Temptation And Sin

[Surf Rider]

I just perused a locked topic, in which a poster stated that Jesus had sin in Him, or He couldn't be tempted.

Sin is NOT temptation. Yielding to temptation is sin. Being tempted is not sin.

"The soul that sins, it shall die."

"The day that you eat of it, you shall surely die."

"and sin, when it is complete, brings for death."

"In Him was no sin."

"Who was without sin...."

Christ was sinless. This is how He atoned for our sins, because the sinless One became sin for us, and thus was in hell for three days and three nights, after which He arose and then went to the Father.

God gives us a way of escape when we are tempted.

Which brings us an interesting issue that most Christians can't reconcile scripturally: If "God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man", then how was Christ tempted, if Christ is God? Can anyone explain this with scripture? Thanks.

Christ was tempted like as we are, yet was without sin, the scritures state.

So just what is temptation? It is not sin. Sin is the result of yielding to temptation, amongst other things.

The flesh wars against the soul. We do not have two souls, two "natures" that war against each other. The scriptures are unilaterally clear: the flesh wars against the soul.

The new believer is yet carnallly minded. The carnal mind is a enmity with God.

Therefore, we are injuncted in the word to "renew our minds in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior".

What was killed with Christ by faith? What was raised to new life in Christ by faith? What was born of God in us? How did this transpire?

When these very basics of the word of God are understood by the scxriptures alone, not by the teachings of the church, then indeed, we will very clealry understand the scriptures which state that Christ was tempted, and God cannot be tempted. And we will understand very clearly the scriptures which state (1Jo 3:3) And everyone who has this hope on him purifies himself, even as that One is pure.

(1Jo 3:4) Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness, for sin is lawlessness.

(1Jo 3:5) And you know that He was revealed that He might take away our sins, and in Him is no sin.

(1Jo 3:6) Everyone who abides in Him does not sin. Everyone who sins has not seen Him nor known Him.

(1Jo 3:7) Little children, let no one deceive you. He who does righteousness is righteous, even as that One is righteous.

(1Jo 3:8) He who practices sin is of the Devil, for the Devil sins from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was revealed, that He might undo the works of the Devil.

(1Jo 3:9) Everyone who has been born of God does not commit sin, because His seed remains in him, and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

(1Jo 3:10) In this the children of God are revealed, and the children of the Devil: everyone not practicing righteousness is not of God, also he who does not love his brother.



And....
(1Jo 2:3) And by this we know that we have known Him, if we keep His commandments.

(1Jo 2:4) He who says, I have known Him, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

(1Jo 2:5) But whoever keeps His Word, truly in this one the love of God is perfected. By this we know that we are in Him.

(1Jo 2:6) He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk even as He walked.



And...
(1Jo 5:18) We know that everyone who has been born of God does not continue to sin, but the one born of God guards himself, and the evil one does not touch him.


Yet few seem to accept these passages, and fewer stil seem to understand them. Many claim to have some sort of understanding of them, yet by their speech show that they do not. My brethren, this ought not be so.

I think that if the church would actually believe what the word of God states about what was killed, what was born of God, through Christ, the church would quite readily understand these passages. It bothers me that so many profess to know these things, but cannot give the scriptural answers for them. If we do not accept the truth, how can we live it? Impossible. If we do not understand the truth, how can we live it? If we believe the truth to be heresy, how can we live it? If we water the truth down, emmasculating it, how can we live it? Do we not know that a little salt makes the whole glass of water salty?

These things concern me.

To equate sin to be temptation is foolish indeed.

To interchange the two is equally foolish. Let us not do this. Let us have a basic understanding of our mother tongue. We don't need to know ancient languages to understand these basic differences of word definitions and therefore of their usages in the word of God.

Let us just simply accept the bold teachings of the word of God, no matter what we have previously been taught to believe about them.

Radical? yes.

And the truth will set you free spiritually. Completely free. And you will be free indeed.

We know what a conqueror is, right? Spiritually? Then what is "more than conquerors" spiritually? It appears from the lives and speech of believers, that they don't even understand, let alone accept and live in, the fact of being not only total spiritual conquerors, but being MORE than spiritual conquerors.

If we would just simply answer the questions asked, with the word of God only, we would see the truth of the scriptures on these things. But why don't we? As Isaiah said, God has blinded their hearts, so that seeing they see not, and hearning they hear not, lest the turn and repent and God heal them. But that doesn't fit our understanding of God toward man, does it? So much of our beliefs just don't fit the word of God at all, it seems.

This both grieves me and angers me, and it fills me with sorrow. O church, church! Christ would gather you under His wings, but you would not! One cannot help but weep.

It just breaks the heart.

 

[Miss Hepburn]

Yup, temptation is not sin.
Welcome back, Surfy

 

[JohnDB]

Hold on for a minute...

I want to play the devil's advocate here and set more clearly lines of distinction, if I may.


Mt 5:27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.
Mt 5:28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart

and

Ex 20:17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

These verses here clearly show that it is your desires that are sin and we shall be judged for them...

Hummmm

Maybe something else is at work here

like maybe this


Ro 9:30 What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith;
Ro 9:31 but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it.
Ro 9:32 Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the “stumbling stone.”

and

Ro 10:10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

 

[Templar81]

You can't help a bird landing on your head but you can stop it from making a nest.

