Where does temptation come from?
So where does temptation come from if not from God? (James 1:13). Not all trials originate from outside sources. James points out that we bring some trials on ourselves through our own bad decisions. So instead of pointing the finger at God (or the devil) as the source of all our immoral desires, James says we need to consider our own responsibility in the matter. Are our evil desires the real root of the problem? To help us understand how our desires operate, James personifies them as a pied piper, dragging and enticing us away, luring us to follow along and give in. The process that James describes in verses 14–15 has huge implications for how we conceptualize and combat sin. Why? Just think about how we talk about sin. We talk about “falling into sin” or committing a sin, depicting sin as though it is an event—something that just happens all of a sudden—rather than as a multistep process. Recognizing this distinction has huge implications for how we combat our sinful desires!