If the last couple of weeks, looking back over the last two blog entries, perhaps you’ve been thinking that forgiveness is difficult to pray about wholeheartedly and honestly. If so, then this week’s blog entry on the Lord’s Prayer may well seem more alarming than difficult!
The next part of the Lord’s Prayer is, ‘Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil’. (Note that some versions of the Lord’s Prayer have ‘deliver us from the Evil One’.)
Are you alarmed by this? Does it make you feel uneasy? Hopefully, once you get to the end of this, you’ll see there is no need to worry – quite the opposite!
In his teaching, Jesus was clear that we have a supernatural enemy, Satan, and that he comes to destroy and to kill. He is a major source of evil and he opposes everything God desires for you and for the world. He does this by tempting everyone to do what is wrong, often making it seem like fun or even clever. His hidden goals are to separate us from God, and to destroy God’s work in us and in the world.
The Bible is equally clear that we can overcome Satan. Here’s what the Bible says: first, Satan is not equal to God; he is inferior both in power and status. He has some power, but he was completely defeated through the cross of Christ. Because of that, followers of Jesus have the power to overcome his schemes, and can resist temptation.
Second, the Book of Revelation tells us that God wins in the end! Because Satan has been defeated, we can live in the reality of that victory. So, if we do go wrong, if we do sin, God will forgive us, and so Satan can never have any hold on us by making us feel guilty. More than that, the Holy Spirit changes who we are so we can become more like Jesus.
We should spend as little time as possible focusing on Satan, rather our thoughts and prayers should always focus on Jesus and on seeking and doing God’s will – just as the Lord’s Prayer does.
As a follow up to this blog, read through carefully Ephesians 6:10-18, because this will help us work out how to resist temptation and the Evil One. Think about what putting on each piece of spiritual armour means. Note how we are told to ‘stand’ three times – to stand boldly, fully aware who we are and what power we have through Jesus. Note that believing that the Word, the Bible, is true is a vital spiritual weapon.
Once you have done that, pray through any situations in which you are being (or have been) tempted.
