MoreThanYouCanHandle?

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” - James 1:2-4

The idea that no one is given more than they can handle is a common theme in both the Bible and the Koran. Saint Paul puts it this way: “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13 NIV) To understand the Biblical passage, one needs to understand that the word for “tempt” is the Greek word “peirazo” which can also mean to test or try, and thus we have the notion that God won’t test us beyond our capacity, and that if it seems that He is doing so, He will also give us the means to endure it. There is exactly the same issue in the phrasing of the Lord’s Prayer when it says “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”(Matthew 6:13 NIV) Are we then to believe that God is either testing or tempting us to sin? The apostle James is clear on this issue: “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. (James 1:13-14 NIV) It has been suggested therefore that when we are tempted (or tested), it is generally by our own wrong way of thinking or our evil desires, not to say anything of the fact that the world itself can be the source of testing or temptation. Everything from natural disasters to people who try our patience, and even people who try to convince us to take part in their evil schemes can be considered a test. So stay strong, hold on, and realize that you have the means to handle whatever comes your way.

– Christopher Simon