God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.
–1 Corinthians 10:13
Paul closed the first half of 1 Corinthians 10 with a warning and a promise. Look at the warning in verse 12: “Let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” No matter what spiritual privileges you have experienced in the past, do not think you are immune from sin and God’s judgment. Instead, Paul said, take an inventory of your heart right now.
Are there things you are craving in your life that you know are outside of God’s will for you? Is there anyone or anything you love more than you love God? Are you engaged in any secret immorality in your life? Is there some sin you think you have been getting away with that you need to repent of? Are you discontent with what God has given to you? Learn from the example of the Israelites. God will not let those kinds of sin go unpunished.
Finally, Paul offered a promise in verse 13: “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” No temptation comes into our lives that is not common to everyone. Everyone is tempted with evil desires, idolatry, and grumbling. But we do not have to give in to those things because God has provided the way of escape from temptation. What is that way of escape? Jesus said it Himself in John 14:6: “I am the way.” Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and the perfecter of faith.”
If you want to escape sin in your life, keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. Look at how He dealt with temptation and imitate it in your life. What did Jesus do when He was tempted in the wilderness? He prayed. When He was in Gethsemane wrestling with God’s will for His life, He prayed. When He was on the cross, He prayed. Prayer was instrumental in giving Jesus the spiritual strength He needed to say no to sin. Jesus also saturated His mind with the Word of God. He so knew the Word of God that He knew exactly which Scripture to use in each tempting situation.
If Jesus, the perfect Son of God, knew He could not afford to become complacent in His spiritual life, if He knew He had to continually fortify Himself through prayer and God’s Word, how much more important is it for you and me to guard against complacency? Imitate Jesus’s life, and you will also imitate His victory over sin.
To fortify something you must add and build onto and into it that which is strengthening. Look at how Paul talked about fortification:
Ephesians 10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
And Peter said it like this:
2 Peter 1:3. His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10Therefore, my brothers and sisters, a make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
