“Can a man scoop a flame into his lap and not have his clothes catch on fire?” —Proverbs 6:27

I have often said that it is not the bait that constitutes sin; it is the bite. For temptation to be effective, there must be a desire on our part.

James 1:14 says, “Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away.” For the Devil to succeed at tempting us, we must first listen, yield, and most importantly, desire what he offers.

We can be walking along, minding our own business, when all of a sudden, some horrible thought or temptation comes to mind. We’re shocked that we could even think such a thing. It doesn’t mean we’ve done something wrong because we have been tempted. But it does mean we need to resist and recognize that it isn’t from God.

I have seen intelligent people who know the Bible make the worst decisions imaginable under the power of sin. That is why the Bible warns us about the allure and trickery of sin.

When I hear of someone who has run from God, my prayer is, “Lord, help him come to his senses. May it even happen at this moment, wherever he is, whatever he’s doing.”

Sin is like a form of temporary insanity, although sometimes it isn’t so temporary. We rationalize our way though it and say the things that have been said so many other times: “I will just go so far and then stop. . . . I’ll never do it again.”

The Bible asks, “Can a man scoop a flame into his lap and not have his clothes catch on fire?” (Proverb 6:27). People think, I will get out of this. I always find a way out. Then one day, they don’t find a way out. They realize it’s over, and they are going to reap the consequences of their sin.

Now Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines.—Judges 14:1

When I was a brand-new Christian, I had a great burden to share the gospel exclusively with really cute girls. I thought, Why would I want to talk to just anyone? I’ll talk to cute girls. They need the Lord, too. But God got my attention, and I changed my way of thinking.

The problem with being involved with a nonbeliever is that most often, a nonbeliever will pull a Christian down spiritually—not the other way around. There are exceptions. But generally that is the case. It is miserable, and it is not God’s plan for a believer.

We see this played out in the life of Samson, whom God raised up to be a leader over Israel. Apparently Samson didn’t care much about what God’s plan was, because he got involved with an unbelieving woman. One thing led to another, and things escalated. The Devil caught the mighty Samson hook, line, and sinker.

Samson’s problem was that he had power without purity and strength without self-control. For twenty years, Samson experienced the thrill of victory. Not once had he been defeated. He should have been so thankful to God. We could say that God gave Samson a lot of rope, and Samson ended up hanging himself.

Any step away from God is always a step down. After God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, the Bible says that “Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord” (Jonah 1:3).

When you are going away from God, you are always going down—never up.

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.—James 1:2–3

Jesus was very popular early on in His ministry, especially after performing His most popular miracle to date: the feeding of the five thousand. Now we’re talking—a guy who gives us free lunch! This is awesome! The crowds swelled. Huge multitudes followed Him. So Jesus turned to them and challenged them, and the result was that many turned away. They weren’t following Jesus for the right reasons.

Some people say they are Christians, but then, when a little hardship comes their way, they say they don’t believe anymore. They claim to have lost their faith. Their faith was worthless in that case, because the faith that can’t be tested is the faith that can’t be trusted.

If you were to tell me that you’ve lost your faith because of a hardship or difficulty, then I would tell you that I’m glad you lost that faith—because it wasn’t real faith at all. If you have real faith in God, then it won’t be weakened by calamity; it will be strengthened by it. If you have real faith, then it will grow through hardship. That is what the Bible teaches.

Tragedy, hardship, and trials don’t produce faith as much as they reveal it. If your faith is really in Jesus, then you will get through the storms of life. If you tell me that you turned away from God because of something that happened in your life, then my question is do you even have faith? Maybe it’s time to get some.

Jesus thinned out the ranks of His so-called followers. Gideon did the same when God called him into battle against the Midianites. Why? Because God can do more with three hundred committed people than with ten thousand halfhearted people. And He is still looking for committed people today.

So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.—Ephesians 5:15–16

I spent my whole life (or so it seemed) praying for my mom. She was an alcoholic and had been married and divorced seven times. After my conversion, I preached complete sermons to her. I gave her both barrels of my gospel gun. Yet she didn’t believe. It wasn’t until twenty-five years later that she finally made a commitment to Christ—a month before she died. It took a long time to reach her.

The most difficult people to reach for Christ are in your own family—and you will never reach them through compromise. We need to live the message we are preaching. It is tempting to give everyone a sermon. We want to preach to that unsaved husband or wife or those nonbelieving parents. But there comes a point when we have preached enough sermons. There comes a point when we need to live the sermon. We need to be good examples.

If you are a husband with a nonbelieving wife, then be a good husband. If you are a believing wife with a nonbelieving husband, then be a godly woman. If you are a child with nonbelieving parents, then do the things your parents ask you to do. Be responsible. Apply yourself. That will speak volumes to them.

Even Jesus had a hard time reaching His siblings, and who was a better example than Jesus? He was God. He was perfect. Yet the Bible tells us that prior to His crucifixion and resurrection, His own family did not believe in Him. So if Jesus had a challenge reaching His family, then you will have a challenge as well.

But know this: no one is reached through compromise. God is looking for men and women today that He can use—men and women who will make a stand.

“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.” —Luke 16:10

When God told Gideon to tear down the altar his father had built to a false God, Gideon would have to risk his life to obey. In Gideon’s day, the patriarchal figure of a family in Israel was the law. So to oppose your father was to take a significant risk.

Gideon did it anyway. He “took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night” (Judges 6:27).

Gideon took a big risk here. He took a stand, and he tore the altar down. Yes, he did it at night, but at least he obeyed God.

A lot of people will criticize those who go out and do things. We don’t like the way you do that. . . . We don’t agree with this. . . .We don’t agree with that.

