I Corinthians 10:13, "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."

This morning, natural man continues to make excuses for his shortcomings. He will say one thing or another to try to justify his behaviour in his own eyes and those around him. In the garden, man made excuses for his lack of obedience in keeping God's commandment. Today, man will say things like, "Well, the temptation was just too great. There was more pressure than I could handle." On the surface, these statements could be construed as correct. But, the error lies in trying to do things for ourselves. With the Lord's help, we can do all things and endure whatever temptation comes our way. Without Him, we are sewing fig leaves together to hide our shame.

Everything that tempts us today has been around from the beginning of temptations. The devil has the same bag of tricks, but he shows them forth by different avenues. These avenues seem more rampant today, but the actual temptations themselves are the same ones. But, thanks be unto God that He continues to abide faithful. Even when we go astray, He cannot deny Himself. He will not deny His chosen that He foreknew and loved before the foundation of the world.

If that was all He did, that would be enough to rejoice in this morning. If God's faithfulness was only that we are His and His desire is towards us, that is shouting ground to rejoice in that we will see His face in righteousness some sweet day. However, He does so much more. He does exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think (giveth more grace). He does not allow us to ever suffer more than we are able. Sometimes, our vision is dim, and we are not able (due to the blindness of our flesh) to see His way of escape. The servant of Elijah could not see the Lord's way of escape for them from the army of man.  However, the prophet of God prayed, "Lord, open his eyes that he may see."

There are more on our side than the other. We are kept by the word of His power, and His angels constantly watch over us. The vision of something does not create it. Rather, the vision reveals something that is already a reality. So, whether we see the escape prepared by the Lord or not, it is still there. So, one might ask, "Then how do I find it?" The answer lies in II Chronicles 7:14. There are some things that we need to do to find the deliverance (timely) of the Lord. Our eternal safety is solely in His hands and purpose, but He has commanded us to seek His face to deliver us in time of trouble. 

Sometimes, His way of escape still does not leave us unscathed. There are times that we suffer in this world, and His name is glorified as a result. However, even though we may be cast down a thousand times, we are never destroyed. We should not fear them that can kill our body (as man is able to do). But, since our Lord has redeemed us to keep us from hell, our trust is solely in Him to keep us humble in His sight while we sojourn in this low ground of sin and sorrow.

In Hope,

Bro Philip