Pray Against Temptation

Dear Sisters,

What a special week of remembrance and celebration is before us. One of the reasons that Christ died is so that we might belong to Him! You also died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead (Romans 7:4). You are not your own; you were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). In Christ, we are free from sin and free to belong to Him!

Have a blessed Easter!

PRAY AGAINST TEMPTATION

Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” Luke 22:39-40

Of all the prayer requests that Jesus could’ve given the disciples, why this one? While He prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” why did He command them to pray that they would not fall into temptation? According to what’s recorded in Luke chapter 22, it may have been because Satan was everywhere!

Satan was in Judas and in the temple. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus (Luke 22:3-4).

Satan was in the upper room where Jesus and the disciples were partaking of the Last Supper. He was present in Judas (Luke 22:21) and present in wanting to sift and crush Peter and the disciples like grains of wheat. Jesus said, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:31-32).

Satan was present in the garden when Judas betrayed Him with a kiss (Luke 22:47). When the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard and the elders seized Him, Jesus said, “But this is your hour – when darkness reigns” (Luke 22:53).

Think about the night that the disciples had with their Lord. It must’ve started as a mountaintop experience! They were celebrating the Last Supper. They took the cup and the bread. They heard the promise that it was Christ’s blood of the new covenant and Christ’s body given to them (Luke 22:17-21).

Mountains can be a dangerous place. When we brought our girls to the top of Mount Lemmon in Tucson, Arizona, when they were young and looked down at the grandeur below, we were continually on guard. We were so very, very careful to make sure that no one slipped and fell.

The disciples’ slipped and fell off their spiritual mountaintop. While their wine and bread were still digesting, there was a dispute among them as to which of them was considered to be the greatest (Luke 22:24), they fell asleep instead of praying that they not fall into temptation (Luke 22:46), and Peter betrayed Jesus three times (Luke 22:54-62).

It’s Holy Week. Remember, celebrate, and pray that you will not fall into temptation (Luke 22:40).

Prayer Step: Pray that He would lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (Matthew 6:13).

The reason why many fail in battle is because they wait until the hour of battle. The reason why others succeed is because they have gained their victory on their knees long before the battle came. Reuben Archer Torrey

Grace and peace,
Lenae