“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.” I Corinthians 10:13
Later in his life Peter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote an
amazing statement. “Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.” In this verse Peter acknowledges the woman is the weaker vessel but he uses a comparative word to tell us that the man is also weak. Over the years that is one lesson Peter learned as He grew in grace. his man who was one proud of his one spiritual maturity learned he was incapable of doing anything apart from Christ. He was weak! This is a message each of us needs to apply to ourselves.
James in writing to the believers that have been dispersed throughout Asia says the same thing. Every believer will be tempted by Satan in every way possible. Satan searches for the sin that will cause believers to yield and sin against the Lord’s commands. Satan has been around a long time and he knows which buttons to push. Like he did with the Lord in the wilderness Satan tests each of us in three areas which cover a wide variety of sins. First He tempts us in the area of the pride of life. This is the temptation to exalt ourselves and not depend on God. It involves pride, arrogance, presumption and boasting. This sin tempts men to be the god of their own life – to take the rightful place of the one true God. Peter would remember those sins very well for he boasted to the
Lord that he would never deny him and he argued with the Lord when he was corrected. Interestingly this area also covers fear of men because the fear men comes when they can do something to us that keeps us from protecting ourselves or gaining what we want for ourselves. The second we type of temptation is the lust of the flesh. This area has to do with our old nature and all the evil things it craves. Lust is an intense desire for an object or circumstance (which we can use to indulge or create pleasure). The lust of the flesh includes sins like gluttony, sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, and drunkenness. Finally the third area in which we are tempted is the lust of the eyes. This includes sins in which we desire to possess what we see or to have things which have visual appeal. It includes worldly possessions, money, and clothes, This is based in the sin of covetousness.
What can we learn? Paul told us “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man”. The Lord warned us in Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray so that you will not enter into temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” Peter again tells us, “Therefore, beloved, since you already know these things, be on your guard so that you will not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure standing“.
What is the lesson from Peter’s worst week? If we walk in the flesh, if we do not abide in the Lord, if we depend on on our own strength, there is no sin that any of us cannot commit. We are weak. We may tell ourselves that we would never commit a certain thing (like Peter telling the Lord he would not deny him) but that shows we are depending on ourselves not the Lord. We have to remember there is only one way to live a life that pleases God and that is to abide in Him. The great lesson of Peter’s worst week is that we are weak and in ourselves we are capable of the most heinous sin. Peter learned that lesson the hard way, God wants us to learn it be believing His word. “Let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed.”