Stress Test Devotional May 4
May 04, 2024
JAMES 1:13 | 13 No one, when tempted, should say, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one.
HEBREWS 4:15 | 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.
God has no ego issues! He is not needy or insecure or hungry for attention and approval. James tells us God is not subject to temptation. This flows from His unique self-sufficiency, He does not require anything or anyone, but instead chooses to love and save in perfect and gracious freedom. Thus He never outs capriciously or thoughtlessly and being incorporeal, He is not driven by impulses or bodily desires. He is never the source of temptation, which is the desire to act in ways that violate love or truth or goodness, diminishing life as a consequence. Every good impulse, pure thought, generous gesture, or kind action originates in Him.
Yet in another sense, by choosing to become human in the person of Jesus, God does know temptation, as the author of Hebrews points out. Jesus had to deal with temptations of the body and spirit and emotions, yet He did so without giving in to any moments that compromised His commitment to honor and obey God and love others.
Do you think it is important to know Jesus dealt with temptation? Why?
