11 Does a spring send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, bear olives, or a vine bear figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh.
James 3:11-12
One of the great temptations that Christians face is that of hypocrisy. Believers, of all people, should strive to make sure that our testimony of Christ’s salvation matches up with our daily living. When the two are misaligned, God’s people are exposed to ridicule and are in danger of being ignored by lost people and the world alike. May God help His people!
While Christians do sin from time to time, it is imperative for all the converted to practice personal holiness and allow their “walk” to line up with their “talk.” Sin should be the exception in the life of a believer and not the rule.
God’s faithfulness to His people is a constant theme of Scripture. His faithfulness is demonstrated to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God’s faithfulness is revealed in His dealings with the nation of Israel. He was faithful to the kings, the priests, and the prophets. Even when His people were not faithful, God always was.
The theme of God’s faithfulness continues into the New Testament. We are told that God is still faithful to Christians today as we peruse the pages of Scripture. Let us examine three ways that God is faithful to Believers in our day.
**God is faithful to forgive us and reconcile us through the work of Christ upon the cross.
God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:9
**God is faithful to help us fight temptation and overcome it.
No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13
**God is faithful to forgive us and cleanse when we confess our sins to Him.
If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us. 1 John 1:8-10
God is faithful to us. May we live in this reality day by day. And may we give thanks for His faithfulness and declare to all generations!
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
James 1:13-14
A warning is issued as James begins to define how to overcome temptation. The Apostle tells us that God never tempts us to sin. God cannot be tempted and He doesn’t tempt us to sin.
God will test us and try us in order to grow us in Christ. He will allow difficulties into our lives from time to time. But, He will never tempt us to sin. Our flesh tempts us and the Devil will tempt us. God never will.
When tempted, Child of God, know that the Lord will never tempt us to sin and disobey His Word. The Spirit of God will always lead us to be obedient to the Bible. Thanks be to Lord!
Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. Now when evening came David arose from his bed and walked around on the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful in appearance. So David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” David sent messengers and took her, and when she came to him, he lay with her; and when she had purified herself from her uncleanness, she returned to her house.
1 Samuel 11:1-4
This passage of Scripture is a case study on human sinfulness and how temptation works. David was a good and Godly man and yet, he succumbed to temptation and committed adultery and later murder (see 1 Samuel 11:5-27 for the sordid tale). If it can happen to him, then, it can happen to any of us. What can we learn from this story? How can we learn to overcome temptation?
First, don’t entertain temptation. Avoid it all cost. When it tries to seize you, run away from it. (1 Corinthians 6:8) David saw the bathing woman, Bathsheba. But, instead of turning away, he gazed and entertained the thoughts of temptation. Do not dwell on temptation. Run from it!
Also, guard your eyes. David saw and gazed and then began to lust after her. In our day and time, our eyes are now exposed to some of the most provocative images any generation has had to endure. Images of filth and depravity are all around us. May we covenant with God to guard our eyes and not look upon those things that are displeasing to God. (Job 31:1) Just remember, looking leads to longing which leads to lusting.
Finally, pray and study God’s Word. Pray for strength to endure and to resist temptation. Fill your mind with the things of God and His Word. (Philippians 4:8-9) Remember that sin has is it consequence and that we reap what we sow. (Galatians 6:7-8) May we take God’s command seriously to “Be holy, for I am holy.” (I Peter 1:16)
Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments;
Deuteronomy 7:9
God is faithful. He is constant each day and there is no shadow of turning in Him. Here are three aspects of God’s faithfulness to His people.
God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:9
Our Lord is faithful to call us, save us, and transform us. Christians have been brought into fellowship with God through Christ our Lord. His blood was shed in order to cleanse us and bring about the forgiveness of our sins. The Almighty is faithful to secure us forever through His power and might.
No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13
The Holy One is faithful to bring us through times of temptation and testing. He will give us strength to bear up under the temptation and give us a way to escape. Christ will enable us to endure in the time of testing because He is faithful. We can be sure of this promise of God!
But as God is faithful, our word to you is not yes and no. 2 Corinthians 1:18
God is faithful to keep His Word. In this passage, Paul pledged to keep his word to the church at Corinth because the Lord is faithful in completing His Word. We never have to wonder if God will come through for us. We know He will keep His promises because He is faithful and He cannot deny Himself.
Thanks be to God for His faithfulness that endures to His people!
mrtonyfrench 