[Jesus said]: “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the
evil one.”
When we pray for our sins to be forgiven, we are looking to the past. Next, the Lord’s Prayer looks to the future. Once again, the prayer is fiercely realistic. Although we have had the privilege of our sins being forgiven, we haven’t overcome the problem of sin.
Every day we will still face temptation to be less than the best. We are tempted to cut corners and to be selfish and unkind.
Temptation is incredibly subtle. The evil one knows our weaknesses and he will exploit them in every possible way. But as we face up to these temptations, we have the wonderful privilege of knowing that Jesus understands exactly what we are going through. In the letter to the
Hebrews, the writer says that Jesus was “tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15). What an encouragement it is to know that Jesus fully understands the temptations we live with. In fact, He knew even more about them than we do; we all too often give in to temptations and therefore don’t experience their full force, but Jesus never did, so He experienced their maximum power.
As we look to the future, we don’t need to be fearful that we will be overcome by evil one day. We can be confident that however great the challenge, Jesus will deliver us from the evil one.
Question What is the greatest temptation that you face, and how are
you confronting it?
Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, help me to stand strongly for You, however great the temptations. Amen

Released on 13 Nov 2026