How does the Lord help me? First of all, by the direct imparting of strength. It is not a matter of, ‘Let go, let God.’ Oh, I pray and I do nothing, and God so works that I find I resist the temptation. No, it is not like that. I must pray, and I must strive, and with all my might I resist that temptation. As I do so, God strengthens me. So it is not about us avoiding making the effort to resist the temptation. It is a strength that comes as you make the effort. We must have that balance right. Those people who urge us to ‘let go, let God’ advocate a nonsense theology, which is only arrived at by the gross misuse of Bible texts. No, the help of God comes to strengthen us as we try, as we resist. But we need that help; we may fail without it. He strengthens us. It is like one of those motorised bicycles. If you don’t peddle it does nothing, but as soon as you pedal, especially when you are going uphill, the power comes on and you are assisted. We must resist it. We must put it out of our mind. But if we are depending upon him, he will magnify our resistance and help us.
Secondly, he will use Scripture and ministry to help us: your own reading of the word, and the word preached. Under temptation, the worst thing to do is to skip Bible study or gatherings, because God ministers to us through our personal reading of his word, and through our hearing of the preached word, which challenges us.
I must reflect on certain things to resist temptation, effectively. I am his representative, and this is true of every one of us. I am a child of God, a representative of Christ. I cannot commit the sin. I dare not yield to this temptation. It is not just me who will fall and be discredited and ashamed. I am discrediting him. I am his representative. He has purchased me; he has suffered and died for me. He gave himself for me. I cannot let him down. If you are troubled by a recurring drawing into something you know to be evil and wrong, reflect along these lines.
Reflect also on something else. Who is it who is behind temptation? Identify the tempter in your mind. It is Satan and his fallen fellow demons. It is the one who hates God, who hates the truth, who hates human souls, who hates with great vehemence every Christian. He is the one suggesting this to my mind. How can I respond to him? It will help you to hate the temptation; it is the work of Satan. I hate this uncleanness. I hate this lying. The more you hate the sin, the less you are likely to fall.
Then also pledge yourself. A pledge is a powerful thing. ‘Lord, I pledge myself to thee this day. I give my life to thee. I will be first and foremost for thee. I will pray to thee in all trials and needs.’ That will make you less likely to fall to temptation. You have given yourself and your word to the Lord.
And then, mortify – the great method of the letter to the Romans. Mortify the sin; put it to death. This word, I am about to speak, returning some hostility in kind, making an excuse which is not true, this wrong word, wrong thought, wrong deed: put it to death; kill it straight away; choke it back. That is the Biblical word ‘mortify’, kill the deeds, the thoughts, the words.