Polar Bear Theology—Handling Temptation
by Jon Walker
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7 (NIV)
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When Leo Tolstoy, the great Russian novelist, was a boy, he reportedly started the “White Polar Bear Club” with two of his friends. In order to become a member, you had to stand in the corner and for thirty consecutive minutes not think of a white polar bear.
Have you ever tried to intentionally not think about something? The more you think about not thinking about it, the more impossible it is to keep out of your mind!
Yet, this is how we handle temptation; when it comes, we try as hard as we can to not to think about it: “If I just don’t think about it, then I’ll have victory over this temptation.”
The problem is, the more we try not to concentrate on temptation, the more it becomes the center of our focus. And the longer we think about not giving in, the more likely we will.
James, the half-brother of Jesus, says we should focus on God, not the temptation. We tend to quote the latter half of this verse: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7 NIV). But the whole verse brings us right back to the “I can’t; God can” agreement necessary to live as God intended us to live.
When we focus on the Devil, we’re focusing in the wrong direction. I’m not suggesting that, in standing firm on our decisions, we can’t say “No, I’m not going to do that” to the enemy, just as Jesus said, “Get behind me, Satan!”
What I am saying is that we confront the enemy in God’s strength; and we do it humbly, knowing God is the source of our authority to push back the Evil One.
Jon Walker is the author of “Growing with Purpose: Connecting with God Every Day.” This article is copyrighted 2010 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.
