Feb 18, 2018
Over the last couple months we’ve been going through the classic passage on prayer from Matthew 6, the Lord’s prayer, looking at the larger meaning and concepts behind each segment. We’ve looked at everything from praying together with and for others, to our position as children of God through the cross, to God’s greatness and His Kingdom to be established, to our daily need for provision and forgiveness that flows out to others. Today we will be tackling the last major chunk in the prayer: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
What
is this temptation? What does it
mean to not be lead into it? What
does it mean to be delivered from
evil? And what was our example in Jesus?
This is where we are going today and pretty much all the scriptures quoted will
appear on the screen.
But
first let’s pray. (Pray: Thanks that we have an example. Thanks that we have a
guide. Thanks for the scriptures. Lead us into understanding and knowing His
strength in our lives.)
So,
first,
(1.)
What is temptation?
The
words we translate as a temptation in
the Bible generally imply a test of faith of some sort with there being three
general uses:
1)
Testing of God’s
faithfulness (as in Exo17:7 “And he called the name of
the place Massah … because they tested
the Lord by saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”).
2)
A “trial”; a test of our
faithfulness (as in James 1:2-3 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials
of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith
produces steadfastness.)
3)
“Temptation”; an
enticement to sin (as in 1 Tim 6:9 “But those who desire to
be rich fall into temptation, into a
snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and
destruction.”)
In this prayer the meaning can be determined largely
by the context of the following phrase “but deliver us from evil”. A passage in
James 1:12-17 makes the comparison of these different types more clear:
James 1:12-17 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test
he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love
him. Let no one say when he is tempted,
“I am being tempted by God,” for God
cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is
lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has
conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth
death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is
from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to
change.
Concerning
the first type of trial, the testing of God’s faithfulness, this passage states
“there is no variation or shadow due to change” or in another translations
As
for second type, trials, the passage says “blessed is the man who remains
steadfast under trial”, they “will receive the crown of life”, “every good gift
… is from above”. As His children God sends trials that are good and meant to
further establish our faith as we trust in His provision. Peter in his first
letter says “In this you rejoice, though now for a little
while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that
perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus
Christ.” (1Pet1:6-7) These trials are for our benefit and for God’s praise and
glory. Although we may not always enjoy the trials in the moment, they are
ultimately a good gift, and definitely not an evil to be delivered from.
Thus,
we come to the third definition, temptation to sin. This takes up the bulk of
the passage in James: James 1:13-15 “Let no one say when he
is tempted, “I am being tempted by
God,” for God cannot be tempted with
evil, and he himself tempts no one. But
each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then
desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown
brings forth death.” Here we see clearly that both God cannot be tempted to
evil, He is the father of lights with no darkness or shadow within Him; but
also that God does not tempt, clearly opposed to the trials that He may send. We also see the biggest reason
why we need to pray against temptation: if we walk into temptation, if we stay
in temptation, we are all the more likely to give into temptation as it leads
towards sin. If we continue to remain there rather than turning and going back
to God, sin then grows and leads to destruction. This is the temptation we are to
pray against. This is the danger being warned against here: sin and destruction
which flow from temptation.
A
definition given by John Owen1 states that temptation is “any thing,
state, way, or condition that, on any account whatever, has a force or efficacy
to seduce — to draw the mind and heart of a man away from the obedience which
God requires of him, into any sin, in any degree whatever.” Let me say that
again. Temptation is “any thing, state, way, or condition that, on any account
whatever, has a force or efficacy to seduce — to draw the mind and heart of a
man away from the obedience which God requires of him, into any sin, in any
degree whatever.”
1 John Owen. 1658. Of Temptation: The Nature and Power of it; The
Danger of Entering into it; and the Means of Preventing that Danger: with a
Resolution of Various Cases Belonging to it.
That
is the temptation we are to pray
against, temptation that draws our minds and hearts away from obedience to God,
and leads us into any sin; temptation that leads to choosing disobedience and
making other things more important than God in our daily lives.
This
is what we need to both pray against being led
into, and deliverance from it
daily. This temptation can come from various places, and will look different
from person to person, but generally come from three places or combinations
thereof: the devil
(spiritual attack); the fallen world around us (and other people); and our
flesh (indwelling sin). We see this in various passages in the Bible,
especially concisely in Ephesians 2:1-3:
1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober-minded; be watchful.
Your adversary the devil prowls
around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
James 4:4 “You adulterous
people! Do you not know that friendship
with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend
of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
Romans 7:17-18 “So now it is no longer I
who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For
I know that nothing good dwells in me,
that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not
the ability to carry it out.”
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you
once walked, following the course of
this world, following the prince of
the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of
disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the
desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like
the rest of mankind.” Ephesians
2:1-3
Whether
from the world, from the devil, or from the flesh, giving into temptation and
living a life of walking in sin results in destruction; broken relationships,
emptiness, ultimately the wrath of God.
