“Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”
Matthew 4:7
Temptation in this vein means intentionally leading or coaxing someone to do what they would usually not do — just because you know they can do it. It means trying to get one to prove themselves for no reason than to satisfy your curiosity. It also means doing what you know is wrong because you think you can take advantage of a characteristic of God.
It happened when the pharisees would taunt Jesus — tempting Him just to hear what He would say. Also when they shouted, “If you are the Son of God, save yourself,” when Jesus was on the cross. It happened again and again when the children of Israel would ask God to prove Himself, and still end up not believing Him. (Psalm 78:56)
Till today, this pattern has been repeated — when we know what is wrong and still go ahead to do it because we are hoping to take advantage of God’s forgiveness.
Tempting God can never come from faith. Though it might look like faith because you trust that God can do what He has said He will do. But it is not faith because you are only trying to take advantage while knowing that God would frown at your intention and action.
Charge: Remember that God is a consuming fire. Never take Him for granted.
Further Study: Acts 5:9, Hebrews 3:8-10
