Temptation hounds us at every turn. Every day we are bombarded with opportunities to turn our backs on God and to deviate from His will for our lives.
It’s no wonder Jesus instructed us to pray that God would not let us yield to temptation.
Remember, God does not tempt us. He tests us but He does not tempt us.
This prayer confesses our desire to walk in God’s way – to uphold His name, to advance His kingdom, to carry out His will.
But there is an obstacle to walking in God’s way.
That obstacle is, of course, temptation.
Do you remember Frogger – the vintage arcade game?
It’s really an obstacle game. In order to get the frog safely from one side of the street to the other, you have to navigate countless pitfalls.
They’re obstacles, but they are not insurmountable obstacles. There is a way through. It might be tricky. It might mean darting back and forth to avoid oncoming traffic. It may be a difficult game (as you level up), but it's not an impossible game.
So it is in our lives. There are obstacles, but they are not insurmountable. God has provided a way through. It may be tricky, It might mean dodging or resisting a slew of spiritual attacks But we have the God of the universe on our side.
Paul, one of the New Testament writers, was quite clear on this.
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. (1 Corinthians 10:13, NLT)
When we succumb to sin, we can never claim, “The devil made me do it.” We certainly cannot claim, “God didn’t keep me from sin.”
We are responsible for our choices.
God always provides a way out. He always gives us everything we need to resist.
Our prayer is not that we would never face temptation. As a pastor of mine once said, “If you’re not facing temptation, that should concern you. It means you’re making no difference whatsoever for the Kingdom of God and the Enemy isn’t worried about you.”
Our prayer is that God will keep His promise.
Our prayer is that God will never allow us to be tempted beyond what we can bear.
Our prayer is that He will show us the way out and give us the strength we need to take the way out.
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