Today's Scripture Reading (May 2, 2024): 2 Corinthians 1
I grew up in
the age of the Comedy Hour. Carol Burnett, Dean Martin, and others hosted these
variety shows, often featuring short comedy skits. The closest current program to
these strange T.V. shows might be something like Saturday Night Live, but they
were also very different from SNL. Often, like SNL, they featured some recurring
characters. But I think this was the heyday of clean stand-up comedy. These
shows feature skits from some hilarious people and some not-so-funny people. And
sometimes, what was comical about these skits was watching these actors trying
desperately not to laugh at each other (Yes, Carol Burnett, I am looking at
you, or at least at Harvey Korman).
One of my
favorite skit shows was Flip Wilson. And one of my favorite Flip Wilson skits
involved a certain pastor and his wife. Through
this Pastor's wife, Flip popularized the phrase "The Devil made me do It." The
phrase quickly entered our North American vocabulary. Whenever someone got
caught doing something wrong, it wasn't their fault; "The Devil made me do
it."
In 1978, a
few years after the popularity of The Flip Wilson Show, "The Devil Made Me
Do It" took another rather unexpected twist. This time, it was the Murder
Trial of Dan White, who snuck into the basement window of San Francisco's City
Hall and then went upstairs, shooting and killing both Mayor George Moscone and
Supervisor Harvey Milk. During the trial, the media reported the advent of what
has become known as the "Twinkie Defense," the idea that Dan White
was not responsible for his actions because his diet of Twinkies and other junk
food had effectively impaired his judgment.
In actuality,
the "Twinkie Defense" has never been argued in Dan White's or any
other trial. What was claimed in the trial was that Dan White had been
suffering from an undiagnosed depression that had impaired his judgment. The
proof of the depression was that Dan's diet had changed. Usually, Dan was a bit
of a health nut, but his diet suddenly shifted from healthy foods to Twinkies
and other junk food. The depression meant that Dan White was not responsible
for his actions. So, the Twinkies and the junk food were evidence of the
undiagnosed depression and not the cause of it. But we seem to have missed that
part of the argument. "The Devil Made Me Do It" was quickly uprooted
and replaced by "The Twinkie Made Me Do It." Or maybe the Twinkie and
the Devil are the same; chew on that the next time that bag of chips beckons.
But both
ideas are wrong and have no biblical support. The Devil is not an omnipotent,
omniscient, or omnipresent being. Those traits are reserved for God. The Devil
can't make you do anything. God won't make you do anything because he values
your free will. However, free will is not free; it comes at a cost we often must
pay for. But if we want to be stupid, while God can stop us, he refuses to step
in and make us stop doing any unwise activity. And there is a good reason for
that. God never intended to build automatons or robots that would simply do his
bidding. His desire was an independent race of people who could choose him. It
is similar to our wanting friends who want to be with us, not those who feel
compelled to be with us or want something from us. God's desire has always been
that we would enter into a relationship with him by our choice.
And Paul in 1
Corinthians gives us this promise –
No temptation
(or test, it is the same word in the Greek) 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.
When
we sin, we sin because we choose to sin. No promise in the Bible says that we
will never be tempted. Jesus was tempted. But Jesus sets the example for us in
that even though he was tempted, he did not sin. He anchored himself in the
Word of God and did not lose the battle with temptation.
You
and I are not Jesus. We are in the process of becoming like him, but we aren't
there yet. But when we sin, it is because we have chosen to sin. We have
decided to follow our desires instead of those of God. The Devil can't make us
do anything. And if the Devil can't make us do anything, neither can the
almighty Twinkie.
We have, in
turn, taken this promise of God through Paul and changed it into a promise that
the Bible does not speak about, that God will not give us more than we can
handle. He promises to provide a way out of temptation so that temptation will
never overcome us. But Paul is clear: sometimes life will be more than we can
handle. But in every situation, God has promised to be with us.
Tomorrow's
Scripture Reading: 2 Corinthians 2 & 3
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