Tag: tempted

James 1:13 – Not From God

Posted on by Will

Let no one being tempted say, "I am tempted from God"; for God is not tempted by evil, and He Himself tempts no one.

Truth to Learn

God is not the source of our temptation. When it does come, He wants us to grow in faith. And, even when we stumble and give in to temptation, He has already taken care of it.

Behind the Words

The word here translated as “tempted” is from the same Greek word, peiradzō, which was translated “trials” back in verse two. There it was explained that this word refers to “a trial, temptation, or a putting to proof by means of experimentation.” This word, however, can also have the meaning of “a solicitation to do evil.”

The word translated “from” is the Greek preposition apo which means “from” or “away from.” In other words, in this verse Paul is saying that no one should accuse God of being the originator of the temptation. Therefore, we could paraphrase it this way:

Let no one say when he is tempted, “This temptation is from God.”

“Evil” is from the Greek word kakos, which refers to that which is bad or externally worthless.

Meaning Explained

In verse two, James made the point that falling into various temptations produces a trying or testing of our faith. In this verse he is making it clear that God is not the source of the temptation, although He does allow us to go through trials. God cannot be tempted to sin and He does not tempt any of us to sin. It is our own sin nature along with the world system, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life, which cause us to be tempted (see 1 John 2:16). God has no sin nature and there is nothing in the world system that He does not already have.

But what about Hebrews 4:15?

For we do not have a high priest who cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted just as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)

This verse tells us that Christ was tempted to sin. How can that be if God cannot be tempted by evil? This is part of the beauty (and paradox) of the incarnation of Christ. He is completely God and completely man. His god-ness (his divinity) was never tempted, indeed cannot be (as James tells us here), but his human-ness (humanity) was tempted in every way we are, and yet He was without sin. He never gave in to temptation. That is the very thing that made Him a worthy sacrifice for our sins. If He had not become completely man (and without sin), he would not have been able to pay for our sins.

So… whereas it is appropriate to say that God allows us to go through trials to strengthen our faith and to make us more like Christ, and those trials may be a result of giving in to temptation, the source of the temptation is not God. The source of the temptation is the tempter, Satan (Matthew 4:3 and 1 Thessalonians 3:5), and his world system (Ephesians 2:2 and John 12:31).

Application

On those occasions when we do not resist temptation but fall victim to it, we still have this promise:

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

Halleluiah! Our God has thought of everything. Give Him the praise! 

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

1 Thessalonians 3:5 – Faith Strengthening Trials

Posted on by Will

For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain.

Truth to Learn

Trials and temptations can be good for us.

Behind the Words

“No longer” is translated from the Greek word mēketi, which is made up of mē, a particle of negation and eti, meaning “still” or “yet.” This word primarily means “not anymore.”

The word translated “endure” is stegō, which we saw in the first verse of this chapter literally means “to cover.” It can also mean “to forbear” or “to endure.”

Mēpōs is the Greek word translated “lest by some means.” It is made up of mē, a particle of negation and pōs, meaning “somehow” or “by some means.”

The word “tempter” is based on the verb peiradzō, which is derived from peira, meaning “a test, temptation, or trial.” In the Greek this is written as ho pairadzōn, which literally means “the tempting one.”

“Had tempted” is from the same verb, peiradzō. It is expressed here in the imperfect tense, indicating past continuous or repeated action.

Meaning Explained

Earlier in this chapter Paul told the Thessalonian Christians that he could no longer endure his forced separation from them and his inability to personally return to them. As a result, he said that he stayed in Athens and sent Timothy there to ensure that they were firmly grounded in the faith and to act as a coach to help them succeed in the building of their faith.

Now he tells them another reason for his sending Timothy. He says he wanted to know for sure how strong their faith was. You may recall that the Thessalonian Christians were being persecuted by their fellow countrymen in the same manner as Paul. Paul was well aware that Christians suffering persecution will either grow stronger in their faith or weaker in their faith.

Whenever we are suffering persecution for exhibiting our faith in God, our enemy Satan knows that we are very vulnerable to temptations. The most destructive temptations we face at times like these involve thinking that God has deserted us or doesn’t care about us. This is particularly true of young Christians who haven’t yet learned the value of difficulties. These difficulties force us to rely on faith to get through; they make us stronger.

In 1 Thessalonians 2:18 we learned that the name Satan means “accuser” or “adversary.” We also learned that one of his actions against us is to “hinder” us from doing the work of our ministry. Now we learn that Satan also tempts us in order to weaken our faith. The more we learn about him and his methods, the better prepared we are to resist him. Keep in mind what James said:

“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience” (James 1:2, 3)

Application

Don’t despair when you encounter opposition to your ministry. God allows this to strengthen you. Also, don’t think that because you are tempted to sin when you are weak that God doesn’t care. God loves His children and wants us to grow stronger. Remember that trials and testing can be good for us!

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2012 Will Krause. All rights reserved