Did you ever wonder why there is such an emphasis on transgression, temptation and evil in the Lord\u2019s Prayer? The Lord\u2019s Prayer draws us to contemplate who God is and how we are to conduct ourselves in relation to Him. Our Father is all holy, the almighty God, king above all kings. We are his beloved children, redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus, subjects of his kingdom. We are to lead a life of full submission to his sovereignty rule, bearing witness to his holy name and his will on earth. However, the sinful nature of our old selves won\u2019t let us go free so easily. And Satan would try all that he can to pull us away from God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus said, \u201cWatch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.<\/em>\u201d (Matt 26:41) <\/em>What temptations have you encountered before? What temptations may you be facing today? Could it be disappointments, afflictions, disillusions, or emotional turmoil? Or could it be lures of pleasure, money, success, praise from others or the like. Do you know where lies your weak spot that is most susceptible to Satan\u2019s attacks?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The 3 temptations of Jesus (Matt 4:1-11) are often considered together with the \u201cthe lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life\u201d succinctly encapsulated in 1 Jn 2:16. When Jesus was most hungry and tired, the devil tempted him with bread, an essential life necessity that mirrors \u201cthe lust of the flesh\u201d. Jesus was also tempted with \u201cthe lust of the eye\u201d when Satan took him to the mountain top and showed him the splendor of the world. \u201cAll this I will give you if you bow down and worship me\u201d, said he. The same trick was used in enticing Adam and Eve to see that the fruit was \u201cgood for food and pleasing to the eye\u201d. \u201cYou will not surely die\u2026 you will be like God\u201d so he said. Knowing full well what we love and want deep inside our hearts, Satan often appeals to our inner desires. The lures may look harmless and may even carry visible merits and benefits. But the end goal, the intent and means are not from God. If succumbed to Satan\u2019s temptation, it would be nothing short of outright distrust, disobedience and rebellion against God and God\u2019s commands. Are you aware of what areas or weak spots in your life may be most vulnerable to Satan\u2019s attacks?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another insidious trick that Satan uses is to craft deceptions by twisting God\u2019s words, promises or even seemingly indisputable truths. In the temptation that mirrors \u201cthe pride of life\u201d, he told Jesus to make a spectacular show of power by jumping down from the highest point of the temple. He asserted with first Jesus\u2019 Sonship saying, \u201cif you are the Son of God\u201d, and secondly with God\u2019s promise in Ps. 91 that He would command angels to lift him up. Both assertions are rightful claims of truth but twisted and manipulated for the purpose of self-glory and self-gratification. NT scholar D.A. Carson called this \u201cmanipulative bribery\u201d, that \u201cbehind Satan\u2019s challenge was an invitation to approach God with a kind of emotional blackmail, a twisted spiritual bribery. God\u2019s watch-care over his people does not give them the right to treat God with cheap presumption\u201d1<\/sup>. Jesus firmly answered, \u201cDo not put the Lord your God to the test\u201d. We must approach God with utmost trust, full obedience and total submission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In facing temptation, let us remember: In face of trials and temptation, let us hold on to Jesus: <\/em> With prayers and thanksgiving, Did you ever wonder why there is such an emphasis on transgression, temptation and evil in the Lord\u2019s Prayer? The Lord\u2019s Prayer draws us to contemplate who God is and how we are to conduct ourselves in relation to Him. Our Father is all holy, the almighty God, king above all kings. We are his beloved children, redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus, subjects of his kingdom. We are to lead a life of full submission to his sovereignty […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":10441,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[443,509],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10474"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10474"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10474\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10475,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10474\/revisions\/10475"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scbc.com\/em\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\u201cNo temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful: he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.\u201d (1 Cor 10:12-13)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTherefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are \u2013 yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.\u201d (Heb 4:14-16)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Josephine Chow<\/p>\n\n\n\n