Temptation

What is temptation, and how is it different from sin?

Temptation is any desire that leads us towards evil, sin, and defiance from God. Everyone feels tempted in some way, even Jesus was tempted many times while on Earth. Temptation can appear in many ways. When in a group of friends you may feel tempted in the form of peer pressure to conform to what your friends are doing, even if it's wrong. When in an argument you may feel tempted to say something out of anger or conceit. While scrolling on the internet and social media, you may be tempted to look at others with lust or to search for lustful things. These are just a few of the many examples of temptation we face. An important clarification to make on this topic is that temptation itself is not inherently sinful. It only becomes sinful once you indulge in that temptation and commit a sin. So all these examples of temptation I listed aren't actually sinful unless you give in to it. This is why we need to actively resist temptation.

Sources of temptation

To learn how to best resist temptation, we need to start by knowing why we're tempted in the first place. Ever since Adam and Eve committed the first sin against God, our world has been broken and sinful. Sin separates us from God, and because of this, the devil, our flesh, and the world will do everything they can to get us to sin. We're tempted because the devil wants us separated from God.

There are three main sources of temptation we see in our lives: the world, our flesh, and the devil. Each of these is against God and will attack and tempt us to fall into sin. 

The world

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride in one’s possessions — is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world with its lust is passing away, but the one who does the will of God remains forever" (1 John 2:15-17).

This verse talks about the world. In cases like this when the Bible talks about the world, it's referencing the sin, and sinful desires/pleasures that exist inherently in a world broken by sin. This verse describes the sinful ways of the world as "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride in one’s possessions". These each are different influences and temptations we face.

The lust of the flesh refers to whatever our bodies crave, these aren't sinful on their own since they are just our physical desires.

The lust of the eyes refers to any sinful desires that come from what we see. Usually, these desires come from lust, envy, or greed. Seeing something attractive or beautiful isn't bad, but it can become a temptation when that desire begins to control you or pull you away from God. 

The pride in one's possessions, or the pride of life as some other translations say, is pretty much just the attitude that you're self-sufficient. This usually comes from the way of thinking that your earthly possessions, accomplishments, and status put you above others. The reason that this is sinful is because God is all we need. Nothing we do or have on earth makes us better than anyone else, and no matter what we have on earth, we always still need God.

If you look out into the world you can see that this verse is very accurate. These temptations/sins are very present in today's world. Often times these sins have become normalized, showing how broken our world is. This is why God so regularly tells us to not follow the ways of the world. The ways of the world are some of the strongest temptations, so strong that they tempted Adam and Eve to first introduce sin into the world. 

"Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’? ” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’ ” “No! You will certainly not die,” the serpent said to the woman. “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves" (Genesis 3:1-7).

If we look at this excerpt from Genesis chapter 3, we see how the serpent tempts Adam and Eve with the same 3 sins as the verse from 1 John describes. We see the lust of the flesh in the form of their hunger and physical craving for food, the lust of the eyes when Eve saw that the apple was delightful to look at, and pride when the serpent tells them that they could be like God. 

The flesh

The flesh is one of the temptations mentioned in the sins of the world, it's such a strong tempter it needs its own section here. The temptations of our flesh are just what we physically crave. Our inherent desires for water, food, shelter, sex, and whatever else we physically need/want. These desires aren't inherently sinful, but when you let them grow and remain uncontrolled, they can lead to sin. One example of this is eating. It isn't a sin as it's required to live, but when you overindulge in food, and that takes priority in your life, then it can lead to gluttony, which is sinful. Sexual desires themselves aren't a sin, but when you give into them, they can lead to lust, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, or any other form of sexual immorality. 

"Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things — as I warned you before — that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God" (Galatians 5:19-21).

The Bible teaches us many times to deny the flesh, as the flesh often wants what is against God. The flesh is one of the strongest tempters because it's literally our body. We can't just not feel these cravings because our bodies will always desire them. This is why it can be so hard to deny the flesh. 

