LUKE 17
And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, 4 and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” – Luke 17:1-4
LUKE 17 WOE TO THE SOURCE OF TEMPTATIONS
A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses
As a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, you must avoid temptations
You need not compromise and expose yourself to such invitations
Although there will always be enticements that will come your way
Strengthen your faith so you can discern when it arrives in your trail
Woe to the source of temptations, they will be cast out into the sea
The Lord will not allow his children to be lured by such deceits
Forgive when a brother repents and asks for your forgiveness
It will close the door for the enemy to lure you into sinfulness
Repent of your sins as soon as you are convicted by the Spirit
It will keep you on track towards maturing and growing your faith.
In this account, Jesus teaches his disciples to be wary of temptations. Although he said that it was expected of them to be tempted, they could still overcome the temptations that will come their way. After all, we live in a corrupt world and we all have the sinful nature lying within each of us. Temptation is not a sin, but it is a training ground for us to grow our faith and strengthen our discernment and dependence on the Holy Spirit that was given to us when we were chosen to be God’s children.
In the book of James, we were told where the source of sin comes from. He said in James 1:14 that each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desires. In other words, it is within each one of us. James also explains that we must never say that “I am tempted by God” because God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one. Temptations come from our sinful nature and our flesh. This is why it is very important for a believer to have a very close relationship with God so that he will not be enticed by our sinfulness. We need to know our Lord and fear him so that we will have wisdom to know when we are being tempted. We need to be constantly feeding on the truth that comes from God’s word so that we will not open doors for the enemy to trick us.
In these verses, Jesus warns them to watch out for the temptress and anyone who becomes the host of the devil to trap and ensnare people to sin. He tells his disciples what would be the consequences of those who deceive and trap God’s people into falling into sin or misleading them to believe false teachings. Verse 2 gives us a vivid picture of the gravity of such acts of enticing the children of God.
REFLECTION
- What are ways that we are not guarding our hearts from being tempted?
