Rethinking Temptation

If you could snap your fingers and, by your own power, instantly remove all weakness and temptation from your life, would you do it?

If you’re like me, it feels like the answer should be a yes. With an exclamation point. But would that be what God would want you to answer?

Would God be pleased with you if you could make it through the remainder of your life on your own power, never tempted by sin and never sinning?

I don’t think so. 

God’s goal for humanity

God’s goal for humanity isn’t first perfection; it is connection. 

I realize that’s a controversial statement. Hear me out. 

Adam and Eve were created to be delightfully dependent on their creator, so deeply dependent on and trusting in him that they didn’t know life apart from God. The creation account says nothing about humanity’s perfection, but God repeatedly points out the human need for connection. 

Even Jesus’ statement in Matthew 5, “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect,” when read in its larger context seems to be much more of a relational reality than it is an abstract statement about moral status. Perfection here is about giving to the one who asks of you, loving your enemies, and giving to the needy. 

Fast forward to the end of history recorded in the book of Revelation. What does the inspired writer celebrate about humanity? It’s not that we have our moral crap together and are now living according to God’s laws. Oh, it’s true that in Revelation 21 evil is cast out and there’s no space for immorality, but that seems to be a by-product of the truly central reality that, “the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”  (Rev. 21:3)

God’s goal for humanity is that we would be His people and He would be our God. It’s about a relationship. So much so that the metaphor that Revelation picks up a few verses later on is that God’s people – symbolized by the Holy City, Jerusalem –  are, “the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” (Rev 21:9b) 

Let’s be clear – the biblical record is unambiguous that the Son’s bride must be pure and without the stain of sin. Humanity obviously doesn’t meet that criteria. That problem is the whole reason Jesus came, lived, died, and was resurrected. Don’t hear me saying holiness isn’t important – it is absolutely essential. But it’s crucial to realize that justification – the declaring righteous and holy a sinful humanity – is a means to an end, not an end in itself.

To go back to our initial question – If you could simply try really hard on your own power and make it through your life without sin you’d end up demonically pharisaical, disconnected from your creator rather than humbly dependent in relationship towards Jesus. 

Rethinking temptation

If God’s goal is a deep, intimate relationship with his people, then we need to change how we think about temptation. 

Generally when we’re tempted we see it as some sort of failure; an obstacle that needs to be removed in order to have a truly close relationship with God. But what if the temptations we encounter are actually our greatest opportunities for growing in relationship with Christ? 

What temptation is not:

Temptation is not sin

Most of you already understand this, but it’s worth making explicit. Hebrews 4:15 declares that Jesus, “has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” If being tempted was a sin that would be a nonsensical statement. We can be confident that to be tempted is not, in and of itself, to sin. 

Temptation is not a sign of moral shortfall

This point chafes against our intuitive sense of how things ought to work. We assume that temptation is evidence of some weakness – if only we were more moral, we’d be less tempted. If only we were stronger we wouldn’t be tempted. But if that’s true, why was Jesus able to be tempted? He certainly wasn’t weak in faith or moral character. 

What temptation is:

Here we come to the key shift in mindset regarding temptation. 

Temptation is a sign-post that points you towards your heart’s true longings. 

The Apostle James declares that, “each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” (James 1:14)

God created humanity to be dependent. We are wired to have needs, desires, and longings. In our sinfulness we often seek to fulfill those desires in sinful ways, but at their root our desires are good, God-given things.

Rather than viewing temptation as a failure, see it as a sign-post pointing towards the deepest desires of your heart. When you’re tempted, step back and trace the thread of that temptation to its origin and identify what it is that you’re truly desiring. Odds are, at its root, that desire is for a good, God-given thing. 

Temptation is an invitation to relationship 

When we realize that temptation isn’t some sort of failure on our part, we’re free to see it for the opportunity that it is.  It’s a chance to put to the test what God has planted in us by his Spirit. 

Every temptation is an opportunity to lean into connection with the Father, Son, and Spirit. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says that God always provides a way of escape when we’re tempted.  What is that way? It’s the same as every solution that he offers us; a deeper connection to him in Christ. 

That’s exactly how Jesus treats the temptations that the devil directly engages him with, both in the desert and in his anguish before his crucifixion. We don’t have any record of Jesus beating himself up for being weak or feeling like a disappointment because he struggled to embrace the Father’s will; instead his human weakness becomes the need that moves him to greater dependence on the Father. “Not my will, but your will be done.” 

Stop beating yourself up when you feel tempted

Next time you feel tempted to fulfill your desires in a sinful way, don’t beat yourself up. Instead let it become an invitation to a deeper connection with your creator and savior.  Learn to see through your longings and temptations toward their true fulfillment, found only in the God of whom the writer of Psalm 16 says, “in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (v.11)

The ultimate proof of spiritual maturity isn’t that you’re strong enough to resist temptation and are able to live an upright, moral life; it’s that you trust your savior enough to fall into him when you’re struggling to escape the pull of temptation.