Beware of Temptation

It is so easy we tend to forget the fight. It is so easy to think we have conquered sin because we don’t have any ‘big’ sins to confess. “Father, you know what I mean. I struggle just like everyone else. I don’t have any big sins to confess.” These are the words of someone headed for trouble.

Brethren, God was not pleased with most of the fathers; for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did. Do not be idolators as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to dance.” We must not indulge in immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. Now these things happened to them as a warning, but they were written down for our instruction, upon whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

1^st Corinthians 10.5-12

The false sense of hope that we have won the war against sin is not new. Saint Paul understood this false confidence when he warned the Church “Let anyone who thinks that he stand take heed lest he fall.” Saint Paul knew the pain of falling. He knew the risk of arrogance.

The warning didn’t begin with Saint Paul. Our Lord taught us to beware of temptation when He taught us how to pray. “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil,” isn’t just the end of the Lord’s Prayer. It is a warning against the arrogance of pride.

History is filled with examples of the People of God forgetting to avoid temptation. Countless men and women, holy one day and sinful the next, fell to the false belief they could ward off sin because God was ‘on their side’ in life. The story continues today.

We forget ‘small sins’ are still sins to be avoided. We forget that living a holy life isn’t about being ‘better’ than most. It is about fighting temptation at every turn, never giving up the vigilance required to identify sin, so we can run.

The first step to any sin is thinking we are always going to be strong enough to fight temptation. This is why Christ taught us to pray to avoid temptation. An addict is taught to avoid triggers of their addiction. The same should be true for Christians.

The grace of Holy Confession is more than forgiveness. A spiritual father worthy of his title will help you identify your triggers. It is always better to avoid temptation than to confess sin. Here’s some free advice. Never think you are strong enough to ‘say no’ to sin. It is that basic.

Saint John Chrysostom warned us to avoid the ‘small sins’ because they ‘add up’ to larger sins. Think about your sins for a moment. How often do you rationalize your behavior either because you think it is nominal or that you got this far, you can always confess it later?

Here’s some more free advice. Think of sin as an addiction. We are all addicted to sin. We don’t want to sin, but the next thing we realize we already ‘did’ it. An addict is taught never to give up the fight, but also never to give up hope.

Just because you fell to temptation today, doesn’t mean you give up and go on ‘a bender’ for the next week. Gather yourself and commit to getting through the rest of today without temptation. If you can avoid the temptation for ‘that particular sin’ you will win most of the war.

If it has been a while since your last confession, contact your spiritual father and get on his schedule sooner than later. The longer you allow ‘the bender’ to progress, the harder it will be to turn back. In the meantime, watch for your triggers and choose to avoid temptation.