Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

Temptation has not come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful, who will not permit you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but will also make a way out together with the temptation, so that you may be able to endure it.

1 Corinthians 10:13

Temptation cannot come to us unless we’ve thought about the thing we are being tempted by. That’s how it can BE a temptation. We know about it. Take sexuality. Ever heard of ‘Paraphilias’? They’re fetishes. They’re obsessions typically accompanied by intense sexual arousal to unconventional or non-sexual stimuli. If I went down a list of bizarre and rare ones, I bet I would not know anything about them UNTIL I read the list. Once I HAD read the list I WOULD know about them. But I would need to think about them more than once or twice before it could be presented to me as a temptation. If I don’t even know it exists, I can’t be tempted by it. Same thing goes for dessert. If I don’t know about the decadent and amazing looking dessert some five-star hotel is serving, I can’t be tempted by it. I’d need to hear about it, possibly see it, and THEN I could be tempted. We MUST have thought about something for it to be a temptation. The advertising industry is built around this principle. They want to get into your head with their product so that you can be tempted to buy it.

It happened with Jesus. Sometime during His forty day fast He thought about turning rocks into bread or otherwise using the power of Ruach HaKodesh selfishly instead of for Adonai’s glory. A fleeting moment. A hunger pain and an ‘I could do that’ immediately tossed aside because it would be wrong and He knew it. Then it could be a temptation. Maybe one day as a teen He was reading or hearing Isaiah 53 and thought ‘boy is that gonna suck, I wish I didn’t have to do that’. Fleeting thought, pushed aside by the joy of bringing salvation to the world (Hebrews 12:2). What about thinking on His mission, knowing it was important, and knowing He would need protection. Fleetingly wondering if He could call on the angels. But then knowing His Father would always care for Him. Moments. Ideas flitting across the mental landscape that Jesus refused to play with. But since they had gone in once, they could be temptations to His flesh.

When the devil brought them up as real temptations, not fleeting thoughts, Ruach HaKodesh was with Jesus, living inside Him. Reminding Jesus in a still small voice of what the Word said. Of other things He could do. Psalms He could sing. Thanks He could give. Jesus took the reminders, focused Himself, and stood firm on the Word. The devil fled (James 4:7). The same is true for us. Ruach HaKodesh is the way of escape that Adonai made for us. The voice that brings that other thing to mind. The verse. The song. The dance. The stand. Whatever it is that IF WE LISTEN AND OBEY will give us the way OUT of the temptation. He knows what we should do and He tells us. Every time.

The problem with temptations are that they are tempting. They are common to all humanity. Which means our flesh like them. They’re meat suit temptations. They will always have a ‘feel good’ component. They will make that weird kind of sense that things we like always make – even if it is weird food combinations. We can easily justify them with human thinking. In fact, if you start looking around social media listening to what people do, it is staggering the behaviour that we as a group of humans have decided is perfectly okay. But as you listen, you’ll see that the people who are doing or wanting to do these things totally justify them. Completely. They normalize it to themselves. That’s temptation in action. It takes a conscious will to be tempted. It also takes a conscious will to put down temptation. To actively disengage with that which is tempting you. Failure to do that is a failure to trust that what Ruach HaKodesh is telling you is what you need to do from Adonai’s point of view.

We don’t always WANT to listen. We certainly don’t always WANT to obey. We can sullenly shut down the internet device. Turn off the show. Close the book. Politely turn down the invite to that party, that meal, that netflix and chill. If we STAY sullen, that temptation is going to return harder. If we take the opportunity to get in line with how Adonai feels about it and take the time to trust Jesus in the situation, our sullen will turn to thankfulness at what Jesus saved us from. At the benefits of being WITH Adonai. The peace and joy in His presence that nothing else can top. We will be grateful that we turned down the temptation and kicked that evil from our path (Proverbs 4:14-19). It’s an opportunity to take one more step to being like Jesus.

This is how we know Adonai NEVER sends temptation. Temptation is an opportunity NOT to trust in Jesus. Adonai would NEVER do that. That’s the OPPOSITE of what Jesus came to do (John 10:10). Jesus overcame the world so that WE could overcome the world in HIM. So that we would have a rock to stand on in times of trouble. So that we COULD resist temptation by REPLACING it with Jesus and the things of Adonai. Ruach HaKodesh is our dependable, faithful, presenter of the OTHER thing we can do. Yes, we could yield to temptation. But more so we can do the OTHER thing and trust in Jesus. “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13). “Trust Yahweh with all your heart; do not lean toward your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1). He is our way out of ALL trouble at ALL times and the ONLY way to DEFEAT temptation. “Therefore subject yourselves to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). It is the ONLY way to go and Ruach HaKodesh constantly points to the Way.

Daily Affirmation of the Goodness of Elohim: Psalm 37:5

“Commit to Yahweh your way; Trust also on him and he will act.” If I get into an accident in my vehicle, my insurance kicks in so that it doesn’t cost me anything (unless it was totally my fault). Health insurance is paid for so that if something happens to your health you can see medical professionals, get the treatment that you need, and it doesn’t cost you anything (or at least that’s how it is SUPPOSED to work). Insurance is SUPPOSED to cover our costs in the event of bad things happening. In practical terms the regular payments we make to have a valid insurance policy is what pays for our claims if we were ever to need them. Adonai has a similar system. He is ready to answer us. To reach out His hand to help us. Jesus paid the premiums. Got us the policy in His name. All WE need to do is call to Him. You see it said to humans and nations again and again. If you will call on Me, I will save you says Adonai. It’s the BEST deal EVER. He is ready. He is able. We can BELIEVE that because He is faithful and NOT a liar. All we need to do is call on Him because we trust in Him – and He answers us. What a great system. We trust, He performs. What a GOOD God!

Your Daily Confession of Elohim’s Goodness:

I taste and see that Yahweh is good; I am blessed because I take refuge in Him.

Psalm 34:8