Three animals were having a huge argument over who was the best.
The first, a hawk, claimed that because of his ability to fly, he could attack anything repeatedly from above, and his prey had hardly a chance.
The second, a lion, based his claim on his strength. No animal in the forest dared to challenge him, for they could not overpower him.
The third, a skunk, insisted he needed neither flight nor strength to frighten off any animal using his unique arsenal. No one could outrun his attack.
As the trio debated and deliberated the issue, a grizzly bear came along and swallowed them all: hawk, lion, and stinker!
All were wrong about the inability of others to escape them, to the point that they didn’t escape!
The Apostle Paul tells us in the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God [is] faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it”.
In the world in which we live, no one is exempt from temptation, in fact, not even God’s dear Son was while He was on earth. The Bible clearly tells us that Jesus was tempted in all ways, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15) We are taught in scripture that temptation itself is not sin—giving in to temptation is.
If you’re a member of humanity, it’s a common thing to be tempted. During these testing times, such temptation can MAKE or BREAK you. The devil’s purpose is to accomplish the latter of the two. If he can get us to “swallow the bait” that our situation is unlike any others, then he has hooked us. He wants us to think our temptation is special, rather than common.
Temptation may be different in SORT, but it can be the same in SEVERITY. There is a difference between a headache and a toothache, but the level of pain can be the same in both cases. To imagine your case to be the worse of the two is incorrect. If, when you are tempted, you feel yours is unlike the temptation of your fellow believers, then you will justify and excuse your yielding and take liberties that you mistakenly believe God will understand and condone.
Jesus instructed us to pray: “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil…”
An experiment was conducted at Stanford University in the 1970s designed to investigate the power of temptation. Children were each given a marshmallow. They were told if they waited 15 minutes before they ate the marshmallow they would get a second one. Or, they could eat the marshmallow immediately, but they would not get a second one later.
Some went for the immediate payoff; others held back, distracting themselves from eating the marshmallow by singing, trying to sleep or covering their eyes. A decade later, researchers tracked down the children and found that those who had waited for the second marshmallow got better grades and were more self-confident. And what this research made clear, lines up closely with what the Bible teaches. There’s a definite benefit to the ability to resist temptation.
God makes “a way to escape” fiery temptations, but we must choose it. If one does not avail himself or herself of a fire escape that has been provided for all, then he or she can expect the awful consequence.
Don’t take the bait. Resist temptation and find the way of escape—it is there if you need it.
