“Pray, then, in this way … ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil’” Matthew 6:13.
You’ve heard it said, I can resist anything but temptation. Why is temptation so … tempting? Doing that which is right seems so very difficult, whereas nothing is easier than doing wrong.
I’ve often wondered why Jesus would have us pray and ask the Father not to bring us into temptation. James 1:13 states, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.”
The word for temptation, from the original language, is closely associated with trials. Jesus was led into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan (Mark 1:13), and Abraham was tested by God (Hebrews 11:17). God certainly was not enticing Jesus, Abraham, or anyone else, to succumb to sin and wrong. So, while God leads us into refining circumstances, He would never lead us to moral and spiritual failure. The fact that we are taught to pray to be delivered from evil and the evil one may indicate that the real intent of the model prayer is that we be saved from our tendency to yield to temptation. The Psalmist says it well: “Do not let my heart turn to any evil thing or perform wicked acts with men who commit sin” Psalm 141:4. Father, save us from ourselves.
There will be temptation traps along the way today. Some may seem small and inconsequential, whereas others hold potential for serious damage to relationships and reputations. Whatever form temptation comes in, the results of yielding are the same: leading us down a pathway away from our Father and our Lord Jesus. The choices we make are really much simpler than they may seem when viewed properly: they lead us closer or further away spiritually; they are either acts of obedience or disobedience.
How we respond to temptation is determined in large part by how faithful we are to pray as Jesus instructed. Father, save us from our tendency to temptation, and deliver us far from the one bent on our own destruction.
©Steve Taylor, 2022 --Used by permission
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