Run.

What should we do about temptation to sin? That should be a big question in the minds of Christian people. How do we respond when we are confronted with the wrong choice, when we are encouraged to make the wrong choice? We have to have answers for those questions.


When I was thinking about writing this post about how to handle temptations, I immediately thought of Joseph and Potiphar's Wife. He literally flees from the temptation to sin, which is the point I wanted to drive at. But, as I read the story again, something stood out to me that is an equally important way to approach temptation.

Genesis 39:6b-12 
Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master's wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her.
  But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house.

What I didn't notice before that I noticed on this reading was that Joseph didn't just immediately run away from the problem that was facing him. Potiphar's wife tried to entice him day after day, but his first response wasn't to run. His first response was to refuse her and proclaim his faith. "I can't sin against God this way." He likely had to say these words over and over again to her, having to convince himself to continually deny her, even though she tempted him. I wouldn't claim to know that this was indeed a true temptation for Joseph, except from the evidence we see in the rest of this story.

After he diligently and dutifully spent days and days relying on God and his affirmation of his own faith to resist temptation, the day came when she caught him, tempted him, and he ran away. If he had no desire to sin in this scenario he could have just continued to tell her no. But instead he ran, leaving his responsibilities and his position so that he wouldn't sin.

I think the dual nature of Joseph's approach to this temptation (resisting while remaining/fleeing) can tell us lots of good things.

1. People of faith will be tempted.
2. Strong faith will help us through temptations, but it won't make us magically impervious to them or incapable of succumbing to them.
3. Reminding ourselves why we shouldn't sin can help us resist temptation.
4. Running from the source of our temptation doesn't always have to be our first response (Although I would never lessen the power or importance of verses 2 Timothy 2:22 or 1 Corinthians 6:18. I would say present resistance is a form of fleeing)
5. We can teach others about God even when we are tempted (Joseph taught Potiphar's wife about serving God amidst this temptation)
6. It's better to run than to give in. 

 I want to spend a little more time talking about point 6 here. I think it's so important that we realize that Joseph couldn't just tell her no forever. Perhaps he could have, but when he felt as though he could no longer resist her, he left. Joseph was a pillar of morality and trust in God, but he had to run away from this temptation. That tells me that it's not shameful to have to run away from sin, or to change what we do so that we resist temptation. It is often necessary, and always beneficial. It wasn't worth it to Joseph to say "No, I can probably just keep telling her no. I want to do the wrong thing, but I probably won't. It's probably fine." When he was honest with himself and realized that he was no longer going to be able to resist her in the way he once had, he took more drastic measures and he kept from sinning.

There should be no length we are unwilling to go to to stop from sinning. Period. If we can resist temptation easily through faith and will-power--great. But if not, let's do whatever we need to do to cut sin out of our lives.