“Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin; Each victory will help you, some other to win; Fight bravely onward, glad-hearted and true; Ask the Savior to help you; He’ll carry you through.”
—adapted from Horatio Palmer, 1868
SOME MAY REMEMBER the chorus above from long ago. A very meaningful Bible promise is found in Jude 24 (KJV): “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling [into the temptation], and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.”
Not only is Jesus able, but it pleases Him to keep us from sinning. However, that’s not all! He promises to show God that we are faultless.
Who, me? With all my past sins? Yes, you! And the wonderful part is that He does it with exceeding joy—He is so proud of you! It gives Him great pleasure to cover all your sins by His blood so your record in heaven is perfectly clean—faultless.
WHAT IS MY PART?
A great Bible verse to remember is James 4:7. It gives just two steps:
1. Submit yourself to God—that always comes first. We can never do it alone; we need God.
2. Resist the devil. What will be the outcome?The devil will flee from us.
What a beautiful formula with beautiful results!
HOW DO I SUBMIT TO GOD?
Pray earnestly. Be completely honest with Him. Recall past instances of His help with former victories. Believe His promises to be with you and help you, for there are many in the Bible. Keep in mind God’s assurance in Isaiah 45:23: “I will never go back on my word” (NLT). Submit yourself again and again, but especially when tempted.
HOW DO I RESIST THE DEVIL?
Again, pray. This is fundamental! Then remove yourself physically from the temptation, such as staying away from specific people or places. With certain sins, this is not possible because some sins are in the mind, such as pride, jealousy, selfish-ness, lust, and covetousness. Isaiah 55:7 says, “Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts” (NIV). Both our ways (actions) and thoughts must be submitted to Jesus. Ask Him to help you cast out the desired evil by purposely focusing on other things, such as doing something good that you enjoy.
“Consecrate yourself to God in the morning; make this your very first work. Let your prayer be, ‘Take me, O Lord, as wholly Thine. I lay all my plans at Thy feet. Use me today in Thy service. Abide with me, and let all my work be wrought in Thee.’ . . . Thus day by day you may be giving your life into the hands of God, and thus your life will be mold-ed more and more after the life of Christ” (Steps to Christ, p. 70).