Take the Way of Escape!
(August 4, 2025)
I saw a bumper sticker once that said, “Lead me not into temptation; I can find it myself.” Did you know that bumper sticker is very biblical? James 1:14 says, “…each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desires and enticed.” Friend, comedian Flip Wilson, from the 60’s TV show “Laugh-In” was wrong when he said, “The devil made me do it!” The devil cannot force anyone to sin against his will.
We all sin willingly because sin is IN us! David wrote in Psalm 51:5, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” We inherited this sinful nature from our father, Adam, and everyone has it.
So, is there any hope for us to ever overcome sin? Without Christ, the answer is no! The person without Christ is doomed to keep sinning until he/she ends up in hell. But praise God “I can do all things through Christ who gives me the strength.” That is not to say we will ever be perfect in this life, but for the person who has Christ in their life, the Holy Spirit will empower him/her to sin less and less.
Hence, the “Way of Escape” in the title of this article. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says this, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. But God is faithful who will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear but will with the temptation make a way of escape so that you can bear up under it.”
Struggling believer, you do not have to yield to temptation. First, because 1 John 4:4 says, “The one in you [Jesus] is greater than the one in the world” and He will give you the strength to overcome it. Second, God will always make a way for you to escape the temptation. Sometimes that way is a timely phone call from your wife. Sometimes, it may be a verse of Scripture that comes to mind. Sometimes some other timely distraction will occur.
Whatever the way of escape, we must ask Jesus for the strength to take it, then take it!