The pervasiveness of temptation and the dynamics of sin are subtle in the day to day situations that we face. We live moment to moment and we do not perceive the choices that we stumble into until they are upon us. Rarely do we plan to be tempted, or do we choose evil, though that can be done. More often we find ourselves being tempted without any anticipation of it at all. It is not that we are helpless, but that we are blind to it until it is right before us. Then we have a choice...Jesus tells us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” In regards to temptation, God will lead us to a place where it can be withstood. Life here on this earth will always be a place of temptation, but God by his leading will take us to a new way of living where our “No” to sin is aligned with His “No” to sin. He will get us to that place. Remember that you belong to Him as one of his lambs, and are vulnerable to this world, but he will lead you all the days of your life, and will get you there.
Morning Mercies is a podcast dedicated to the deepening of trust with God, our maker, through a relationship with Jesus Christ. He has become our Master, our teacher, and so we follow Him with our lives, be they what they are. They are brief, and follow the simple format of scripture, meditation, and prayer.
Morning Mercies are posted several times a week on all major podcast platforms, and are presented by Michael Mullen.
“Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil…”
The pervasiveness of temptation and the dynamics of sin are subtle in the day to day situations that we face. We live moment to moment and we do not perceive the choices that we stumble into until they are upon us. Rarely do we plan to be tempted, or do we choose evil, though that can be done. More often we find ourselves being tempted without any anticipation of it at all. It is not that we are helpless, but that we are blind to it until it is right before us. Then we have a choice.
Sin is insidious to a person. It is most often subtle, yet the temptation to it cannot be avoided. Even Christ was tempted, yet without choosing to sin. To be human is to be tempted to choose one’s self rather than to choose God, or to choose love. When we say “yes” to temptation, and so say “no” to God, we have sinned, and come short of what we were created for. The main consequence of sinning is death, for the God we have rejected is life itself. Because we are relational creatures, made to know love and give love, when we sin we maim our souls and hurt those who are apart of our lives. The main consequence of our sin falls upon us, but it also reverberates through the community or family we are apart of. Our spouses and our children can suffer deeply for our sins even though they had no participation in it.
Finally, in choosing to sin, we remove ourselves from God and all He is to life. To choose sin in temptation is to choose hell, or life without God.
Because our relationship with him is severed, our souls are without purpose or direction. This causes an existential pain that is so profound that it cannot be ignored. For this the individual will strive to use anything it can find to provide some purpose or reason for living, no matter how flimsy it may be. When that reason proves feeble, the person will ditch it and adopt another, until it too shows itself as made of straw. The person will do this time and time again, for he no longer has a choice in sinning except to give himself up to the one who is life. If this is not done he will die alone, without the one whom he was created for.
The simple definition of temptation, and its following description of the way sin works in our lives is cursory at best. Much more could be said of this, but we need go on and look how this reality that we live is addressed in prayer.
Jesus tells us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” We should see that the verbs used here form in one way a job description of the shepherd. A shepherd had two main tasks for the flock and for the sheep, to lead them where they would be safe and provided for, and to deliver them out of the hand of those who would want to harm them. In one way, the request in prayer that Jesus is telling us to offer up to God, is to ask Him to be our shepherd. At one point Jesus tells us that he is our “Good Shepherd,” and that he will lead and delver us if we will trust Him (John 10.11,14).
In regards to temptation, God will lead us to a place where it can be withstood. Life here on this earth will always be a place of temptation, but God by his leading will take us to a new way of living where our “No” to sin is aligned with His “No” to sin. He will get us to that place. Remember that you belong to Him as one of his lambs, and are vulnerable to this world, but he will lead you all the days of your life, and will get you there.
Still, this request has something to ask God for our present as well as the ultimate. We are tempted daily, and without his daily leading we will fall habitually again and again. God lead us away from this temptation we face right now. Rest assured, that if he tells us to ask for this, he will do it.
For those of us who suffer with addictions that seem to have a hold of us, this is a great encouragement. Jesus telling us to pray “Lead us not into temptation,” is a promise that he will ultimately get us there where we will be able to say “no” to sining even as he did, and that he will be with us today in the moment when this test comes to entice us. Concerning the reality of our temptation, God is with us today and tomorrow, and forever more.
Closely following the petition about temptation comes “and deliver us from evil.” There is some difficulty in translating this phrase from the original Greek, for it literally says “deliver us from the evil one.” Evil here is personified, and so refers to Satan. He is the one who has structured this world away from love, and leaning towards lust. He is the one who strategically places temptation before the believer. He si the one whoo seeks your death and falling.
Jesus taught His followers to pray, “Deliver us from evil,” because we cannot resist the devil in our own strength. The believer in Christ has been delivered from the penalty of sin (Romans 8:1), but we are still in a daily battle against sin and the devil. We need to rely on the Holy Spirit to help us resist temptation and overcome sin in our lives. Praying “deliver us from evil” is a recognition of our own limited abilities and a means of asking for God to step in and help us. While we can pray for help to overcome temptation and sin, we can also pray that we will not be put in positions where we would face severe temptation. A man who is struggling with alcohol should avoid places where alcohol will be served, but he should also pray that he will not encounter any unexpected invitations to drink during the course of his day. A person who is struggling with lust should obviously avoid certain places and activities, but he can also pray that situations beyond his control do not present themselves to him.
The prayer that God would deliver us from evil has a counterpart in the command and promise of James 4:7: “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” This is prefaced by “submit yourselves to God.” If we were to face the devil in our own power, we would be overwhelmed. We can only resist temptation, avoid sin, and defeat the devil by a conscious reliance upon God’s power. Just as we need to ask for “daily bread” for our physical needs, we need to ask for “daily deliverance” for our spiritual needs.
Let us pray.