A way out:
God will provide

By Lena Bergen Friesen

My favourite verse when in the midst of temptation is I Corinthians 10:13: "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."

Some of my testing times have tried my faith almost to the limit. However, the Lord has always kept this promise. This inspired me to study more about temptation, to learn how God was faithful to this promise in others' lives.

Job. In Job 1, we discover that God has "staff meetings" with the angels and that sometimes Satan attends them. In this particular case, God asked whether Satan had observed how righteous Job was. Satan replied that this was only because God blessed him so much. When God allowed Satan to test Job, He set limits as to how far he could go. God sets a limit in our testing times, too.

Abraham. When God tested Abraham's faith by asking him to offer up his only son, Isaac, he chose to obey without questioning. When Isaac asked where the lamb was for the sacrifice, Abraham replied, "God will provide." Isaac was bound and already on the altar, but just at the right moment God stepped in via an angel and provided a lamb for the offering. He comes just on time for us, too--sometimes through a phone call from a friend or some other "angel".

Joseph. A young handsome man holding a responsible position, Joseph was accosted by his boss's wife. He refused to be lured into the sinful relationship that she desired, saying, "How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" (Genesis 39:9). Then he fled from her. The way of escape that God provided was to run from temptation, and Joseph took it. We, too, have the ability to discern when it's time to flee from sin.

Jesus. Jesus, too, was tempted by Satan, but defeated him by quoting Scripture. That is an object lesson of Ephesians 6:17: "Take . . . the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God." God is telling us to use this weapon against Satan's attacks. It's the way of escape He has provided.

James 1:12 says, "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him."

Lena Bergen Friesen lives in Waterloo, Ont

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