SINFUL TEMPTATIONS

Q. Do you jump into the sinfulness of the world in hopes of them becoming like you? Or do you stay back because you know temptations are too strong and it’s easier to protect your purity?

Dealing with sin in this world is not easy. Jesus was perfect and lived in a sinful world and still kept His testimony. He confronted the rich young ruler who wanted to receive eternal life and told him that he needed to sell his possessions and give to the poor. He gave him a choice and the young man made a decision to NOT follow Jesus’ advice. So, even when Jesus was in the world, he addressed the issue of sin and made others around Him aware of their sinful nature. He challenged the Pharisees on religious doctrine, he cleansed the temple from those people who bought and sold in the temple, and he used the parable of the unjust steward to reveal the sinful nature of man.

Obviously we can’t go into isolation and never be involved in the world around us. On a casual basis we have to “brush shoulders” with others who do not know the Lord. The problem is to try to keep our testimony by keeping our language and actions Christ-like. Emotions play a part in our ability to keep our testimony and stand up for Christ. When you have to be around friends and people who are not Christians, don’t let their kidding and unkind words allow you to get angry. Stand firm in your faith and let them see the real you, the one who is a follower of Christ.

God’s Word addresses the solution to whether or not we should be a part of this world and to what extent. In Proverbs 16:17 we learn that the way a person should live is to depart from evil. The word depart indicates moving away. In I Thessalonians 5:22 we are to “Abstain from every form of evil.” James 1:14 “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” As Christians we are encouraged to stay away from evil because our testimony can be too easily compromised and we will be drawn further away from Jesus and His Word. I Corinthians 15:33-34 warns us that we are not to be deceived “Evil company corrupts good habits.” Each of these passages seems to resound with the same theme, stay away from those things that are evil. Don’t be willing to risk your growth as a Christian by getting too close to the things of the world.

The acronym WWJD seems to be a good idea. What would Jesus do? Would Jesus be pleased if He found you in a questionable place? Are you really strong enough to answer questions and avoid temptation? Maybe the first time you can, but what about time and time again. Your resolve weakens and you begin ever so slowly to move away from Christ. What about others who may be Atheists, Muslim or Hindu? Can you really defend your Christian beliefs and answer their questions without getting confused? I feel that my day-to-day testimony is very important in showing others the love of God. If I stay focused, then others will know that living for Christ is really a life-changing situation. By not putting myself in a compromising situation I keep my testimony and can show others Christians can have fun without being involved in worldly things.

I heard a preacher give an example of how sin enters our life and why it is so important to keep our lives protected and pure. If you decided to bake something like a cookie and followed the recipe carefully but added an extra 1/4 tsp. of salt you probably wouldn’t notice it. If the next time you added an extra 3/8 tsp you still may not taste the difference. But if you add an extra 1/2 tsp of salt you would begin to notice the taste. Adding an extra 3/4 tsp salt would surely be noticed and if you added 1 full tsp. it would be unpleasant to taste. The more salt you add to the cookie the more the taste is affected and eventually you would have to throw the cookie away. Sin creeps into our lives just like the little additions of salt to the cookie. We may not notice any change at first but the longer we stay in the sinfulness of the world, the more we weaken our resolve and compromise our real Christian walk with God. Our lives can become just like the “bad” cookie that no longer appeals to our sense of taste.

Being in the world and in non-Christian environments may cause us to refuse to take responsibility for our sin. In our attempt to “jump” into the sinful word we may underestimate our ability to deal with situations. Yes, God lives within our life and gives us the direction we need and He is always there to help us. But being in situations that do not edify Christ, our senses may become dull and we may eventually push the quiet voice of Christ into the back of our mind. We have to know our limitations and I’m afraid that a majority of Christians do not know how to keep the boundary clear and defined. By staying away from things that entice us and keeping worldly things at a distance we can be more like Christ and help our mind to focus on pure thoughts and actions.