The devil

The devil is probably the biggest tempter we have. He is the source of all evil in the world and is opposed to everything good. He wants what's bad for us, and will do anything he can to lead us away from God. He knows how to tempt you and will use the other main temptations(the world and the flesh) to his advantage. He attacks us in these main 3 ways:

1. He attacks when we are most vulnerable

The devil studies us, and our lives. He knows our weak areas and will do whatever he can to get us to sin. One prominent example of this from the Bible is when Jesus himself was tempted during his fast. 

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. Then the tempter approached him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread'"(Matthew 4:1-3).

Here we see how the devil waits until the last day of Jesus's fast to come and tempt Him with food. This is when he is physically at His weakest. This is what he does in our lives, he will wait until we are at our lowest or weakest point, then attack us there.

2. He deceives us

Often to best tempt us, the devil will try and deceive us first. Think about it, if we don't believe what we're doing is wrong, then it makes it so much easier to tempt us. He will try to deceive us into believing what isn't true. We see another example of this back in Genesis 3:

'Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?”... “No! You will certainly not die,” the serpent said to the woman' (Genesis 3:1,4).

Here we see the devil deceiving Eve, trying to make her believe that eating the apple was a good idea. This is what he often does with us. He will make us believe what we're doing is right, or that God won't care, when it's actually the opposite. 

3. He distracts us

The last main way that he gets to us, is by distracting us from God. There are so many distractions and things that pull us away from God in the world. The devil uses these to his advantage. Sometimes even the most subtle distractions or idols we have are just enough to pull our attention away from God, so the devil can sneak in and attack. As Christians, we need to do our best to not have idols, and have Jesus be the primary focus of our lives. Having God constantly on your mind and heart can help you be prepared for when this temptation comes.

How to resist and overcome temptation

Resisting temptation is difficult, even for the most experienced of Christians. There's no one way to just stop falling into temptation. To best resist temptation you need to prepare yourself in all ways of life. There are some practical examples from the Bible we can follow. First, we have probably the best example, Jesus himself. 

'Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” , Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: He will give his angels orders concerning you , and they will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. ” , Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.” , Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” , Then the devil left him, and angels came and began to serve him' (Matthew 4:1-11).

In this excerpt we see Jesus being tempted 3 times by the devil. This is at the end of Jesus's fast when he was at his weakest, but still, he didn't fall into sin. If we look into this we can learn from Jesus, and how he responded when he faced these temptations. We can see that similar to Adam and Eve, Jesus faced the 3 main temptations of the world. The lust of the flesh when he was starving after his fast, the lust of the eyes when he's tempted to do a flashy act by throwing himself off the temple, and pride when he was offered to rule the whole world if he worshiped the devil. Even though Jesus faced these temptations, he resisted and didn't fall into sin. 

If we look at how Jesus responded, we can see that each time he was tempted, he recited scripture. This is something we can do as well. Any time we are tempted, we can call to scripture, and read what it has to say. This can help us shift our focus on God, and remind us of how evil sin really is.

To best resist temptation, we need to stay completely focused on God. When we let our guard down, the devil will attack. We need to keep our minds and hearts sharp and prepared. Taking time out of your day to spend time with God, read your Bible, fast, and just generally shifting your focus on God, can help you stay prepared for when temptation inevitably comes. When temptation does come, don't even consider it. You need to flee from temptation! You can't fight temptation, but you can run. Get it completely off of your mind, go for a walk, pray, or read your Bible. Do anything you need to do to get away from sin and temptation. 

The role of community in resisting temptation

"Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect" (James 5:16).

It's hard to fight these kinds of battles on your own, and having a strong God-centered community, group, or friendship can greatly help. In moments of weakness, having someone you can rely on for advice, reassurance, and prayer can make a big difference. Talking to others can also be beneficial as you can encourage each other, keep each other accountable, and remind each other of God's grace and truth. 

Victory is possible

"No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to bear it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

This verse keeps me motivated in my journey of resisting temptation. God is faithful to us and loves us. He will never let us be tempted beyond what we're capable of resisting. God always provides a way out of temptation, but it's up to us to take it. Temptation is something you'll face all your life, but it's possible to beat your temptations. Hopefully using what you've learned here, you can start to recognize temptation, and the strategies the devil uses to tempt us and become stronger because of it. We will never be perfect, but resisting temptation still is very important, and every time we resist that temptation, we become stronger.