James 13-16-Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
Temptation is not a matter of "If" but "When" we are tempted.
No one is exempt from temptation….Temptation is universal.
If you should hear of someone who is never tempted by anything, there is one conclusion that you can draw about that person. He or she is dead. Dead people are not tempted.
Christians are subject to more intense and more frequent and then sometimes more subtle temptations than those who do not know the Lord!
Each temptation leaves us better or worse…We are never unaffected by the temptations that come our way!
As Matthew Henry’s said, "The best of Saints may be tempted to the worst of sins" To face up to this fact is to face reality, flee temptation and don't leave a forwarding address.
“I am tempted by God”
God is not the "Source, or the Origin", of temptation which comes our way.
Many people blame God for their own sin!
"I can’t help my self, that’s the way God made me.”
This was precisely the thinking behind Adam’s pathetic attempt to shift the responsibility for his sin.
Genesis 3:12-13-Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”
And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
It’s got to be someone else fault besides mine!
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
The word enticed is fishing term that means, "to bait a hook"
If you bait your hook with a nice juicy worm, you have two purposes in mind. The first is to lure the fish. The second is to hide the hook.
The fish does not see the hook, and neither do we. But the hook is there. The consequences of sin are very real, but we are blinded to them by the strength of our desire. If we could see them clearly, we might make another choice.
Genesis 3:6-So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Inwardly man has the desire and the potential to sin; outwardly he is surrounded by enticements, allurements, and temptations.
A man who walked into a mental institution one day, and was taken on a tour. The tour led him to one cell where a man was beating his head against the padded walls. He kept saying, "Linda, how could you do it Linda, how could you do it"
The guide explained that the man was in love with Linda, and when Linda jilted him, he drifted off into the ozone. He just couldn't handle it.
They went to the next cell, and there was a man saying, "Linda, Linda, how could this happen Linda, Linda". The visitor said, "Who's he"
The guide said, "He's the man who married Linda". That's the myth of the greener grass.
Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
Genesis 3:19-In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”
Romans 5:12-Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.
Adam and Eve, the moment the desire in their heart conceived and gave birth to sin, experienced instant spiritual death, and ultimately physical death.
The Greek word for "death" means separation.
In physical death the spirit is separated from the body.
In eternal death the spirit of man, his soul, is separated from God forever.
This is the terrible conclusion, for the unconverted. "The wages of sin is death"
