Jesus

taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us

from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13). If this seems confusing, making

you wonder who is doing the tempting, be assured that God “does not

tempt anyone” (James 1:13). These words in Jesus’ prayer mean,

“Do not bring us to times of trial . . .” and

“Protect us when we are tempted. . . .” (See also

Psalm 31:3-4.)

Temptation

is the work of the devil, Satan. We read in Matthew 4:1 that when

Jesus was in the wilderness, he was “tempted by the devil.” But

it’s important to note that in the same verse we find that Jesus

was “led by the Spirit into the wilderness.”

The

activity of Satan and the Holy Spirit here can seem confusing, but

here’s a helpful way to look at it. Satan tempts, but God tests.

When we are tempted, the only way we can pass the test of temptation

is by recognizing our weakness and leaning on the Lord’s strength.

This

is why prayer is such an important weapon in spiritual warfare. We

are defenseless without it. Through prayer we remain connected with

God, who equips us for battle and enables us to resist temptation.

The Lord who conquered sin shares his victory with us! The power of

sin has been defeated by the One who has delivered us from evil, and

he is also the One who has taught us to pray.