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.
Temptation is an enticement to evil or to sin. Everyone has faced it—even the Lord Jesus Himself. In and of itself, therefore, temptation is not sin; it is our response to it which leads us either in the paths of righteousness or down into the quicksands of disobedience.
The actions of Potiphar’s wife demonstrate how temptation expresses itself. Her approach was first subtle. She began in her mind to look at Joseph differently. The eyes are a gateway into our souls and the path through which many temptations come. A lustful heart begins with lingering eyes.
Her eyes having ensnared her soul, she lost any notion of modesty. How could she proceed to such a barefaced invitation to adultery? The answer is that she was clearly feeding lust at the level of her imagination, which is bound to increase the chances that we actually do what we’ve been thinking about. Sin is always ready to break forth in an instant, driven by blind, furious, and nearly (though never totally) irrepressible desires. There comes a point where we have gone so far down the road in our minds that all we need is the occasion—and so when the occasion arises, so does the outward sin.
You and I can learn from the misdeeds of Potiphar’s wife. Be sure that what you allow your eyes to look at and your mind to dwell on will sooner or later affect how you act. Temptations, and the desires they awaken, will be fed or they will be fought. Are we prepared to “take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5) instead of feeding lust or other sins? Are we willing “to enter the kingdom of God with one eye” (Mark 9:47), or is eternal life not worthy of such a price?
What temptations do your eyes and your mind face today? While each is a dangerous invitation to sin, it also provides an opportunity to choose obedience. Pray for wisdom and boldness to recognize those moments, and respond to those temptations in a manner that leads you in paths of righteousness.
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Devotional material is taken from the Truth For Life daily devotional by Alistair Begg, published by The Good Book Company, thegoodbook.com. Used by Truth For Life with permission. Copyright © 2021, The Good Book Company.
