No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
—1 Corinthians 10:13, NKJV).
Your temptation is not unique. Any temptation you face is just a variation of what the enemy uses to tempt others. It may appear to be different but its purpose is just the same as any other temptation experienced by someone else. If the enemy can convince you that no one has ever faced your issue—if he can convince you that no one understands, then he can isolate you and destroy your hope. The Corinthians Christians to whom Paul was writing thought they could eat meat offered to idols without any temptation on their part. Paul warned them that they needed to think again. There was no new temptation. The temptation that the Israelites faced wandering in the wilderness was still around. “Flee from idolatry,” Paul warned them (1 Corinthians 10:14). If these Corinthian believers toyed with sin, they would be tempted. The same is true for us.
Although we encounter temptation, we do not face it alone. God is faithful. He never leaves or forsakes us (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus was tempted just like we are, and He still overcame every temptation (Hebrews 4:15). Not only did Christ make the payment for our sins, but He helps us to overcome temptation (Hebrews 2:17-18). Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 10:13 give us God’s assurance that He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we can handle.
Most everyone has experienced times when they thought they couldn’t resist any longer. They were either wrong about what they could handle or were on the edge of a breakthrough. God promises that He will not allow us to be tempted above what we can bear. When you think you cannot resist any longer, stand for one more minute and then one more. God’s promise will bring you through.
This verse has been interpreted by some to say that the Lord tempts us and that this is His promise to not place on us more than we can handle. That is not true. God does not bring temptation into our lives. God tempts no one.
“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God;' for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone” (James 1:13, NKJV).
It is our own desire that lures us into temptation (James 1:14). Just as he did with Jesus, Satan also comes against us without any invitation on our part (Matthew 4:1-10 and Luke 4:1-13).
We are all tempted. It is not a sin to be tempted. It is sin to yield to it. This verse does not give God the credit for temptation but instead says there are limits to what He will allow when we are under temptation. Even when we reach that limit, this verse does not promise that God will take away the problem. He makes a way of escape, but we have to take it. Anyone who yields to temptation either fails to see God’s way of escape or just decides to reject it.
God is faithful. We also must be faithful to resist temptation. When we trust God to show us His way and then we choose to take it, we will experience the truth of this promise.
© 2022 Lynn Lacher
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