Is it really us?

For the last year or so I've had an internal debate about how much of our ability to choose is effected by the influences of God or Satan. We know that Satan cannot directly mess with our ability to choose and God will not mess with our ability to choose. That doesn't mean Satan won't try and put us in positions that making the right choice becomes less likely. But I believe this idea is very important especially for us "last-day people". If we are to truly become the "perfect final generation" that keep God's commandments, then we have to understand what causes us to make those right choices.

The topic started because I was trying to figure out how much of sin came from Satan's temptations and how much of it was really us. Without God we are doomed to make mistakes and choose to please ourselves. Self is a very destructive cycle because self only begets more self. Knowing this, Satan can tempt us to please ourselves, which is a sin. And if we fall to temptation and please ourselves we are in a dangerous position to continue pleasing ourselves. At this point it takes the Holy Spirit to help us realize what we've done and this is where choice comes in.

Now we look at our ability to make right choices. And in this context I'm specifically talking about keeping God's law of "self sacrificing love" also known as the 10 commandments. Satan is trying to prove to God that this law cannot be kept. Jesus did, yes, but Satan's argument is "Jesus is God, of course God is going to keep God's law." So we are being called to be that people who keep God's commandments. (Rev. 14:12) Some people ask God to do it for them. They believe that the phrase "I surrender all" means that they give up themselves and ask God to do it all. But if this happens then Satan says "they are not really doing themselves. You're law cannot be kept by anyone unless you do it for them." So it brings up the idea that if God cannot make the choices for us, then we have to do it ourselves. We have to exercise our ability to choose to do the right thing.

I believe that in order for us to be able to choose to do the right thing, to obey this law of "self sacrificing love" that there is no other option than to have God in us. It's not possible to keep the law unless God is in you. Not that He's making the choices for you, but that He exists in you. We know that God is love and without love we are nothing. (1 Cor. 13). How can we keep God's law of love if we do not have God (love) in us? We can't.

So my point is that we MUST have God in us if we are to expect to be the perfect final generation. And we MUST have Him in us at all times lest we fall to the temptations of self.

Prayer: "Dear Father in heaven, Savior Christ Jesus, and ever present Holy Spirit, I pray that you live in us at all times and that we know your love. Because without it we are nothing. Please continue to protect us from the devil and lead us not into temptations. In Jesus' name, Amen."