“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
Matthew 6:13
It is said that temptation in itself is not a sin. It is when we give in to that temptation that we mess up. Jesus knew about temptation. The devil had tried to get Jesus to sin in so many ways after His baptism. (See Matthew 4) But Jesus resisted all the temptations set before Him by trusting God and standing on His Word!
In our lives we deal with temptations everyday. Jesus knew that we were going to face problems. He knew that the devil was going to be right there trying to persuade us to follow his cunning ways and turn our backs on the God that loves us. In verse 13 of the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus tells us what we need to do to resist the temptations of the devil. We are to ask God to lead us away from dangerous situations; and, we are to ask for deliverance from the “evil one” (satan).
We need not wait until we’re faced with a tempting circumstance to ask for deliverance. We can pray this prayer everyday, any time of the day, asking God to lead us in the right paths. We can stand in the gap for others too. If we know someone that is struggling with temptations we can lift them up to God asking for guidance and deliverance for them also.
Jesus’s words are powerful and God is always listening. He is ready to save us from temptation and sin when we trust Him and call upon Him.