THE WEAKNESS IS WITHIN

James 1:14 KJV
But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

Dear Believer,

James the Apostle teaches us that temptations don’t come from God.

He tells us in essence, “When you are feeling drawn towards sin, don’t say God is testing your faith. It is simply the lust within you that is drawing you.”

That’s a principle that seems simple enough to understand. The problem with many Believers is that they keep looking outside for the reason for their lust and the tendency to do bad things.

When they sin, they blame the person they sin with, or the circumstances, or the devil. That is the reason many aren’t experiencing victory in their life.

Adam ate the forbidden fruit. When God called him out, he blamed the woman that God gave him. That was a way to blame God, also, since he believed if God had left him alone, he would have been fine. After all, he wasn’t complaining or looking for a wife.

Genesis 3:12 ISV
The man answered, “The woman whom you provided for me gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate some of it.”

When God called out the woman, she blamed the serpent.

Genesis 3:13 NET
So the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman replied, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.”

So, neither of them took responsibility for their sin. It was all about someone else.

Ironically the serpent was the only ‘honorable’ party. When God called him out, he didn’t argue. He quietly took his judgement.

Here’s the point. When God judged, He did not blame Eve for what Adam did, and He did not blame the serpent for what Eve did.

Adam was judged for disobeying God’s instruction and Eve was judged for doing the same. The serpent was judged also for his own act of deception.

God did not say, “Adam, it wasn’t your fault. Your wife made you eat that fruit. It’s her fault so you are free.”

God didn’t tell the woman, “It’s the serpent’s fault. He came to deceive you, so you are innocent.”

He judged each individual for their wrong.

A man’s lust is a matter of the heart. The attraction between you and sin will be very weak or nonexistent if there’s nothing within you that sin can attract.

That is why it is important to walk in the Holy Spirit and not empower the flesh.

Galatians 5:16 KJV
This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Don’t feed the flesh. The things you feed your mind on will determine what your mind dwells on or attract.

For instance, if you keep feeding your mind on immoral movies and books, you will eventually be attracted to immorality.

If you keep feeding your mind on the negative principles of this world, they will eventually start to influence your decisions.

But if you keep building yourself in the faith by feeding your mind and spirit on God’s word and principles of holiness, you won’t get attracted to evil and when the devil comes to tempt, there’s ample grace and power to effectively resist.

So, Believer, the things that make a man to fall aren’t out there; they are within. Without strength in the inner man, the outer pressure easily overwhelms.

Rise up today and be strong in the name of Jesus.

Have a pleasant day!

Your friend,
Deon.
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For more study read James 1:12-16).