Continuing
in Ephesians 2 we see the truth that ultimately removes wrath from all who
believe: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great
love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our
trespasses, made us alive together
with Christ—by grace you have been
saved— … For by grace you have been saved through
faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one
may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for
good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Eph
2:4-6,8-10)
Through
the cross, even though we had all sinned and been deserving of wrath and
destruction, God made a way for us to be made alive. Through Jesus’ death and
resurrection on the cross the power of sin and death was defeated. By trusting
in Jesus’ atoning sacrifice we can be forgiven. The wrath of God, poured out on
the cross. This, not by any power of our own, but through the power of God. And
now that we are alive in Him, we are freed to walk in the purposes God has for
each of us. We are freed to “walk in the light, as he is in
the light” resulting in “fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus
his Son cleans[ing] us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7) As the workmanship of
God He has prepared good works for us to walk in. This is where temptation
arises. Although freed from sin, we are now still tempted to turn our back on
God and what He has done for us and choose sin.
Now
that we know what temptation is as well as where it comes from,
2.
What does it mean to pray “lead us not
into temptation”?
As
we’ve already seen, God does not tempt us. So, why pray for Him to lead us not
into temptation? It is a prayer of reliance on God. If we only got here because
of all God has done, how can we stop trusting in Him? How could we now expect
to do it ourselves?2 Ultimately God leads our every step3,
even as the enemy, the world, and our flesh seeks to tempt us at every turn.
This here in the first part of the verse is proactive prayer. Prayer against
falling into future temptation. Prayer for God to guard us as temptation comes
from all sides.
2 Gal 3:3 “Are you so foolish? Having begun
by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”
3 Prov 20:24 “A man’s steps are from the Lord”; Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a
lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”; Rom 8:14 “For all who are being led
by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
On
this subject John Piper writes:
“Every step we take is a step into the presence of
temptation. There is no moment of your life that is not a moment of
temptation—a moment when unbelief and disobedience is not a possibility.
The Lord’s prayer does not teach us to pray against
that kind of sovereign guidance.
What it teaches us to pray is that the temptation does
not take us in. Don’t lead me into temptation. Deliver me from
this evil that is set before me.
Today I will stand before innumerable temptations.
That’s what life is: endless choices between belief and unbelief, obedience and
disobedience. But, O mighty God, forbid that I would yield. Hold me back from
stepping inside the temptation.” Bind my wandering heart to thee!
Ultimately
our call is to love God with all we have and to love our neighbours as
ourselves (Mark 12:30-31) as we walk in the light. Daily many things will
suggest and draw us towards idolatry or selfish ambitions to love ourselves
instead of those we are called to love. We need God’s strength to win against
temptation, to flee, to resist, to worship God.
In
addition to praying against temptation,
for God to give us divine protection from falling into it, praying for the opposite of temptation is a logical extension: not just praying NOT
to be lead into temptation, but also praying TO be lead into times of deeper
faithfulness and joy in God that temptation would lose its power to entice us.
Psalm 19:13 “Keep back your servant also from
presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be
blameless, and innocent of great transgression.”
Psalm
139:23-24 “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any
grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”
Psalm
25:5 “Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all the day long.”
Psalm
143:10 “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God!
Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!”
May
He lead us. May He guide us in that way everlasting as He roots out evil in our
lives. May we trust His ways and His love are better than anything the world
could tempt us with (Psa 63:3)!
Luther
in his smaller catechism states:
“God surely
tempts no one to sin, but we pray in this petition that God would guard and
keep us, so that the devil, the world and our flesh may not deceive us or lead
us into false belief, despair and other great and shameful sins; and though we
are tempted by them, we pray that we may overcome and win the victory.”
Our
duty then in the first half of the verse is as Christ had stated elsewhere
(Matthew 26:41) “Watch
and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is
willing, but the flesh is weak.” We need to do our part in avoiding
temptation, to be on alert for any sign that temptation is approaching us, so that
there would be less chance for us to fall in and allow temptation to have a
grip on our hearts. And we are to pray, daily, ultimately relying on God’s
strength to work through us in this endeavor.
As part of this alert watching we need to know ourselves,
know our weakness, be willing to admit our weaknesses, and be willing to ask
God for strength. Paul warns to those at Corinth (1 Cor 10:12) “Therefore
let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.” And to the
Galatians “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not
gratify the desires of the flesh.” (Gal 5:16). To the Ephesians: (Ephesians
6:10,18b) “Finally, be strong in the
Lord and in the strength of his might … To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints”
Now
we know what temptation is, and to pray proactively before temptation draws us
in. So now,
3.
What does it mean for us to pray “deliver
us from evil”?
