A Matter of the Heart

"Don't let anyone under pressure to give in to evil say, "God is trying to trip me up." God is impervious to evil, and puts evil in no one's way. The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer." James 1:13-15 (The Message)

Sin, from the dawn of time has originated from one source. No, it was not Satan though he did everything he could to assist in the matter, but the blame rests entirely on man. Eve had it in her heart that eating of the tree wouldn't be so bad all she needed was a little coaching and prodding to get her to take action. Adam, after seeing what Eve had done and that there was no visible side effects, caved in as well. The foundation for sin came from within, and they gave into their own evil desires.

I love how in this passage it does not mention the devil at all in regards to sin, yet it deals with sin as a matter of the heart. David could have gone to war instead of walking on his balcony, but HE chose to stay at the palace. Noah himself made the CHOICE to get drunk to the point he totally exposed himself to his children, and on and on. The true culprits of sin stare right at us when we focus in the mirror. Not the enemy (the devil).

Now lets be clear, he (the devil) has an idea of what has made you stumble in the past and could bring it out to cause you to stumble again. However, he knew about that weakness because you at some point made it clear to him what it was. So what should we do? I'm glad you asked. James 1:5 says, "If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought." God is always there to help when we call. Jesus lived a life bathed in prayer. Sealed with the knowledge of his humanity and didn't for one moment let himself stray, rather He lifted up His voice to heaven and constantly sought, "Our father in Heaven." We should purpose to do the same, and eliminate the grasp of our own evil nature deep within.