“We are in a fight, but we have a Father.”
This week we continue the Lord’s Prayer series with a powerful word from Brad Jones about temptation. When we pray, “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil,” we are declaring, “I can’t, but I know that You can. I am unable, but You are able.” In the struggles and challenges of life, you have a Heavenly Father who wants to help you!
Key Takeaway
We're in a battle, we have to recognize that. Once we know what we are in, we can ask the right questions and walk in freedom. As we walk in the victory God has given us, we can help strengthen our brothers and sisters.
We place our faith in Jesus and then think that God says, "That's great, good luck out there" and becomes hands-off, but that's absolutely not true. He was to intimately be a part of our lives.
The part of the prayer focused on in this message is "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil (or the evil one)."
1) "Temptation", "Evil", and "Evil One" should remind us that we are in a fight.
Recognize you are IN a fight. Once we put our faith in Jesus, we are up against a tough opponent. 1 Peter 5:8 calls us to be aware and sober-minded. There are forces against you following God. God never leads you to temptation, but He allows it to exist. It's worth it to follow Jesus, but it's not going to be easy.
2) We have a Father that wants to help us.
His heart hurts for us. He gives us this prayer as a gift and it breaks His heart when we resist His help.
3) Embrace the confession, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil".
We are saying, "I can't do this, but You can!" We are confessing our inability and His ability. We can experience His Purpose and meaning, life, joy, and the best that He has for us. Through Jesus, we can walk in His ways. We forget to cry out to God in the middle of our struggle. Hebrews 4:15 tells us that Jesus is our High Priest and able to sympathize with our weakness.
Take note of the order of the prayer as well. There are 6 prayers in one. The first 3 are about God's name. The last 3 are about our needs. Does this describe our prayer life? The order matters. It helps us remember who He is and who we are. It re-prioritizes our prayers.
4) Deliver Us- means to draw close or rescue, not just from something but for something.
He is drawing us to Himself. The more we struggle for the right things, the less we struggle against the lesser things.
Notice this is a corporate rate. Lead US. Deliver US. Who are you praying for? Who are you struggling for? In Luke 22:31, Jesus tells Peter that He is praying that his faith may be strengthened. Jesus prays for us, for our faith. He also tells Peter that when he has turned back to the Lord to goes back and strengthens the believers. That's a victory mindset.
Discussion Questions
- Have you ever thought that God was hands-off after you placed your faith in Him?
- What does 1 Peter 5:8 emphasize?
- In what ways has God made life more bearable since you have placed your faith in Him? How has this made living life harder?
- What fight are you in currently?
- Brad Jones shared how it breaks his heart when his son resists his help. How do we do the same thing to our Father?
- What does it mean to embrace the confession of "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one"?
- How does Hebrews 4:15 tie into the Lord's Prayer?
- In the prayer, the first 3 prayers are about God's name and the last three are about our needs. Do you tend to follow the order established by Jesus, or jump straight to your needs?
- Why is the Lord's Prayer being a corporate prayer, not strictly personalized, a big deal?
Scripture References