The
reality is that even as we watch and pray against temptation there will be
times where we are drawn in. This is the first reason we need to cry out for
deliverance. God is powerful and mighty to save us. For:
“No
temptation has overtaken you that is
not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond
your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape,
that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Cor 10:13)
And “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous
under punishment until the day of judgment” (2 Pet 2:9)
God
faithfully promises He will provide when we call upon Him. He will provide a
way out. Although our ability runs short, He provides by His Spirit greater
ability yet to love Him above all else. In other passages yet the Word says
that the Spirit of God, the one who raised Christ from the dead, He is in us
and is stronger than the enemy. And do not get me wrong, the enemy is very
strong. On our own we would lose, but God is with us to the end of the age when
every enemy is struck down and His Kingdom is fully established.
Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who
is in the world. (1 John 4:4)
“If the Spirit
of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ
Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his
Spirit who dwells in you.” (Rom 8:11)
“and the devil who had
deceived them was thrown into the lake
of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and
ever.” (Rev 20:10)
This,
the establishment of His Kingdom, is the second reason we cry out for
deliverance. The world as it is now is fallen and the devil rules as the prince
of the power of the air (Eph2:2), the god of this world (2 Cor 4:4). But God
has assured ultimate victory in this war through the cross. The Kingdom of God
is forcefully advancing in the
hearts of men and women worldwide. The enemy cannot stop it.
“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no
one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages,
standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with
palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice,
“Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” … “And I
heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God
is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God
himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their
eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying,
nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Rev 7:9-10, 21:3-4)
On
this I would love to discuss more fully especially as it presents itself as a
second layer to the entirety of the Lord’s prayer: praying for the Kingdom to come
and God’s name to be praised and exalted as He rightfully deserves as He frees
men and women from the power of darkness in this world. We are to participate
in this battle for the Kingdom through prayer (2 Cor 10:3-5) as well as the
sharing of the good news of Christ, though we were dead in our sins and
deserving of wrath, He has made a way for all to come to know Him through the
cross, through the payment of our sins on Christ. And more so He has a purpose
for us and will provide for us to walk in the light He calls us to.
God
is ultimate in power and His deliverance for us will come when we cry out in
the midst of temptation as well as for ultimate deliverance of the nations in
the age to come.
As Luther put it in his smaller catechism
concerning deliver us from evil: “We pray in this petition, in
summary, that our Father in heaven would rescue us from every evil of body and
soul, possessions and reputation, and finally, when our last hour comes, give
us a blessed end, and graciously take us from this valley of sorrow to Himself
in heaven.”
A
two-fold deliverance, now and in the age to come.
So
we know what temptation is, to pray proactively, and reactively against it,
trusting fully in God’s power now in this age. On a final note,
4.
What was Jesus’ example?
Cause
that is really the make or break point. If the one we are to follow and emulate
didn’t live this out, why should we? If He says we should pray like this, did
it apply to Him also? Absolutely.
When
Jesus was on earth he was tempted throughout His ministry, with the greatest
series of temptations recorded at the beginning of His ministry when He was led
by the Spirit into the wilderness, where the devil tempted Him (Matt 4:1-11).
Jesus was tempted by the devil concerning bodily desire, world fame, and the
personal glory He would obtain through the cross. In each case, Jesus trusted
in God’s plan and patiently fought back with truth of scripture. Later when
Peter would try to talk Him out of going to the cross Jesus rebuked that
thought stating that Peter was “not setting [his] mind on the things of God,
but on the things of man.” (Matt 16:23).
But
Jesus was adamant. He was patient. He was alert to any inclination of
temptation. He prayed ceaselessly. (1 Pet 2:22-24) “He
committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he
was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not
threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He
himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and
live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”
Because
He rejected temptation at every point, all can turn and receive God’s graces.
Because he now lives and His Spirit in us, we are alive and can follow in His
footsteps. “Because he himself has suffered when tempted, he
is able to help those who are being tempted.” (Heb 2:18)
This was Jesus’ example: faithfulness through every
temptation and trial. He was tempted in every respect as we are, yet was
without sin. “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:15-16)
Though
temptation to evil be all around, we can pray for God to guard us from falling
into it and to lead us in His ways instead, we can pray for deliverance when we
do fall into temptation and for the ultimate deliverance as His Kingdom comes
defeating all enemies, in Christ we have a Brother who is always there to help
us.
Oh
God,
(Psalm
143:9-12) “Deliver [us] from [our] enemies, O Lord! [We] have fled to you for
refuge. Teach [us] to do your will, for you are [our] God! Let your good Spirit
lead [us] on level ground! For your name's sake, O Lord, preserve [our lives]!
In your righteousness bring [our souls] out of trouble! And in your
steadfast love you will cut off [our] enemies, and you will destroy all the
adversaries of [our souls], for [we are] your servant[s].”
[Pray
for us.]
