Matthew 6:13 NIV
By Annaika Dastine | Founder, Who Is This Jesus? Ministry
“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
SITUATION → DESIRE → TEMPTATION → CHOICE → CONSEQUENCES
Have you ever considered why Jesus taught us to pray for deliverance from the evil one?
Many of us on our Christian journey may have read this verse and thought, “Why would Jesus ask God not to lead us into temptation?”
My friends, temptation is not sin. The question is not whether we will be tempted. The real question is: When we are tempted, will we trust God’s promises, or will we choose the evil one’s path?
When I think of someone who was tempted beyond what I know I could ever endure, I think of Job. Despite his circumstances, his desire to be delivered from his physical and emotional agony, and the temptation to lose faith in God amid the words of his friends and wife, Job chose to trust God’s mercy and sovereignty. We know the outcome: he was blessed with more than he had before his faith in God was tested.
Think about your own life. Our choices during trials or victories reveal whose influence we follow.
In Matthew 25:41 (NIV), Jesus showed how our choices on earth will determine our souls’ final destination:
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’”
My friends, choose God’s will, not what your flesh or the world tells you to do.
The devil and his angels know that eternal fire is real.
But do you?
If you do, live as one set free from the enemy’s curse!
Reflection question: What lies or desires might be pulling your attention away from Jesus, and how will you turn to Him today?
Who Is This Jesus? Ministry, Inc. is a nonprofit organization based in North Carolina.