The “Also” Gift

July 16, 2018

Sometimes a little means a lot. In 1 Corinthians 10:13, God gives us his wonderful promise that whatever temptation or trial may come our way, it also comes with a way to escape. Don’t take it from me; here are Paul’s own words: “No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide a way out so that you may be able to bear it.” 

That last phrase is suggestive: “he will also provide...” Also. We love that God has provided a way to escape temptation. But that escape is “also” provided. What is the other thing God has provided to which the way of escape is “also” provided? This word “also” gets my gears turning, taking me back to Jonah. Anyone who as a child has spent any time at all in Sunday School knows the story of Jonah getting swallowed by a big fish. If we read the story carefully, we’ll discover that the fish is but one of four things God provided for Jonah: the storm, the fish, the vine, and the worm that ate the vine. Every one of them was a special gift from God. Some of God’s most significant gifts are difficult to swallow (Yeah, I meant to say that).

If the way of escape is provided by God, according to 1 Corinthians 10:3, the temptation or trial is the original provision to which the escape is the “also.” We don’t like to hear this. Years ago, I bought a commercial role of Christmas wrapping paper. It was three feet wide, and sketched about thirty pounds; it was a LOT of paper! It had scenes of various Currier & Ives prints, and was quite pretty. At first. About five gifs into the role, something had apparently gone wrong with the printing process, and the rest of that entire role was all in yellow. We wrapped Christmas gifts in that ugly yellow paper for about ten years. I’m not making this up! A lot of good presents got wrapped in that ugly paper. Over the years, I’ve discovered that God’s best gifts are often gift-wrapped in some pretty ugly paper. 

The way of escape is a pretty nice gift, but it comes wrapped in the ugly paper of trials. We never know what deliverance is like if we’ve never been in bondage. We can’t know joy unless we’ve experienced sorrow. And apart from trials, we would never know the power of God that develops our strength and endurance. Jonah wouldn’t have learned to pray had he not been swallowed by the fish. I don’t like the trials, but I am thankful for them, for only through them can I discover for myself that God is faithful and will always provide a way of escape.