1 Kings 13:15-19 (NLT)
15 Then he said to the man of God, “Come home with me and eat some food.” 16 “No, I cannot,” he replied. “I am not allowed to eat or drink anything here in this place. 17 For the Lord gave me this command: ‘You must not eat or drink anything while you are here, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came.’” 18 But the old prophet answered, “I am a prophet, too, just as you are. And an angel gave me this command from the Lord: ‘Bring him home with you so he can have something to eat and drink.’” But the old man was lying to him. 19 So they went back together, and the man of God ate and drank at the prophet’s home.
A man, known only as a man of God, was traveling alone towards Judah. Hungry, because the Lord had told him not to eat in that area he was about to face temptation. An older prophet had heard of this man from his sons. The older prophet went to meet the man of God to invite him to his home. Apparently the older prophet wanted so much to talk with the man of God he lied in order to gain the man of God’s trust to come eat with him. Against the instructions of God, the man of God ate and drank in the older prophet’s home.
When are you most tempted to sin? The term “HALT” indicates critical moments when a person should stop and realize they are vulnerable to be tempted by sin. HALT represents hungry, angry, lonely, and tired. These words reflect mental and physical conditions of a person. They are often triggers that might lead a person into temptation. A hungry person may be nervous and excitable because their body needs food. An angry person reacts out of their emotions. A lonely person is desperate for company and will seek out others in desperation. A tired person responds bitterly out of exhaustion. What if the man of God had stopped to realize God had not told him he could eat with the older prophet? Instead the hunger, the loneliness and tiredness clouded his judgment. 1 Kings 13:20-22 goes on to say; Then while they were sitting at the table, a command from the Lord came to the old prophet. He cried out to the man of God from Judah, “This is what the Lord says: You have defied the word of the Lord and have disobeyed the command the Lord your God gave you. You came back to this place and ate and drank where he told you not to eat or drink. Because of this, your body will not be buried in the grave of your ancestors.” The man of God was killed along his way to Judah. Remember 1 Corinthians 10:13, “There hath no temptation taken hold of you but such as is common to man. But God is faithful; He will not suffer you to be tempted beyond that which ye are able to bear, but with the temptation will also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” Pray God will always show you the escape to your temptations. Pray you might endure in those critical moments when you are tempted.