The Temptations of a Sanctified Heart (rewritten)

At this point, our goal is to give a broad but careful overview of temptation — especially the kind experienced by someone whose heart is genuinely given to God. We’re talking about people who live in assurance, whose lives can rightly be described as sanctified. Even hearts like these are not exempt from temptation, and understanding how temptation works is essential to living faithfully.

At its core, temptation begins when something is presented to the mind — an object, an idea, or a situation — that has the potential to stir the desires or move the will in a wrong direction. That “wrong direction” can take two different forms. Sometimes the action temptation urges is simply wrong. Other times, the action is acceptable in itself but becomes wrong because it is carried too far. Either way, when temptation moves beyond thought and gains the consent of desire or will — prompting action when there should be none, or excessive action where restraint is required — sin is always the result. 

Seen from this perspective, temptation shows up in two main ways.