D + O = A
I'm not a mathematical genius but I can solve the equation above. I will solve all 3 variables using the book of James chapter 1, verses 14-15.
“But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”
Before these verses James is telling the reader that God cannot be tempted by evil and that He tempts no one. He says that we are "lured and enticed" by our own desire. What is desire? It is a longing in the seat of our emotions, the heart.
Jeremiah 17:9 is straight forward in regards to the heart. It says "the heart is deceitful above ALL things, desperately sick; who can understand it?" (emphasis mine).
The heart being desperately sick and deceitful brings into focus the conceived desire giving birth to sin. What else could a desperately sick and deceitful heart conceive? And this sin grows just like a child after its mother gives birth, and sin bears the fruit of death.
Back to the equation D + O = A. Desire + Opportunity = Action
D- The desire to sin is the temptation
O- The opportunity is asking oneself "is the way clear for me to sin?"
A- Action is the sum of desire and opportunity, it is sin
There will be times when temptation is lurking and there is no opportunity or visa versa, so there is no action (for the purposes of this entry I am assuming that the person being tempted is not planning to act later, that he/she is recalling Scripture, praying and fighting the good fight). But when desire and opportunity come together it is called sin or action.
In the emergency medical field, from which I spent 20 years of my working life, we used the abbreviation D.O.A which stands for Dead On Arrival. It works here too. Without Jesus as Lord and Savior sin leaves us D.O.A.
Pursue Christ and live, for all fall short of the glory of God and need a savior. Won't you come?
“But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”
Before these verses James is telling the reader that God cannot be tempted by evil and that He tempts no one. He says that we are "lured and enticed" by our own desire. What is desire? It is a longing in the seat of our emotions, the heart.
Jeremiah 17:9 is straight forward in regards to the heart. It says "the heart is deceitful above ALL things, desperately sick; who can understand it?" (emphasis mine).
The heart being desperately sick and deceitful brings into focus the conceived desire giving birth to sin. What else could a desperately sick and deceitful heart conceive? And this sin grows just like a child after its mother gives birth, and sin bears the fruit of death.
Back to the equation D + O = A. Desire + Opportunity = Action
D- The desire to sin is the temptation
O- The opportunity is asking oneself "is the way clear for me to sin?"
A- Action is the sum of desire and opportunity, it is sin
There will be times when temptation is lurking and there is no opportunity or visa versa, so there is no action (for the purposes of this entry I am assuming that the person being tempted is not planning to act later, that he/she is recalling Scripture, praying and fighting the good fight). But when desire and opportunity come together it is called sin or action.
In the emergency medical field, from which I spent 20 years of my working life, we used the abbreviation D.O.A which stands for Dead On Arrival. It works here too. Without Jesus as Lord and Savior sin leaves us D.O.A.
Pursue Christ and live, for all fall short of the glory of God and need a savior. Won't you come?