Monday, February 7, 2022

Jesus At The Crossroads

By Al Behel

 

    A man was addicted to pornography. To help him break his compulsion he taped a picture of Jesus in the corner of his computer screen. Each time he was tempted to surf the porn sites he found that he just couldn’t do it with that picture staring him in the eyes.

    Every temptation presents us with a crossroads moment. There are always two choices. To choose sin is to fly in the face of Jesus who died for us. It is a decision to love self more than him. It means that I am telling Jesus that I would rather sin than to hold him in my heart. Sin is a choice to crucify him again...to re-drive those nails in his hands and feet.

    Temptation comes to all of us and must be resisted. Sin is destructive. Samson discovered that compromising one’s position leads to death (Judges 16:21). Sin blinds, binds, and ultimately grinds us. The moment of decision must not center on the moment of temptation. Decisions should be made long in advance of the enticing crossroad.

    Our culture embraces delusional thinking and calls it normal. “We’re all human,” we tell ourselves. “Everybody else does it.” “It doesn’t harm anyone.” “As long as no one knows it’s okay.” “I can’t help it, it’s a hereditary trait.” God wants me to be happy.” These messages are not from the Spirit of God. Satan is still the author of lies and deception. God is not swayed by human opinion. The crossroad is a spiritual battle between the mind that is set on the flesh and the mind that is set on the Spirit of God. In that moment we need to look at Jesus. His picture is in our hearts.

- Al Behel preaches for the Great Smoky Mountains Church of Christ in Pigeon Forge, TN. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://greatsmokymountainschurchofchrist.com/


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