Endure
In 1 Corinthians chapter 10, Paul talks a lot about temptation. He refers back in history to the Israelites in the wilderness, and how they gave in to temptation. He talks about the current Corinthian struggle with idolatry, and tells them to resist temptation. And he encourages Christians in the future (like us) to patiently endure temptation by pursuing God’s glory alone.
One verse I want to zoom in on is 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.” Notice he doesn’t say, “that you may be able to avoid it.” Paul doesn’t say that Christians will avoid temptation. It’s common to man. We’ll all experience it.
Similarly, in Luke 22:31-34, Jesus tells Peter that Satan has demanded to have him, “that he might sift you [Peter] like wheat.” But notice what Jesus says next. He doesn’t say, “But I told him no, he can’t touch you, you’re welcome.” He certainly could’ve said that. He had the authority. But he didn’t. What he actually said was: “But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” He doesn’t pray for Peter’s avoidance of the trial, but his endurance through it.
We might ask, “Why do Christians even experience trials and temptations? Why don’t we just snap into perfect obedience the moment we place our faith in Christ?” That’s a great question. The short answer is that our patient endurance of temptation is producing something in us that couldn’t have been produced in any other way. We see examples of this all over the place. For example, if you want to build muscle, you have to lift weights. If you want to improve your cardio, you have to run, swim, or bike long distances. The discomfort you experience—even the pain—is exactly the thing that is producing the results you want to see. At a cellular level, when you lift weights, you’re actually creating tiny tears in the muscle. Our bodies fill the gaps created by those tears with, you guessed it, more muscle. If you want to grow, you have to be willing to endure the struggle. If you give up and quit the first time it gets uncomfortable, you’re not going to grow.
It’s the same in our spiritual lives. God allows us to experience trials and temptations. Not to crush us or punish us, but to grow us. Look at the example of Jesus. Matthew 4:1 says that after Jesus was baptized, he “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” He was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert specifically so that he could be tempted. That’s great news for us because it shows us that God is sovereign even over our temptation. God isn’t surprised by it. He isn’t scrambling to come up with “the way of escape” for you (1 Cor 10:13). He is with you. He is growing you. He is always faithful. Even in the hard times.
We won’t always understand his purposes for leading us through seasons of trial and temptation, but patiently enduring those seasons is one of the ways we show God that we trust him. And providing endurance is one of the ways God shows us that he loves us.