James 1:14

'But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.'

'is tempted' -Obviously, the word "tempted" here means to be enticed to sin. Carefully note that the idea of entire sanctification wherein one rises above the possibilities of sin by the eradication of evil tendency in himself is false. In this life, the Christian never rises above the possibility of being tempted (1 Corinthians 9:27; 1 John 1:8).

'carried away' -'to lure forth' (Thayer p. 222); 'as in hunting or fishing game is lured from its haunt' (Vine p. 337); 'drag away, taken in two by his own desires' (Arndt p. 274)

'and enticed' -'to lure by. bait' (Vine p. 36). 'Temptation is the pull of man's own evil thoughts and wishes' (Draper p. 41) These two words "carried away", "and enticed" are hunting and fishing terms. 'one can visualize the fish being first aroused from its original place of safety and repose, and then being lured to the bait that hides the fatal hook.' (Kent p. 51)

'by his own lust' -Man is not enticed by Adam's sin or the sin of his parents, but rather, his own lusts. Man does not sin due to circumstances, determinism, fate, predestination, natural forces beyond his control, inherited factors or the whim of various deities.

Points To Note:

1. But someone may argue, 'How can God blame me for yielding to lusts which God created in me?' 2. The truth of the matter is that God made us with desires, pure and noble, but we are the ones who take those wholesome desires and turn them into selfish demands. God didn't create us with evil desires, rather whatever evil desires are presently within us are of our own making, the result of twisting legitimate desires, of creating false needs. Carefully note that our body isn't the source of sin, but rather, the origin is found in our own evil thoughts (Mark 7:20).

Barclay aptly describes how the wholesome can become twisted into the sinful: 'Immorality, impurity, licentiousness are perversions of the sexual instinct which is in itself. lovely thing and. part of love. Idolatry is. perversion of worship, and was begun as an aid to worship. Sorcery is. perversion of the use of healing drugs in medicine. Envy, jealousy and strife are perversions of that noble ambition and desire to do well which can be. spur to greatness……anger….. perversion of that righteous indignation without which the passion for goodness cannot exist. Dissension and the party spirit are. perversion of the devotion to principle which can produce the martyr.' (Flesh and Spirit, p. 39)

Often we talk about the "power of sin". We need to remember that the power of sin is what happens when we become selfish, when we become convinced that God and His ways cannot be trusted for our happiness. Selfishness and unbelief can take the most wholesome desires and completely twist them into something which is tremendously evil.