Required reading
Miscellaneous Discourses in Vol 2 of the Works by Jonathan Edwards (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read 'Temptation and deliverance'.
My summary
Today's text is '"And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out." (Gen. 39:12)
Edwards gives:
(ii) what things lead and expose to sin;
(iii) a serious warning to all, and especially young people.
What grabbed me
Again, seems like Edwards was responding to a few issues with young people in his church.
But I did like this application of the Lord's Prayer: 'Seeing we are to pray we may not be led into temptation, certainly we ought not to run ourselves into it.—This is one request that Christ directs us to make to God in that form of prayer, which he taught his disciples—“Lead us not into temptation.” And how inconsistent shall we be with ourselves, if we pray to God, that we should not be led into temptations; and at the same time, we are not careful to avoid temptation; but bring ourselves into it, by doing 8 those things that lead and expose to sin. What self-contradiction is it, for a man to pray to God that he may be kept from that, which he takes no care to avoid! By praying that we may be kept from temptation, we profess to God that being in temptation is a thing to be avoided; but by running into it we show that we choose the contrary, viz. not to avoid it.'
We're such hypocrites. We can pray in one breath, and in the next breath do exactly what we prayed against. Who will rescue us from this body of death?
But I did like this application of the Lord's Prayer: 'Seeing we are to pray we may not be led into temptation, certainly we ought not to run ourselves into it.—This is one request that Christ directs us to make to God in that form of prayer, which he taught his disciples—“Lead us not into temptation.” And how inconsistent shall we be with ourselves, if we pray to God, that we should not be led into temptations; and at the same time, we are not careful to avoid temptation; but bring ourselves into it, by doing 8 those things that lead and expose to sin. What self-contradiction is it, for a man to pray to God that he may be kept from that, which he takes no care to avoid! By praying that we may be kept from temptation, we profess to God that being in temptation is a thing to be avoided; but by running into it we show that we choose the contrary, viz. not to avoid it.'
We're such hypocrites. We can pray in one breath, and in the next breath do exactly what we prayed against. Who will rescue us from this body of death?
Next week's reading
Read 'The preciousness of time'.
Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
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