Temptation and Sin in the Thought life
By J.P. Thackway
By God’s grace, when a sinner is converted, everything changes. From the inside outwards there is transformation. This is expressed in 2 Cor.5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We notice that this verse does not say “some things,” or “most things,” but “all things are become new.”
Because conversion is comprehensive, it will affect our mind and thoughts. What was once a private and secret domain is now under the sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit. One of the clearest evidences that we are a Christian is that the Lord is “bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).
Hypocrites
Hypocrites do not want this. Our Lord condemned the Pharisees for being like “whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness” (Matthew 23:27). Those whitewashed tombs easily disguised the death and decay inside. The outward appearance did not correspond to the inward reality. This illustrates those without real religion, who are content with a show of piety that does not extend to their inner life, including their thought-life.
On the other hand, true and exercised believers will pray with David: “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23,24). This is the ultimate mark of sincerity, for only a true Christian asks the Lord to examine him like this – and tell him if anything is displeasing in His sight. Knowing that “as he thinketh in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7), he longs to know that all is right within.
Vital
This is a vital area. David’s exhortation to Solomon includes these salutary words: “the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts” (1 Chron.28:9). We are always in the presence of the great Searcher of hearts. The Lord “knoweth the secrets of the heart” (Psalm 44:21). Nothing can be hidden from Him; all is open to His penetrating gaze.
It is in this area, however, that we often make mistakes. The conscientious believer is aware of what goes on in his mind. And the devil, being cunning and malicious, can take advantage of it. This is especially true of newly converted Christians who now want to be pleasing to the Lord, not only in outward conduct but inwardly too.
1. THE PROBLEM
The problem in our thought life is understanding the difference between what temptation is and what sin is. We know that it is not a sin to be tempted, since our blessed Lord was “tempted of the devil.” But in our thoughts and imaginations, we sometimes find unclean images, evil thoughts, and carnal desires that startle and horrify – but does their presence mean we have yielded to the temptation they pose? When, in what we think or imagine, is the line crossed between being tempted and committing sin.
It is more straightforward with our speech and our actions. We can clearly see if, for example, we have sinned with our tongue or in outward conduct. Measuring ourselves by the standard of God’s word, we can see whether we have come short or not. But what goes on in our inner life is far harder to judge. Especially when we read, “The thought of foolishness is sin” (Proverbs 24:9).
Ally
The devil has a ready ally within us. What Solomon calls, “every man the plague of his own heart” (1 Kings 8:38). Our great enemy can stir this up and make it seem the landing place of sinful thoughts. These can take various forms, such as an unforgiving spirit, resentfulness, blasphemies, sexual lust, pride, jealousy, anger and revenge, hard thoughts of God, a servile spirit, selfishness, mental idolatry, unbelief, even despair.
With these he is trying to get us to sin. But if he fails, he will still accuse us of having sinned when we have not – and we are usually unable know whether he is right or wrong. He is a liar and false accuser (Zechariah 3:1; John 8:44; Revelation 12:10) and can be very subtle and convincing. Given what we know about our inward depravity (Romans 7:18) we are all too inclined to believe the worst and conclude that we have sinned in our minds.
Bunyan in his Pilgrim’s Progress illustrates this with Christian in the Valley of Humiliation,
I took notice that now poor CHRISTIAN was so confounded, that he did not know his own voice. And thus I perceived it: just when he was come over against the mouth of the burning pit, one of the wicked ones got behind him, and stept up softly to him; and whisperingly suggested many grievous blasphemies to him – which he verily thought had proceeded from his own mind. This put CHRISTIAN more to it than anything that he met with before, even to think that he should now blaspheme Him that he loved so much before! Yet could he have helped it, he would not have done it; but he had not the discretion neither to stop his ears, nor to know from whence those blasphemies came.
Consequence
Then comes the consequence we fear, in the words of David, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me” (Psalm 66:18). Inward sin pollutes our praying. Expecting God to hear our prayers when we are allowing iniquity in our heart is almost making Him an accessory to our sin. “God heareth not sinners.” This is rightly what we dread.
So, how do we know when we have sinned in thought – and when it is not the case but innocent, albeit painful, awareness of sin within (Romans 7:18)?
2. THE SOLUTION
In seeking to answer this question, it is helpful to return to Psalm 66:18 “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the LORD will not hear me.” With this verse in mind,
1] We must distinguish between thoughts and thinking
“If I regard iniquity in my heart.” The word “regard” means to see, allow, approve, enjoy. Satan can plant sinful thoughts in our minds. The issue is not that they are there, but whether we accept them, and nourish and cherish these vile thoughts as our own. We cannot stop them presenting themselves – but we can prevent “regarding” them.
If we reject these intruders, we are safe. “For whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.” The Puritan William Gurnall said: “Poison kills not the body unless it stay in the body; nor does … evil … harm the mind unless it abides in it.”
2] C.H. Spurgeon’s testimony also helps us.
