Tempted and Tried

Luke 22:40-44 (KJV) 40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. 43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

As a Christian, I am not immune to temptation. I struggle against the world, the flesh, and the devil daily. It’s hard. Some days are better than others, but it is by the grace of GOD I am able to resist temptations. I feel like us Christians, are not always open to speaking openly about temptation. So, I would like to discuss with you about a personal struggle I had with temptation, and how CHRIST was able to bring me through it.

I used to be an avid watcher of horror movies. I watched these movies all the time, not realizing the effect they were having on me. After a while, I became desensitized to the violence and the gore. To me it was just a movie, nothing more. In reality, these movies were poisoning my mind and really affecting me both emotionally and spiritually.

When I made the decision to start following Christ, I began to seek out and spend time with other Christians, who were actively living for Him. At the advice of one of my mentors, I began to limit the amount of horror movies I watched, until I just stopped watching them all together. It was really difficult. You see other people in my sphere of influence were still watching these movies. I felt as though they thought I was judging them because of the change I had made.

Yet, as I grew closer to Christ, He allowed me to not fear the change but to become more vocal about the change, and He also took away the fear I had about my friends rejecting me. As time passed, my friends accepted the fact that these movies were no longer a part of my life. Christ enabled me to make the necessary adjustments and changes that needed to be made.

Sometimes when I walk past a display of new movies, or when I see a preview for a new horror movie, I get a small urge to watch it. But, by God’s grace He brings me back to reality and enables me to resist the temptation. I’m thankful for that.

In (Luke 22:40-44) we see that Christ has entered into the garden, with some of His disciples to pray specifically for GOD to give them power over temptation. Jesus knows He is about to be betrayed by one of his own, yet He takes the time to kneel down and pray for GOD’s strength to resist the devil, and focus on His purpose, His mission.

When I think of my own struggles and temptations, they pale in comparison to Christ’s. Unlike Him I am guilty and worthy of the temptation. He was sinless and endured the greatest temptation of all, yet through it all, he chose to focus on His purpose, the cross.

Come back next week as we discover more Biblical truths that will help us on our life’s journey!

LC Green