Joy in Temptation

Jas 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
Jas 1:3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Jas 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.



How often do you find yourself counting it joy when you fall into temptation? Seriously. I know personally when I'm tempted and often fall to the temptation I'm not counting it joy at all. Perhaps we need to learn to look at temptation itself differently- not the falling to temptation but the bit before the fall. Still misery? It really is, isn't it. Take a dieter for example who is tempted to eat from a table filled with sweets. Walking passed that table is it something that will have the dieter smiling? There they are looking at the food, their mouths watering perhaps and that desire rises up hard and fast to take that chocolate covered eclair, or that chocolate covered cream-filled donut, or perhaps that delicious looking piece of apple pie, maybe it's the cookies that get your sweet tooth aching whatever it is can you imagine the situation? It's not fun, it's not joy, in fact it's a certain sort of agony that comes with being tempted- with the wanting, with the desire. Alcoholics, drug addicts, food addicts (yes, this is real), smokers, gamblers, you name the sin and the need to abstain from it and you'll have temptation to give in to it. Maybe the sin you fight is less tangible and more to do with your temper, or your selfishness, or your lack of compassion, your greed, your road rage, it doesn't matter because any sin will come with a temptation to commit the sin. There is a period of time there whether it's a second or an hour, a full day or who knows a week or more. That *hour* of temptation can be fierce and there is an internal warring going on whether to commit the act or not to commit it. You know what I'm talking about I'm sure of it. Now here we have this verse, this Bible verse, the Holy Word of God, and it says 'count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.' Count it joy when you're experiencing this awful battle? This is part of war you know- that war between good and evil, God and Satan. There we are underfire, being assaulted to commit sin and we are to count it joy. JOY. JOY!


How are we to count it joy, we're suffering aren't we? Most addicts can tell you that there is pain going through withdrawal, and even pain in temptation. We are sin addicts, we are. We're addicted to various sins and there is help in Christ and Christ only to overcome the sins.


That verse goes on to say, 'Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.'


We are to count it joy when we are tempted, why? Because we know that the temptation is a trying of our faith in God and the trying of our faith will work patience in us. Again a lot of people who acknowledge their addictions and strive to overcome them are told that time will make things easier and for a lot of people that's true, for others it isn't. A food addict can't steer themselves away from all food, a greedy person will have to deal with money, and so on and it's not so easy being in the battle day after day, but that's exactly what life is for us all.


Some might choose not to fight in the battle but rather just that's not possible. We're all in the battle, everyone of us. We choose all the time one side or the other and we fight for either God or Satan. No, we're not perfect and we do stumble and fall but we have Christ there ready to pick us up and help us - yes, day after day. If we given into temptation to sin and don't even care about any of it so that it's not temptation to us but our life we are choosing the wrong side in the war, but it's a choice only we can make.


May God Bless us all and help us to recognize that temptation is going to exist for us every single day of our lives and as we experience the agony of temptation may God help us to count it joy as we suffer, holding fast, and by His grace not succumb to the temptation.


All glory and praise to God! In Christ Jesus our Savior now and forever.


Amen.