Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted. Hebrews 2:18
Being tempted is hard, but it’s not a sin. Jesus was tempted. When the temptation involves matters of sin or obedience to God, the stakes are high. And the cost may be, too.
Jesus faced the ultimate temptation in Gethsemane, begging God for another way. This was a costly walk to obedience that I will never fully grasp. Satan tempted Him with earthly power and with using God’s glory for Himself. I know that Jesus was also tempted in other more identifiable ways and never gave in, but I hadn’t given it much thought. Jesus was a man who struggled with human desires like me. He was hungry and could have created a feast – or at least turned rocks into bread. He was tired and could have created energy from nothing. He suffered humiliation and could have “settled the score.” Yet He resisted. And Hebrews says He suffered when He was tempted.
Temptations face me every day. I want to eat too much. I want to be lazy. Those are discipline issues that cause some pain but might not be sinful. The real pain can come in if I am tempted not to be truthful to avoid a difficult situation. To not be sacrificially generous when called to be so. To put my neighbor first when it costs me something dear. To love when I’ve been hurt.
Saying no to sin is hard. It may even cause suffering. The level of pain Jesus endured to be obedient leads the way for me. I hadn’t considered it as being hard for Him – He is God after all. But He is also a man and does understand my difficulty when resisting all types of temptation.
God says He won’t allow temptation beyond what I can bear. But that doesn’t mean it will be easy - or painless. He has already conquered and so through Him I can, too. My God loves me and has compassion for my struggle, having endured it Himself. This gives me hope and strength in the face of my temptations.
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. 1 Corinthians 10:13