My question for them would be, “What are you doing besides critiquing? What is your plan?”

There are a lot of people who are armchair quarterbacks and professional critics, yet they do little to nothing themselves. Then there are others who go out and get the job done. Some people are setting the world on fire while others are still looking for a match. I like people who go out and take risks. Even if they don’t always do things perfectly, even if they make a mistake here and there, I would rather try and fail than never do anything.

Some people start off weak, but they end up strong. Yet it is better to start weak and end strong than to start strong and end weak. It is better yet to start strong and end strong.

“Listen to Me, you who know right from wrong, you who cherish My law in your hearts. Do not be afraid of people’s scorn, nor fear their insults.”—Isaiah 51:7

“Greg, don’t talk about those issues. They’re too political.” That’s one of the reactions I receive when I speak about the movement in our country to “normalize” homosexuality, and redefine the concepts of marriage and family. Are these political issues? Maybe. But more to the point, these are moral and biblical issues. And what I have said before I say again: We tamper with God’s order at our own great peril.

When it comes to homosexual marriage, we hear people say, “I don’t understand. If two people of the same sex love each other, why can’t they get married?”

Here is the simple answer: Homosexuality is outside of God’s order, and no amount of emotional arguments or political spin can change that precept of Scripture. It’s the same with a man and a woman living together outside of marriage: That is not in His order, either. God isn’t “anti-gay”; He is anti-sin, no matter how it is expressed. Does that make the person who opposes gay marriage “homophobic”? We could just as easily say that the person who denies the timeless truths of the Bible is bibliaphobic.

If you dare to speak out against any sin in today’s world, someone will brand you as “something-phobic.” Well, so be it. I will admit to being a sinaphobic. And here is what God says about sinners not entering His kingdom: “Don’t you know that those who do wrong will have no share in the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, who are idol worshipers, adulterers, male prostitutes, homosexuals, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, abusers, and swindlers—none of these will have a share in the Kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9–10 NLT).

How clear that is! There is nothing confused or ambiguous about the way the Bible speaks to this topic. In fact, there is no confusion on this issue, unless your confusion is with the Bible itself. If you still have your doubts, read Paul’s words in Romans 1:22–27. In no uncertain terms, the apostle lays out truth that the passing of millennia and the morphing of culture cannot change: homosexuality is sexual impurity, and goes directly against the Creator’s established order. What is that order? Marriage is to be between a man and a woman. Period. “Well,” someone might say, “my God would never say that.” The fact is, there is only one God, who has revealed Himself in the pages of Scripture. Any other “god” isn’t a god at all, but an idol.

Someone else will counter, “But aren’t gay people born that way?” I don’t accept that. I believe that all people are born sinners, and every one of us came from the womb with a sinful nature. As sinners, some of us are drawn to certain temptations and some are drawn to others. The fact is, some may be attracted to those of the same sex. But that doesn’t mean that a person should act on those temptations any more than a person who is tempted to steal, lie, lust, or murder. We must respect the marriage of a man and woman, and give it the honor that it deserves. How I thank God for the couples who have stayed together through difficult times, and raised their children to know and love God.

Homosexual marriage is more than a debatable, negotiable “election issue” in a contentious political cycle. It is a moral, biblical issue. Elections and candidates may come and go, but God will hold our nation accountable for how we confront this and other sins in our time.

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. —Romans 13:14

When we put on our clothes, we expect them to do what we do and to go where we go. But do you ever see people who, instead of wearing an outfit, the outfit is wearing them? We don’t want clothes like that. We need practical clothes.

The Bible tells us “to put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts” (Romans 13:14). I like how the J. B. Phillips New Testament puts it: “Let us be Christ’s men from head to foot, and give no chances to the flesh to have its fling.”

Putting on the Lord Jesus Christ is making Him a part of everything we do. It means that He goes with us where we go. He is not just Sunday Jesus; He is also Monday Jesus, Tuesday Jesus, Wednesday Jesus, and Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Jesus.

It’s a practical, day-by-day, repeated process of putting on Christ. We embrace Him again and again. It means that He is Lord every day of our lives. Yes, He is Lord when we go to church. But He is also Lord when we go out to dinner, when we go to the movies, and when we go to work. He is Lord of our decision-making processes. And if He is not Lord of all, then He is not Lord at all.

A good thing to ask ourselves periodically is, “Would I be embarrassed or ashamed to be in this place that I’m about to go or to do this thing that I’m about to do if Jesus were to come back?” If the answer is yes, then don’t do it.

Put on the Lord Jesus Christ—that is what we need to focus on. Let’s focus our energies on becoming like Jesus.

And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.—Romans 13:12

Have you ever had someone call you very late at night or very early in the morning? The voice on the other end asks, “Did I wake you?”

And what do we usually say? Most of the time we say no. For some reason, we always want to deny the fact that we’re sleeping.

Writing about the imminent return of Christ, the apostle Paul said, “And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:11–12).

The J. B. Phillips paraphrase states it this way: “Why all this stress on behaviour? Because, as I think you have realised, the present time is of the highest importance—it is time to wake up to reality. Every day brings God’s salvation nearer.”

Paul wasn’t addressing his words to nonbelievers. He was writing to Christians. He was addressing his remarks to genuine believers whose spiritual lethargy and laziness made them appear and act as though they had no spiritual life.

Maybe his words have more relevance for people who have been walking with the Lord for a while. When you’re a new Christian, you’re full of energy, not unlike a young person. You want to go out and do things for God.

But when you get older, you want to take a nap. And I think sometimes that believers who have known the Lord for a while may be in more danger of falling asleep than those who are young in the faith.

Believers need to wake up. The coming of the Lord is near.