What a difference a chapter makes! In Genesis chapter two we left Adam and Eve in perfect harmony with each other and with God, living in Paradise. In chapter three, sin has entered the Garden of Eden and changed everything.
Eve has a sullied reputation for being the person who brought sin into the world. After all, she was the one who listened to the snake and ate the fruit. Commentators and Bible teachers often teach that poor Eve was just too naive and stupid to say, “No”, to the snake when she was tempted and thus, her sin was inevitable. Eve was a victim of her own helplessness- after all, she was only human. However, that’s not exactly how temptation to sin works. We are not so naïve and stupid that we can’t say, “No”, to sin in our lives! God does not leave us as helpless victims.
First Corinthians 10:13 tells us that, “And God is faithful, He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” It might not be obvious, but there is always a way out.
An example of this from scripture can be found in Matthew 27:19. Jesus had been brought to the Governor Pilate before His crucifixion and Pilate had to decide whether or not to use his power to help this man whom he knew to be innocent. While he was trying to decide what to do, he was being
tempted. True to scripture, Pilate was sent a way out. His wife gave him the opportunity not to sin.
The Bible says, “While he was sitting in the judgment seat, his wife sent to him saying, ‘Have nothing to do with this just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.’” That message from his wife was the way of escape that God promised to give us when we are being tempted. Tragically, Pilate (like our sister Eve) did not take this opportunity, but it was given to him.
When we are struggling with sin, we don’t have to give in. Let’s look for our way out and take it! It might be the counsel of our spouse as it was with Pilate, it may be scripture that comes to our mind just as we need it, as it was with Jesus when He was tempted by Satan in the desert, it may be any number of things that God will use on our behalf, but it is always there giving us the chance to say, “NO”, to sin.