Everyone is tempted to sin and thinks things that they shouldn't but only if you indulge these thoughts do you sin..

 

[Foreigner]

I want to play the devil's advocate here and set more clearly lines of distinction, if I may.

Mt 5:27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.
Mt 5:28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart

and

Ex 20:17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” -- JohnDB




-- If look at a woman and feel lust, rebuke it the moment you realize it. Sin averted. If you continue to stare and "entertain" those lustful feelings, you are in sin.
If you realize you wish you had your neightbor's wife, house, car, etc. and rebuke it when you realize it, the sin is averted.
If you continue to revel in that temptation, you have sinned.

The temptation isn't the issue. Everyone, even Jesus, was tempted, and the Word says He was without sin.
It is what you do with that temptation which is the issue.

There is a song by Casting Crowns called "Slow Fade" that describes perfectly how people fall into sin:

"Be careful little eyes what you see
It's the second glance that ties your hands as darkness pulls the strings..."

 

[HammerStone]

To interchange the two is equally foolish. Let us not do this. Let us have a basic understanding of our mother tongue. We don't need to know ancient languages to understand these basic differences of word definitions and therefore of their usages in the word of God.

Let us just simply accept the bold teachings of the word of God, no matter what we have previously been taught to believe about them.

I have to agree here. Confusion - which is not a sign of God - sets in the moment words that are pretty straightforward suddenly become ambivalent.

I don't really want to dive down into philosophy too deeply here, but think about it for a moment at a shallow level. Let us take something that will generally tempt two specific groups of people - males and females. If you guys see a lovely lady or you women see a handsome gentlemen, the temptation is there to look. I'm not going to argue about first thoughts, but if you see that person and your mind registers the thought that they are pretty or handsome that is one thing. That in itself is not sin. Is the person who might look nice/sharp sinful because they look nice/sharp? Certainly not! Is the person who glances at them without evening knowing them sinful? I'd like to see someone make the argument there. It'd be absurd. Yet the temptation might be there to sneak just one more peek or admire his/her looks a third and forth time.

Enter sin.

Yet if the desire to look upon the person is overcome and ignored - the temptation still certainly existed but the sin never manifested. I'm personally tempted to look at that lovely young lady I pass at the mall or in a store, but it's not sin to pass the girl. It's a sin when you start looking and lusting. Yet the temptation was surely there.

I Peter 2:21-22
For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.

So let's not try to come up with a "clever" argument to mold the Word of God. It is explicitly clear that Jesus never sinned and abundantly clear that he was certainly tempted (Luke 4:13). That would rather clearly illustrate that the Bible doesn't view them as one in the same.

 

[Foreigner]

"So let's not try to come up with a "clever" argument to mold the Word of God. It is explicitly clear that Jesus never sinned and abundantly clear that he was certainly tempted (Luke 4:13). That would rather clearly illustrate that the Bible doesn't view them as one in the same." - Hammerstone


-- Sums it up rather nicely.
Temptation -
Ponder on it: Sin
Immediately rebuke and dismiss it: No Sin

 

[JohnDB]

I have to agree here. Confusion - which is not a sign of God - sets in the moment words that are pretty straightforward suddenly become ambivalent.

I don't really want to dive down into philosophy too deeply here, but think about it for a moment at a shallow level. Let us take something that will generally tempt two specific groups of people - males and females. If you guys see a lovely lady or you women see a handsome gentlemen, the temptation is there to look. I'm not going to argue about first thoughts, but if you see that person and your mind registers the thought that they are pretty or handsome that is one thing. That in itself is not sin. Is the person who might look nice/sharp sinful because they look nice/sharp? Certainly not! Is the person who glances at them without evening knowing them sinful? I'd like to see someone make the argument there. It'd be absurd. Yet the temptation might be there to sneak just one more peek or admire his/her looks a third and forth time.

Enter sin.

Yet if the desire to look upon the person is overcome and ignored - the temptation still certainly existed but the sin never manifested. I'm personally tempted to look at that lovely young lady I pass at the mall or in a store, but it's not sin to pass the girl. It's a sin when you start looking and lusting. Yet the temptation was surely there.



So let's not try to come up with a "clever" argument to mold the Word of God. It is explicitly clear that Jesus never sinned and abundantly clear that he was certainly tempted (Luke 4:13). That would rather clearly illustrate that the Bible doesn't view them as one in the same.

Let us also understand as I was trying to show with the Romans passages that Jesus always knew that he was the Son of God. There never was any doubt. He also understood what that meant and how he was to do things.

Sure, the "easy path" is always a temptation. IE. I need a set of tires...hey, look there is a car like mine with new tires... lets steal them. But thoughts like that come into your head and you just let them go right on out...because that is not the person that you are. It is when you get a jack and some cinder blocks to steal them tires that the sin occurs. Not whether or not you stop yourself (jack in hand) before you actually take the other person's tires.

And as far as the opposite sex goes....A pretty girl is just that...a pretty girl. (I am sure that women find men attractive but I still fail to see it) I have a fine Christian GF...if I was to ask for some other pretty woman's phone number with the intent to date her I would be in sin. Simply noticing that she is attractive is not sin at all.