LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION

Take a few minutes to pause in silence, to breathe deep, and to recenter your thoughts, your focus, and your affections on God.

“As I enter now into prayer, I pray the words of Psalm 23:1-3:
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
He leads me beside quiet waters,
He refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for His name’s sake.”

AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM THE EVIL ONE. -MATTHEW 6:13

The first question that is posed when we arrive at this portion of the Lord’s Prayer is, “Why would God ever lead us into temptation in the first place?” That question, though, comes from a misunderstanding of the word that is translated here into “temptation”. In James 1:2-3, that same word is translated into “trial”:

CONSIDER IT PURE JOY, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, WHENEVER YOU FACE TRIALS OF MANY KINDS, BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT THE TESTING OF YOUR FAITH PRODUCES PERSEVERANCE. -JAMES 1:2

Under the duress of approximately 725,000 pounds per square inch, and at temperatures of 2000 – 2200 degrees Fahrenheit, carbon materials become a diamond. And in the same way, God will often use struggle, trials, and tests to help us become more dependent on Him, and to become who He’s called us to be.

Take some time to reflect on your life, and how God has used trials to form you more and more into his image, and to prepare you for the things that were yet to come. Spend a few moments praising God for those trials, for “the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

EVEN THOUGH I WALK THROUGH THE DARKEST VALLEY, I WILL FEAR
NO EVIL, FOR YOU ARE WITH ME; YOUR ROD AND YOUR STAFF, THEY
COMFORT ME.” - PSALM 23:4

If God will often use tests and trials as a good thing, then why should we pray that God would not lead us into them?

First, Satan will jump on the opportunity to take our moments of testing and exploit them for our ruin. 1 Peter 5:8 describes him as a “roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” He knows that it is in trials that we are most susceptible to temptation, so we must remain alert.

Second, we should pray that God would steer us away from temptations, tests, and trials because they are not for the faint of heart. Even Jesus, in the Garden before he was betrayed, prayed (Luke 22:42), “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me.” However, he also gives us the model of submission and obedience to God, when he followed up that prayer with, “yet not my will, but yours be done.”

Lastly, if we truly know ourselves; our weaknesses; our vulnerabilities; then it only makes sense to pray, “lead us not into temptation.” Temptation may be our lot, but only a fool will make it his preference. The rest of us will embrace Paul’s warning: SO, IF YOU THINK YOU ARE STANDING FIRM, BE CAREFUL THAT YOU DON’T FALL! - 1 CORINTHIANS 10:12

“God, may You guide me far away from temptation. I don’t want to risk damaging myself or dishonoring You, lest I fall. Nevertheless, I pray with Jesus, ‘Not my will, but Yours be done.’ And I trust that with any trial I face, You will work in and through it for my good and Your glory.”