Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Tough Message

This past Sunday, I had the pleasure of speaking about adultery. Yikes!! What a fun topic. I really was not sure about the reaction of the people, since it is not one of those common preaching topics. Overall, I thought the reaction was very positive.

It was one of those topics where you want to speak bluntly, yet because there are children in worship who are kind of listening, I needed to make sure I didn't get to explicit. At night we spoke more about temptation. Paul reminds us of the great gift God gives to us when we are tempted. Listen to the words of Paul from 1 Corinthians 10:12-13 ~

12So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! 13No 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.

Paul's reminder is that we should not think we are immune, don't think you are so good, so tough, so spiritual that you cannot fall; but when you are tempted, understand that the temptation that grabs you (and nobody is immune to temptation) is common to humanity. What grabs me will grab some of you. But, God is faithful and he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. He is not going to overwhelm you with so much that you can't handle it (but you must call upon your main resource . . . God). And God will always provide a way out, which is usually just saying NO.

Remember God is the vine and we are the branches. We must remain in Him if we want to bear fruit and have a life where we experience the fullness of the life He offers us.

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