The Lord's Prayer RevisitedSample

Resistance Is NOT Futile

The last part of the Lord’s Prayer is perhaps the most confusing. For those who remember the old King James version (“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”), the wording of Luke 11:4 comes across a bit contradictory to the nature of God. After all, it is not in God’s good and holy nature to lead us in the direction of sin. (James 1:13)

Part of the confusion stems from a misunderstanding of the original Greek from which the Gospels were translated. A better interpretation of this portion of the Lord’s Prayer might be, “Do not leave us alone in the face of temptation.” Jesus said as much when He instructed His disciples at the Mount of Olives, “Pray that you will not give into temptation.” (Luke 22:40)

In this context, the nature of Jesus’ prayer instruction makes a lot more sense. All men are tempted to sin after all, but never so greatly that those who seek God’s help cannot be led past the temptation. (1 Corinthians 10:13; Hebrews 2:18)

As for the supplication (plea) to “deliver us from evil” (or “from the evil one”), this part of Luke 11:4 requires little explanation. Like Our Lord and Savior, the Devil is very real. And while he himself cannot make us sin, he does an impeccable job setting the conditions by which we are enticed to sin.

How we are to handle the Devil’s sinful machinations is best summarized by James, Jesus’ brother: “Humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)