It’s Not a Sin to Be Tempted

[It’s Not a Sin to Be Tempted]( Current Teaching Series [Rethinking Your Life]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [It’s Not a Sin to Be Tempted]( By Rick Warren — 01/29/2024 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd%20like%20to%20share%20a%20Daily%20Devotional%20from%20Pastor%20Rick%20with%20you&body= “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Hebrews 4:16 (NLT) Being on a broken planet means you will never outgrow temptation. But it’s important to remember that it’s not a sin to be tempted. It’s a sin to give in to temptations. You’re not a bad Christian because you have persistent temptations in your life. You’re human! You’re not responsible for the thoughts Satan puts in your mind from a thousand different stimuli. But you are responsible for what you do with them. You can choose not to dwell on a thought. You change your mind! You choose to think of something different. Then, you have not sinned because you didn’t act on your temptation. Martin Luther said, “You can’t keep the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from making a nest in your hair.” If you have a bad thought, don’t be intimidated by it. Don’t beat yourself up. That’s what Satan wants you to do, because the more you get down on yourself, the more he can manipulate those negative emotions and lead you to sin. A thought is only a temptation. It’s your choice whether it turns into a sin. You’re going to be tempted the rest of your life. Even the oldest, most mature Christian in the world is still tempted. The mature Christian knows that the closer you get to God, the more Satan will throw at you, hoping something will stick. But the closer you get to God, the better prepared you are to face whatever Satan throws at you and to resist him. Don’t be intimidated by Satan. As a Christian, you’ve got the Holy Spirit’s power in you. You’ve got God’s Word to give you truth. You’ve got Jesus to cry out to. You’ve got everything you need to overcome your temptations! [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - What thoughts from God’s Word can replace your thoughts of temptation? - How does the Holy Spirit help you when you are tempted? - What shame around temptation do you need to surrender to God today? The post [It’s Not a Sin to Be Tempted]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd%20like%20to%20share%20a%20Daily%20Devotional%20from%20Pastor%20Rick%20with%20you&body= [Get the Rethinking Your Life Bible Study when you give a gift to support Daily Hope!]( Your brain is the most complex organ in your body, and one of God’s greatest gifts to you. So is it any surprise that your thoughts are so powerful . . . and need to be placed under God’s influence? In his brand-new Rethinking Your Life Bible study, Pastor Rick Warren invites you on a journey to take control of your thought life so you can win the battle against temptation, defeat discouragement, and experience peace in the midst of pain. The Rethinking Your Life Bible study is our thanks for your gift to help share the hope of Jesus with more people through Daily Hope this year. So request your copy when you give below, and thank you for your partnership! [GIVE NOW]( [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)]( Includes 8 full-length message from Pastor Rick's series Rethinking Your Life. [LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: Why You Need to Think About What You Think About Message 2: Learning to Think Like Jesus Message 3: Choosing to Manage My Mind Message 4: Rethinking the Problem of Sin Message 5: How to Win Over Persistent Temptations Message 6: Defeating Discouragement Message 7: Changing How I Think About Pain Message 8: Recovering from Traumatic Experiences [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( Rick Warren is the founding pastor of [Saddleback Church]( one of America’s largest and most influential churches. Pastor Rick is the author of the New York Times bestseller [The Purpose Driven Life](. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. 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