Temptation - 1 Corinthians 10:13

 Comparing ancient Israel to the saints in Corinth in his day, Paul was able to demonstrate to them that all people have struggled between the natural human instinct and God’s laws. But Paul assures them, and us, “there hath no temptation taken you but such as in common to man.” This means that any temptation that we face has been faced by people before, and that really makes you think because there are some crazy people out there into some crazy stuff. The gospeldoctrine.com article explains, “one of Satan’s great lies is to tell an individual that his tribulations are greater than any other- that his particular trials are more trying, that his temptations are more tempting, and that his situation is different than anyone else.” I have felt this way, when I was a teenager, I thought that I was so special that I didn’t have to keep the commandments, and it wasn’t until years later than I learned that it was precisely because I was so special that I had to keep them.

It’s also empowering to realize that anything that we think is weird about ourselves has been dealt with by other people as well. There is something comforting in knowing that we are not alone in our struggles and that other people have felt them too. Satan’s lie that our particular circumstances are so unique and terrible that we are justified in giving in to them is incredibly self-absorbed. I’m a firm believer that everyone is entitled to feel their feelings, but that also must be coupled with the acknowledgement that there are people out there who have it so much worse than us. If we don’t work through our own emotions with that as a tamper, then it is easy to devolve into a downward spiral of self-pity and delusion.

Indeed, we know that not only are our temptations and trials not unique to us, but “The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?” This is one of those things where I believe that Christ was tempted in all things, both in his life and through the atonement, but I don’t necessarily understand how that worked. I believe that during the atonement, Jesus lived the life of each and every one of us, experienced every moment of our existence, the good and the bad. I believe that this is how he experienced all our joy and all our pain, but how did he experience our temptations? Did he feel how it was when something tempted us? Did he feel our draw to it and how badly we wanted to do it? And when we did give in to temptation, he must have endured the pain that would come as a consequence of us moving farther away from heaven. If he lived every moment of temptation, how would he have given in to it if he was experiencing our lives as a passive participant?

When we are faced with temptation, if the Savior has felt the deep longing that we have felt, he knows exactly what void that that particular temptation fills in us. When we are enticed to do something contrary to the laws of God, it is because we have some need that is not being met in other ways at that particular time, and we feel that giving in to that temptation will fill that need for us. It’s a subconscious type of psychology similar to when children misbehave. They do it because they aren’t getting positive attention, so they act badly to get negative attention, because at that point, even negative attention is better than neglect.

Temptations must work similarly. We have some need that is not being fulfilled, and we probably can’t even identify it ourselves, but because that void is there, we can argue that giving in to whatever temptation is facing us at that moment will be a satisfactory way to fill that void. When children behave badly to get any attention, it usually backfires in that they are punished for misbehaving and labeled bad kids and are often not allowed to play with other kids who are well adjusted and could really help the attention starved child improve. So the irony here is that kids who need the most love usually ask for it in the most unlovable ways, and the consequences cause them to need even more love, which leads to worse behavior. It’s a vicious cycle of self-destruction that really takes serious work to pull out of.

It appears that temptation is similar. We have a void, so we try to fill it with whatever our own personal temptation is, but ultimately not only does our indulgence not fill whatever hole we have, but because we’ve given in and done something wrong, we are that much more removed from God, making our void even deeper. Thus, it is easy to see how we can get caught up in a cyclone if self-destruction that takes an act of God to get us out of.

Paul continues that not only are all temptations not unique, but God “will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” That’s a nice sentiment, but it is also pretty abstract. When we feel these “needs” or the emptiness of the void that we attempted to fill with sin, we are ruled by emotion and revert to our primal, natural selves. All we know is that we are missing something and we want to make it feel better by any means necessary. Usually in these situations, we can’t think clearly or objectively, we can’t even put our distress in to words because we don’t understand it ourselves.

Because the Savior lived our lives, felt all of our needs and distresses, and experienced everything that will ever come to us, he is able to dissect our emotions as an objective and knowledgeable third party. We can’t provide this service for ourselves as we are not able to be objective because we are far too invested in the situation, and we are not all knowing. As an objective, omniscient third party, the Savior can put words to our needs, he can understand them in a way that we cannot, and he can know exactly how to properly satisfy what ails us so that we aren’t making our situation worse by giving in to temptation, but actually scratching the itch where it is and soothing us with the balm of Gilead.

What does this mean for us in a practical sense? In the case of the neglected child acting out for attention, how could Jesus make a way for them to escape the temptation to misbehave? Being able to remove himself from the emotional nature of the situation, the Savior would see that this person is suffering because the people who are supposed to protect and nurture him are not doing that. He could see that the child needs love, acceptance and safety. There are many ways that the Savior is able to make an escape path or a way for them to bear their burdens. 

The child could meet a new friend who has compassion for him and gives him some of the love and support that they are seeking. That child could have other family members that step in and give him love and support. The child could also be taught of their infinite and divine worth, that he is a child of God who is loved and treasured, even if other people are unable to provide that love. It’s difficult to look at a misbehaving child and say, “you need to learn to resist the temptation to act bad,” especially if that child is suffering at home as well. But the sentiment is the same for the rest of us.

We entertain or give in to temptation because we feel a lack of something in our lives. We usually can’t identify it because it’s not a logical process, it’s an emotional process. But because the Savior has experienced every part of our deep, dark existence, he knows what we need to not only fill the void that we have but to heal and strengthen it. That is how he provides an escape for us and how he helps us overcome temptation. He’s like the friend who says, “girl, put that cheesecake down, it won’t make you feel better, it will only make you feel worse. Instead lets talk about your feelings and go for a bike ride.” And he’s right, because he’s been there before. He’s like everyone who has ever seen you suffering and said, “I know how you feel,” except he actually does know how we feel. He’s the older, divorced sister who sees you struggling with your man and says, “ripping up his clothes and screaming at him is not going to improve your situation. You need to reevaluate if he is helping you become your best self.” He is the ultimate motivational speaker, the greatest support group coach, and the best personal mentor possible.

It’s interesting to think about him like that, like a virtual life coach that teaches you exactly what you need to know when you need to know it in a way that is meant just for you. But again learning to hear the Lord is not like reading text messages from him. It’s subtle but powerful. The article from gospeldoctrine.com quotes Bishop H. Burke Petersen as teaching, “May I suggest the best way I know to keep close to the source of this great strength is through prayer. No man can stand alone in his struggle through life. Sometimes in discouragement our prayers, at best, become occasional or maybe not at all. Sometimes we forget or just don’t care. Brigham Young once said, ‘Prayer keep man from sin, and sin keeps man from prayer.’”

The article also quotes Elder Neal A. Maxwell as teaching, “prayerful people will not be pressed beyond their limits.” I’ve always struggled with the concept of prayer because if God already knows me and what I want and need, why do I have to kneel down and talk to him? I feel like I talk to God all day long, why do I have to delay going to bed just so that we can talk longer? But this gives me a different perspective in that I pray so that I can learn to hear God and what he has to tell me. I can’t never speak to him, but expect him to speak to me all the time, that doesn’t make sense. By praying for relief from temptation, I am acknowledging my own need to be vigilant in my life. By praying for a good attitude, I am asking for help in determining what I am out of line, therefore will be more watchful of times when I need to straighten up, so that I can comply with my own goals and desires for myself.

This is a really interesting wormhole that I’ve never gone down before. I’m going to think about this stuff more and get back to you later.