Psalm 8:1, and Father, I Adore You (Terrye Coelho-1972)
My Shepherd met me this morning, meditating on a line in the disciple’s prayer: “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:14; and Luke 11:4 without the Doxology: “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen!”)
There is a relationship between the two clauses: “lead us not into temptation,” and “deliver us from evil.” They are connected into a single sentence with the conjunction—but. This conjunction indicates that the two things mentioned occur at the same time or in the same space. Being led into temptation occurs through some action of evil.
The word but is a conjunction that introduces the idea of a contradiction: lead us not into temptation, rather, contrary to that, deliver us from the evil. In Greek, the word translated as but is ἀλλὰ (Alla- not Allah).
As a conjunction, but indicates that the request not to be led into temptation is connected to the request, deliver us from evil, as occurring in the same moment. However, using the word but, a term of contradiction, indicates that being led “into temptation” would be to be delivered to evil. And Jesus encourages us to pray that God will not lead us into temptation, but instead deliver us from evil. Essentially, Jesus encourages us to pray that God will not deliver us to evil, but from it.
Remember when Jesus warned the disciples to pray “lest they enter into temptation” (Mark 14:38; Luke 22:46)? We will all experience temptation, defined as being drawn away by our own lusts and enticed (James 1:14). We “enter into temptation” when we yield to the enticement. Jesus warned us to pray in order not to “enter into temptation.”
Along the still waters, I thought about the law Paul found: when he would do good, evil was present with him (Romans 7:21). Evil is ever-present. We pray God will deliver us from it, and not to it. Find some examples of the people of God doing evil and being delivered to its power (Judges 6:1; 13:1; 20:13; see also 1 Corinthians 5:1-5; etc.). There are many more examples of God delivering His people from evil.
I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed this before, but today, as I pondered, I realized that even though I pray this prayer every day, God has allowed evil to come into my life. The Spirit spoke to my heart, and I remembered that He has never failed to deliver me from it when I cried out to Him. Many times I have found myself tempted, but God delivered me from evil. He has led me to temptation (see Luke 4:1; 1 Peter 4:12—The word “try” in 1 Peter 4:12 translates the same word that is translated “temptation” in Matthew 6:13 and Luke 11:4). But He has never led me into it. It was up to me to cry out and petition Him, “Don’t lead me into temptation, but deliver me from the evil.”
In the valley, shadowed by the Cross, I knelt and identified specific temptations that are presently set before me. I begged Him to “deliver me from the evil” of those temptations. Praise God, He is faithful! The enticements lost their lure!
He never meant to say we are to pray never to be tempted, or never to be touched by the evil that is in this world. He instructed us to pray for deliverance from it. If you pray in advance, He will intervene to deliver you from “entering” into temptation. If you have fallen into temptation, cry out to Him, and He will deliver you from the evil you have brought on yourself.
At the table, we commiserated on this matter for a while, and then He anointed my head with His oil and filled my cup with His grace. Goodness and mercy appeared behind me as we walked into the harvest.
Praying for revival! 🙏
Going live asap:
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