Chocolate Cake on a Diet

Feb. 28

Read: James 1:9-18

Chocolate Cake on a Diet

“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” (v.13,14)

God does not put evil in someone’s path… he does not give someone a “bad day” to see if they can handle it or make it through. This is not God’s nature or character. This word translated “tempted” here (Grk: peirazo) goes far beyond the idea of looking at a desert and wanting to eat it while on your diet. Here is the definition:

“To try whether a thing can be done; to try, make trial of, test: for the purpose of ascertaining his quality, or what he thinks, or how he will behave himself; of God: to inflict evils upon one in order to prove his character and the steadfastness of his faith” (Strong’s)

God is not in the business of trying to “trip up” or destroy his children. He is not “inflicting evils upon us in order to prove or disprove our character”. Think about the passage itself. Look at what it says about God: “God cannot be tempted”. Think about what that says… God cannot have a bad day, be tripped up, or have something else put an “evil thing” upon him to prove himself. Oddly enough - this is sometimes what WE do to God. We take and evil thing from this world and try to put it before him… proverbially out it onto him … and make him prove to us he is good. When we try to attribute temptations to God… we are trying to “tempt” him. There is even a part of the definition that calls this out:

“Men are said to tempt God by exhibitions of distrust, as though they wished to try whether he is not justly distrusted. Other times, by impious or wicked conduct to test God's justice and patience, and to challenge him, as it were to give proof of his actually being perfect.” (Strongs)

Simply put, God cannot be tempted. He cannot have a bad day and he doesn’t do that to his children either. It is sin in this world that wreaks havoc on the people of God. It is the desires of our flesh that war against the Spirit within us. (cf. Gal. 5:17) Paul describes it as “sin” that is in us… like a thorn in our flesh. Look at Romans 7:20-23:

“Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.”

James says that we are “lured and enticed” by our own desires. This word carries the idea of bait on a hook… like fishing. Desires in our flesh lure and entice us to sin. Sin is its own punishment. It leads to difficulty and “testing”… the very trials that James has been writing about! It is sin in this world… and in our flesh… that causes this testing and tempting. We ought not to try and put this on God. When we are tempted… tested by evil… having a bad day… we can come to the Lord knowing that HE is not putting this evil on us. He doesn’t have days like that and he is not in the business of giving them to his children. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The Lord is in the business of giving WISDOM and STRENGTH to endure these trials. He is the one breeding STEADFASTNESS from the trial itself and building up our FAITH in it. We can confidently turn to the LORD in these moments precisely because he is not the one causing the temptation, he cannot be tempted, and he does not do the tempting! I believe this truth is a major part of the “wisdom we ask for and receive” when facing trials and tribulations of every type. (cf. James 1:2,5) Boldly look to the Lord and come to him in your most tempting and trying times knowing he is not the source of them… at least that is what James seems to say.  Love you guys. - JDP