

–Hebrews 4:12