Teach Us to Pray Pt. 7

by Brad Spangler

Protection- And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.

Looking at human history and current world affairs, one would not need much Bible knowledge to see that evil must be at work beyond natural human wickedness. At the same time, I have found that many Christians find it easier to blame the devil for their problems rather than evaluate certain decisions that directly contribute to their circumstances. CS Lewis famously said that there are two mistakes people usually make concerning the devil.

1. They believe there is no devil.
2. Everything is the devil.

We can and should pray that God’s grace and protection will be upon our families and us, but most of our temptations will be subtle attacks on our minds. In Genesis 3:1, we read about the enemy’s first line of attack.

“The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” 

Did God say?

The devil wants you to question God. He wants you to question God’s character and good nature. It’s incredible to me that right after Jesus was baptized and God the Father audibly spoke to Him, saying, “You are my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased,” the devil’s first temptation in the wilderness started with “If you are the Son of God….” Immediately, the devil challenged His identity as the Son of God, which is still his strategy today. 

In Ephesians 6:17 NKJV, the Apostle Paul writes,

“And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;”

Jesus was immersed in the Law and Prophets. From a very young age, His mind was programmed with truth, which made it easier for Him to recognize the devil’s lies. His response to all three temptations was, “It is written.” 

Like Jesus, it is crucial that when we are tempted, we open our mouths and use the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. We can not remain silent and hope the thoughts of the enemy will go away. This is why we must take the time to renew our minds on God’s Word and make prayer a part of our daily practice.

Once again, the goal of this series was to give you a framework that will provide you with confidence when you pray. Over the last seven weeks, we have been learning from the Master Himself. If this model prayer was useful for the disciples, then it will be useful for you and me. 

“God shapes the world by prayer. The more praying there is, the better the world will be, and the mightier the forces against evil.” — E.M. Bounds