By Marvin A. McMickle
What are the temptations that you find hard to resist? What are the temptations that you find impossible to resist? The playwright, Oscar Wilde once observed, "I can resist anything except temptation." Does that sound like anyone here today? In our society with so many people addicted to so many things, it would seem that many of us are fighting a losing battle against temptation. Millions of people are addicted to illegal drugs like heroin and cocaine. Each of them could well speak these words; lead us not into temptation. Many millions more are confirmed alcoholics who find themselves drinking beer, wine and liquor from morning to night. They too could well turn to God for help and cry out, lead us not into temptation.
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There are temptations that we need to confront. Would you be surprised to know that people in America who are looking for entertainment spend more money purchasing various kinds of pornographic material than they spend on professional sports? Between internet sites, adult programs in upscale hotel rooms, the offerings on late-night cable TV, and the endless supply of videos and magazines that can be viewed or purchased in adult bookstores across the country, there are people who cannot resist that temptation. It seems that people spend as much money gambling on sporting events as they do in ticket sales to simply watch a game or race from the stands.
The list could go on and on, as people lose the war against temptation. We spend too much money buying things we do not really need. We spend too much time eating food that we know will increase our weight and endanger our lives. We increase our credit card debt even though we know we cannot pay it off on time and will be stuck with interest rates that will haunt us for years to come. I am sure that I have not exhausted the list of possible areas of temptation, so each one of us can feel free to add to this list anything that is unique to our lives. However, I would venture to say that there is not one of us who does not fight a losing battle against some temptation, and there fore there is not one of us who does not need to say to God; lead us not into temptation.
Now consider this next clause that says, but deliver us from evil. This line is a reminder that God can break the grip that sin and temptation have over our lives. God is able to protect us in the face of whatever may come our way that can put our lives at risk. There are battle we cannot fight by ourselves, and their foes that we cannot face alone. But the God we serve invites us to turn to him in hours when we feel overwhelmed and outmatched, and he will be our strength.
He delivered so many from the evils they faced in past years, and he can still do it today. The God who delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt can still deliver us from oppression today. The God who delivered Daniel from the lions' den in Persia can still lock the jaws of danger in our world today. The God who rolled back the stone and brought Jesus up from the grip of death can still deliver us today from the grip of forces that can threaten and endanger our lives. And even when the dangers we face are ones that we brought upon ourselves through bad decisions and sinful behavior, if we ask him to forgive our sins and restore us into fellowship with him, he is able and willing to do just that. In other words, God can keep us from getting into trouble in the first place if we walk according to his commandments, and he is able to get us out of trouble when we have fallen prey to some danger when we turn to him with faith and trust. We need to thank God for the assurance that God can and will deliver us from evil.
