Navigate our passions

Let me clarify. God does not tempt us. We already have the promise that God’s push and pull will never be toward sin.

James 1:13-15 NLT

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.

Any situation, whether easy or hard, comes with a temptation side and a trial side. It’s a matter of design. Darkness is determined to destroy and devour us in every situation. The Kingdom of our God seeks to strengthen, support, and create the likeness of Christ.

Take the example of Paul’s illness, the messenger of Satan mentioned in 2 Corinthians 12:7. No doubt Satan intends to weaken Paul by the suggestion that God is not good or with him. I believe darkness hoped to distract Paul from ministry with this messenger. However, God - with Paul’s cooperation - transformed this unsettling situation into something beneficial. It made Paul humble and dependent on God. Instead of distracting or weakening him, Paul was stronger and more determined by God’s power in weakness. It was a single situation with two competing goals.

It seems here that we recognize before God the weakness of our appetites and passions. We admit our preference to avoid temptation altogether. I am reminded of its similarity to Christ’s prayer in the garden that His cup would be taken away. Christ was clear that the cross was an unpleasant cup but that He was willing to drink it so the Kingdom would come. We too find our circumstances very difficult and possibly unbearable, but we resign and pledge our allegiance to the coming of the Kingdom and its causes.

It is a position of humility. We recognize that the greatest peril to our soul is not from the cunning and craftiness of the devil but rather our capacity for self-deceit and the appetites of our flesh. When we change our unconscious appetites into conscious confessions we disarm their power over us. Our cry is, “Don’t lead us there.” I personally have a problem with lust and so I ask to see others as God sees them or to avoid seeing them at all. We pray that God will deliver us from our capacity for self-destruction. This too is the promise of God who will not allow us to be tempted beyond our capacity to bear but who always delivers a way out.

1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.