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JAMES 1

12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:

14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

16 Do not err, my beloved brethren.

YOUR TO BLAME!

We battle three things every day, the world, the flesh and the devil.

Temptation is all around us, can God take that temptation away?

Well he could, if you want to live in a monastery or on a desert island by yourself, even in those places you would be tempted in one way or another.

No, he doesn't take away these temptations, he gives us the power to defeat them, with the sword of the spirit in our hands and the holy spirit in our hearts.

If we overcome temptation, we will receive the crown of life, what a reward that is.

God is not the author of temptation; Does he allow us to be tempted? yes, but in those situations, he gives us the strength to overcome it.

Temptation starts slowly, it's like this:

There is a casino, you have to walk past every day, at first you walk past it, then you gaze into the window, then you go in and look around, then you are gambling, see the progression. Psalm 1 outlines this, we are more and more passive and this leads to sin, bringing forth, not physical death but spiritual death, look at Adam and Eve and look at Samson.

We need to be proactive against temptation, lets go back to our casino scenario, what we need to do, is to find another way so that we don't walk past that place of temptation.

Many men will say, "oh, I've had an affair, with this woman, it's Gods fault that she came to my office". If you are tempted in this situation, change jobs, don't be inactive but proactive.?

It's like porn on your computer, many men blame God or their wives, when in reality, it's their lust and fornication, get rid of your computer and be accountable to other men. Confess your faults to one other as it says later in James, stop blaming God and everyone else.

These verses in 1 Corinthians 10 sum it up:

13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

14 Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.

God will give you a way of escape, but look at verse 14, you have to flee from idolatry, if you are tempted by some women at work, change jobs, if you are addicted to porn, then be accountable to others, don't be inactive but proactive against sin, it may start small, but it will mushroom and it gives birth to only one thing and that is death.

Do not err on this point brothers and sisters.

Paul said to Timothy:

Flee?also youthful?lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

Not only must you flee these lusts, but you must you must follow righteousness and seek God in repentance.

You will overcome and the prize is a crown of life.

God bless you

Keith

GUEST DEVOTION

TRUSTWORTHY HEARTS

From: Ron Hawks?

"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, Who with His hands has fulfilled what He promised with His mouth to my father David… 2 Chronicles 6:3.”

Have you received an "E-vite," or any invitation to go somewhere or do something lately? Possibly it's something you are interested in doing, but you are not sure you have the time or the resources to commit to a positive response. So ... you set it aside or star it in your list of e-mails. It hangs on you, and you come back and look at it from time to time until the last minute - then you make a decision. Or possibly, and unfortunately, all too often, you miss the deadline; you make a decision by not making a decision.

God does not struggle with possibilities and demands the way we do. His plans and priorities are clear, and He always follows through with His intentions. Solomon expressed this well in one of his prayers saying, "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, Who with His hands has fulfilled what He promised with His mouth to my father David." (2 Chronicles 6:3) In a sense God declares with His mouth and He accomplishes with His hand. He is the God of impeccable character, trustworthy in His heart, thoughts, and actions. His hands fulfill the promises of His mouth.

God wants to help your hands to connect well to your mouth and to your heart. He wants you to bear His image, and He will be with you in the growth process. He will help you to make good decisions, make clear commitments, and follow through with your actions.

Good decisions are most easily made if your priorities and purposes are clear. If you have trouble making decisions, spend time clarifying your priorities with God. It will help you when the options start to multiply. Then take your time, connect to your priorities, pray, and make the decision once (as best as you can); don't let unresolved decisions hang around too long.

Practice making clear commitments. If you feel good and centered in God about a decision, make your commitment clear; simply let your "Yes" be "Yes," and your "No," "No." (Matthew 5:37) Are you going, are you buying, are you ...? Make a clear commitment; be bold - don't be wishy-washy.

Follow through with everything you have committed to do. Be careful not to over-commit; that's an important part of the decision-making process. But, once you have committed - execute! The best way to build trust with others is to be trustworthy. The best way to be trustworthy is to keep your promises. The best place to begin is to keep promises to yourself, with God's help.

Clarify your priorities; make some good decisions and clear (measurable) commitments to yourself. Then prayerfully keep your commitments to yourself. Connect your own mouth to your own hands for your own good, with God's help. As you grow in your own sense of trustworthiness, others will begin to see you in that light; and you will be representing the character of God in your relationships. This can be a powerful work of God in your life. Following through with you, Pastor Tom

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