In his Autobiography he wrote:
I was brought up, as a child, with such care that I knew but very little of foul or profane language, having scarcely ever heard a man swear. Yet do I remember times, in my earliest Christian days, when there came into my mind thoughts so evil that I clapped my hand to my mouth for fear I should be led to give utterance to them. This is one way in which Satan tortures those whom God has delivered out of his hand. Many of the choicest saints have been thus molested. Once, when I had been grievously assailed by the tempter, I went to see my dear old grandfather. I told him about my terrible experience, and then I wound up by saying, ‘Grandfather, I am sure I cannot: be a child of God, or else I should never have such evil thoughts as these.’ ‘Nonsense, Charles,’ answered the good old man; ‘it is just because you are a Christian that you are thus tempted. These blasphemies are no children of yours; they are the devil’s brats, which he delights to lay at the door of a Christian. Don’t you own them as yours, give them neither house-room nor heart-room.’ I felt greatly comforted by what my grandfather said, especially as it confirmed what another old saint had told me when I was tempted in a similar manner while I was seeking the Saviour.
3] Some passages from Dr Lloyd-Jones’ teaching are helpful.
“A temptation only becomes sin when we accept it. When we fondle it, when we enjoy it, then it becomes sin. The suggestion itself is not sin. The temptation is not sin. The feeling of desire is not sin. But to accept it and to enjoy it and to fondle it, that is sin.”
And then he gives some questions to ask ourselves concerning whether sinful thoughts are from Satan or from us.
- “Do you not find sometimes that these thoughts, imaginations and so on, come to you? Perhaps the first thing when you wake up in the morning before you’ve started to think actively at all … They’re not yours.”
- “Can you say, quite honestly, that you hate them, that you regard them as evil, and that you regard them with hatred.”
- “Do you long to be rid of them?”
- “Can you say quite honestly that you desire to know God, that your chief desire is to know God and to love him and to serve him?”
An illustration of this is found in the second volume of Dr Lloyd-Jones’ biography by Iain Murray. Here is the testimony of someone who went to the Dr for help.
I was saved when I was young. All seemed to go well until my twenties, when I was plagued with blasphemous thoughts, which plagued me day and night for some years. Several ministers advised me to ‘trust the Lord’ or ‘pray about it’ – but the more I did so, the worse it became! I seriously contemplated suicide. It was at this juncture that I asked Doctor Martyn Lloyd-Jones for help. He did not help me until he was satisfied that I was a Christian. He then diagnosed my problem immediately! He advised me (rather surprisingly) not only never to think about the problem again but never to pray about it either. I was not really ‘praying’, I was simply reminding myself of my problem.
The next week things became infinitely worse! I returned in distress to Lloyd-Jones, who said he had expected it! It was proof that Satan was behind it all, seeking to take control of my thought life. He added a warning not to let Satan do so with any other problem whatsoever. I thank God that the Doctor gave me that advice – the best pastoral advice I ever had. Satan was crushed under my feet – and remains so after all these years. I still wonder at the Doctor’s extraordinary insight – unquestionably God-given. The advice others had given had led me into the grossest bondage.
Another helpful quote is the following: “An evil thought should be quickly expelled. We cannot prevent its coming; but we may refuse to give it quarter. If we harbour it, we consent to its presence, and take the guilt of it on ourselves. Thus, we make it no longer a foreign intruder, but our own thought.”
4] The teaching of scripture is clear.
For instance, in Jeremiah.4:14 it is significant that the Lord said to His people “O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness … How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?” “Lodge within” is different from just coming to us unexpectedly and being rejected by us.
Another scriptural distinction is in Ezekiel 38:10 “Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought.” While those two parts of the verse can be kept apart in our experience, we have not sinned in our thoughts.
Another distinction is in Proverbs 6:14 where “A naughty person” is someone who “in his heart, he deviseth mischief.” This means to plan, to plot. It is different from the mischief suggesting itself and presenting itself to the mind. When nothing of this sort is deliberate but batted away, we have not sinned in mind and heart. It is what I really am that counts, not what I am plagued with.
We can be like Abraham, who, when waiting by his sacrifice, was annoyed by “the fowls [that] came down upon the carcases.” Abraham could not prevent these unwanted intruders from coming down – that was outside his control. But he did the only thing possible: “Abram drove them away” (Genesis 15:11). These “fowls” stand for the devil that wants to defile (Luke 8:5). Abram driving them away stands for our refusing and rebuffing his sinful thoughts and imaginations.
5] A further help is to “regard” other things as alternatives to “iniquity.”
a] The word of God.
In Psalm 119:11 the psalmist says, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Here is a positive answer to our problem. We can say, “I am not going to regard these sinful thoughts and fantasies; I am going to regard God’s holy word instead.” Then, we find that holy thoughts can fill our minds and keep it in the right way. It is only as God’s word protects us that we stay safe like this. George Müeller said, “The vigour of our spiritual life will be in exact proportion to the place held by the Bible in our life and thoughts.”
b] Better thoughts.
The apostle Paul listed some wholesome and gracious things that can keep unworthy thoughts at bay. “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” The very rehearsing of these Christlike graces is enough to keep our minds safe.
c] Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul prays for the Ephesians, “That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith” (3:17). This makes our inner life a holy place for His presence. Believing He is there, should altogether banishes evil thoughts and desires. Thinking about His redeeming love, His cross, His precious blood can be for us what Thomas Chalmers called, “The expulsive power of a new affection.”
And so, as is always the case, our blessed Lord Jesus Christ is the solution to all our problems. May we so have “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16) that we shall find we decidedly have no mind for anything unworthy of Him. Let us earnestly pray: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10).