Tempted

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

TEMPTED

Matt 6:9-13

9 "This, then, is how you should pray: "'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'

NIV

We now come to the question whether God would actually lead us into temptation. Why else would Jesus want us to make this petition? Yet we know through the words James was inspired to pen, that God cannot be tempted nor does he tempt.

James 1:13-15

13 When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

NIV

So then this petition not to be lead into temptation must carry some meaning other than asking God not to lead us into temptation. It is clear that our own heart is what leads us or is drawn to things which tempt us. Our own heart drags us away and is enticed by the material things or the pleasures of the flesh. Yet it is also clear that temptation is not sin. It is when we allow that temptation to conceive, that is we plan how we are going to achieve that desire, whether that material object, or goal, or that physical pleasure, it will give birth to sin. This prayer then has to deal more with how David prayed.

Ps 141:3-4

3 Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips. 4 Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil, to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers; let me not eat of their delicacies.

NIV

He was praying that God would not allow him to be tempted by his own heart. He prayed that God would strengthen his resolve to resist the evil that dwells within his own heart. We all have this choice. We all have a certain amount of evil which dwells within our heart.  Although God made a declaration regarding mankind prior to the great flood, it holds true for all mankind for all generations, which include us.

Gen 6:5-6

5 The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.

NIV

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we repent, have a change of thinking, we change how we think about everything. So then, knowing our heart contains evil, that it is drawn toward the temptations which so easily beseech us, instead of readily giving in without any reservations, we pray that God will give us the strength to overcome, that he would not allow our hearts to be dragged away, to be drawn to what is evil. However our heart is not the only source of temptation. The evil one is also coming against the kingdom of God. He truly does not actually care if we sin or not. He does not have any particular cause to gain our soul. His aim is against the kingdom of God. His goal is to strike back at God, and so if he can achieve tempting us to the point of giving up our faith and falling prey to the desires of our heart all the time, he has struck at the core of God’s heart. If this be the case, then our prayer to be delivered from the evil one is for the honor of God, rather than for our own safety. Lord, keep our hearts pure and let not temptation either from our own heart or from the evil one keep us from honoring you.