Battling Temptation

Hebrews 12:4 "In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood."

Battling temptation is serious business. Most of us forget that fighting temptation is hard work. We assume that because it doesn’t magically happen in our lives, then something must be wrong with us. Maybe we don’t have the same amount of Holy Spirit power that others do. How wrong we are.

Proverbs 5 is the story of a man who becomes lured by sin and falls for it—leading to disaster. The chapter starts with an admonition, a warning of sorts: “My son, be attentive to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding.” You can almost hear the writer beg the listener to pay attention. Be on guard. Fight the battle for holiness.

Later in the New Testament, the writer of Hebrews said that in our struggle against sin, we have not yet resisted to the point of shedding our blood. If you’re finding the struggle against sin to be hard work, that’s normal. It’s expected. Though our victory is secure in Christ, fighting for it can be hard work. The awesome news is that in Christ we have all we need to be overcomers. Are you fighting against sin to the point of shedding of your blood? Holiness and victorious living should matter enough for us to fight for.

As we submit to God and resist evil, we can live victoriously no matter what. Ask God to help you no matter what you're up against today.

Question:

What’s your plan to fight the most common temptations that are thrown your way each day? If you don’t have a plan, go ahead and develop one right now.