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Working for the Intemperate
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Feeling the terrible power of temptation, the drawing of desire
that leads to indulgence, many a man cries in despair, “I cannot
resist evil.” Tell him that he can, that he must resist. He may have
been overcome again and again, but it need not be always thus. He
is weak in moral power, controlled by the habits of a life of sin. His
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promises and resolutions are like ropes of sand. The knowledge of
his broken promises and forfeited pledges weakens his confidence
in his own sincerity and causes him to feel that God cannot accept
him or work with his efforts. But he need not despair.
Those who put their trust in Christ are not to be enslaved by
any hereditary or cultivated habit or tendency. Instead of being held
in bondage to the lower nature, they are to rule every appetite and
passion. God has not left us to battle with evil in our own finite
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strength. Whatever may be our inherited or cultivated tendencies
to wrong, we can overcome through the power that He is ready to
impart.
The Power of the Will
The tempted one needs to understand the true force of the will.
This is the governing power in the nature of man—the power of
decision, of choice. Everything depends on the right action of the
will. Desires for goodness and purity are right, so far as they go; but
if we stop here, they avail nothing. Many will go down to ruin while
hoping and desiring to overcome their evil propensities. They do not
yield the will to God. They do not
choose
to serve Him.
God has given us the power of choice; it is ours to exercise.
We cannot change our hearts, we cannot control our thoughts, our
impulses, our affections. We cannot make ourselves pure, fit for
God’s service. But we can
choose
to serve God, we can give Him
our will; then He will work in us to will and to do according to His
good pleasure. Thus our whole nature will be brought under the
control of Christ.
Through the right exercise of the will, an entire change may
be made in the life. By yielding up the will to Christ, we ally
ourselves with divine power. We receive strength from above to hold
us steadfast. A pure and noble life, a life of victory over appetite