"How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against
God?” Genesis
39:9
Temptation
slow-danced before him. She was beautiful, willing, and the boss would never
know. Although this scenario is not unusual, Joseph’s response was. He did not hang
around to weigh the odds of being caught or try to reason with teenage hormones.
He saw this situation for what it was---sin against God. And because his
commitment to God was greater than his commitment to himself, he got up and
ran. His decision was not made in that moment of temptation. Only fools rely on
willpower to come through at the last minute. No, Joseph’s decision was made
the day he began to live as a friend of God.
We
make decisions according to our level of moral development. We start out
learning to do right based upon the promise of rewards or punishments. As we
age, we are motivated by popular opinion or even our own moral code. But God
designed us to live by a higher standard. The Bible calls it the “law of
liberty” (Jms.
2:12). People
at this level can be called “friends of God,” because they see life as an
opportunity to advance God’s purposes, rather than their own. They can be trusted
to do right even when no one knows, because their motivation is to please God. Because
Joseph’s desire was to please God, he could resist temptation when most would
have crumbled. Friends of God have already decided that sin is not worth it.
They get up and run.
What is your motivation
for making the choices you make? At what level of moral development are you
living?
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