July 19
Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 10
1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
Trials are an inevitable part of life and are of various kinds (i.e., common troubles, Job 5:7; relationship problems, Philippians 4:1-4; health issues, Philippians 2:27; temptations to sin, 1 Corinthians 10:13; sin failures, Luke 22:62; concern for loved ones, 2 Corinthians 11:28; loss of possessions, Hebrews 10:34; persecution, 1 Peter 4:14; and death, 1 Thessalonians 4:13; etc.
The Greek word translated “temptation” means to test or prove. It has no negative connotation in itself. Whether it leads to good or bad depends on our response. A trial/temptation resisted serves as a test in which one’s faithfulness is proved (1 Peter 1:7). A temptation succumbed to, becomes to us a source of spiritual defeat and discouragement (James 1:14-15).
No temptation comes to any of us beyond that which is common to man. There is no trouble or trial experienced in which a person can say, “this is something altogether new, and no one has ever had to deal with something like this before.” Indeed, no temptation exists that Jesus Himself has not already triumphed over (Hebrews 4:15, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin”). We might feel sometimes as if “no one knows the troubles I’ve seen,” but Jesus knows—He faced them all.
It is helpful to remember that God is not oblivious to our circumstances. He is omnisciently aware of all of our comings and goings (Psalm 139:1-6). He is faithful—we can always count on Him—to not allow us to be tempted beyond our ability. He mercifully sets a limit to our troubles. Job’s troubles were limited according to God’s decree (Job 1:12; 2:6).
The Plimsoll Line–named after Samuel Plimsoll who argued in the 1860s of the need for such a marker– is the name of a special marking, also known as the International Load Line, that indicates the draft of the ship and the legal limit to which a ship may be loaded in order to safely maintain buoyancy. The Plimsoll line of any specific ship is established by the ship’s designer. Ships are not to be loaded beyond that point. Our designer, God, sets a limit (a Plimsoll Line) to our burdens. Sometimes it might seem that we’ve been given too much to bear, but it is in such instances where we experience previously unexplored dimensions of God’s strengthening and sustaining grace (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). God is well-pleased and able to supply to us “mercy and…grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16; James 1:5; 1 Peter 5:7).
Not only does God providentially work to limit our burdens, but He also provides for “the way of escape” (1 Corinthians 10:13). God will not set us “between a rock and a hard place” such that we have no choice but to sin (James 1:13).
Andrew Murray offered this wise counsel on how to deal with difficult situations: 1) Realize that God brought me here. It is by His will I am in this place; in that fact, I will rest; 2) Realize that He will keep me here in His love, and give me grace to behave as His child; 3) Realize that He will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons that He intends me to learn, and working in me that grace He means to bestow; and 4) In His good time He can bring me out again — how and when — He knows. So, I am here…By God’s appointment, in His keeping, under His training, for His time.”
Andrew Murray
God is not oblivious to the temptations that you face. He knows. He cares. He can use them in your life to accomplish HIs divine purpose for you. He can even work to bring a blessing out of them. Our part is to trust and obey.
“So when trials and temptations press down on you, take courage. Remember, your heavenly Father knows the limits of your ability to stand up under life’s pressures. Draw on His strength; no temptation will ever be greater than that!” — Richard De Haan
There’s not a Friend like the lowly Jesus:
No, not one! no, not one!
None else could heal all our souls’ diseases:
No, not one! no, not one!
Jesus knows all about our struggles;
He will guide ’til the day is done:
There’s not a Friend like the lowly Jesus:
No, not one! no, not one!
LookingtoJesus 