By David ReayTuesday 28 Jan 2014LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 0 minutes
Transcript:
Read James 1:13-15
13 And remember,when you are being tempted,do not say,”God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong,and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires,which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow,it gives birth to death. (NLT)
The ancient Greek legend of Achilles tells of his mother dipping her newborn son into a river with magical properties. Its waters would guarantee Achilles could never be killed in battle. Years later,the warrior Achilles was indeed killed in battle. He was wounded in the heel and died from his wounds. His mother held him by that heel when she dipped him in the water and so the heel was his weak spot,the place where the enemy could defeat him.
So it can be with us. The evil one tempts us very generally,but also tailors temptations to our unique circumstances. We each have our weaknesses. We each have some sort of aching emptiness within that longs to be filled. The evil one is only too happy to offer seductive suggestions as to how that hunger can be appeased. It can be money,sex,power,popularity,eternal youthfulness.
It is true we are to flee from the evil one. But we cannot simply ignore the temptation and deny its power over us. Better to seek God to fill those empty spaces,to ask him for what will truly satisfy rather than the seductive substitutes of Satan. To ask God to fill us with something good rather than fall for the lie and embrace an evil.
We dare not deny our emptiness and our needs. We dare not succumb to the temptation to fill them with what is harmful. We rather trust God as the one who satisfies our hungers and quenches our thirsts.
Blessings
David Reay