When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He included these words:

“And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” ( Matthew 6:13)

This final petition of the Lord’s Prayer teaches us something important about the Christian life. Temptation is real, evil is active, and our own sinful weakness makes us vulnerable. Jesus therefore teaches us to depend upon our heavenly Father for protection, guidance, and deliverance.

To understand this prayer properly, we first need to understand what temptation is.

Temptation is not the same thing as sin. A person may be tempted without committing sin. Jesus Christ Himself is the clearest proof of that distinction. Hebrews tells us:

“For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” (Hebrews 4:15)

Jesus was truly tempted, yet He never sinned. That means temptation itself cannot be sin.

Jesus Was Tempted Without Sin.

The temptation of Jesus in the wilderness gives us one of the clearest examples of how temptation works. Matthew tells us:

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” (Matthew 4:1)

The temptation came to Jesus from outside Himself. The devil approached Him and attempted to entice Him to act contrary to the will of His Father. After Jesus had fasted, the devil said:

“If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” (Matthew 4:3)

Later he tempted Jesus to throw Himself from the temple:

“If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.” (Matthew 4:6)

Finally, Satan offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world if He would worship him:

“All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” (Matthew 4:9)

In each case, Satan placed an inducement before Christ. That was temptation. Yet no sinful desire within Jesus responded to it. He did not desire to rebel against His Father, possess sinful lust, or have an evil nature drawing Him toward Satan’s offer. Instead, Jesus answered every temptation with obedience to the Word of God. Jesus said:

“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)

“You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” (Matthew 4:7)

“You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.” (Matthew 4:10)

Temptation and Sinful Desire Are Not the Same Thing.

James writes:

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.” (James 1:13)

God is not the author of evil temptation. James continues:

“But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.” (James 1:14)

James shows us another side of temptation. It can come from outside us, as when Satan tempted Christ, but fallen human beings also have sinful desires within them, and those desires can become a source of enticement.

In that sense, a person can become his own tempter. Our desires can draw our attention toward something sinful, make it attractive, and entice us to pursue it. James continues:

“Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.” (James 1:15)

Notice the progression: enticement is presented, desire responds, and when desire conceives, it produces sin.

The Bible Shows Temptation Coming From Outside Us.

The Bible frequently shows temptation as an influence or enticement coming from outside a person. The first great example appears in the Garden of Eden.

“Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden ‘?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.” (Gen 3:1-6)

He then attempted to persuade her to distrust God. The temptation came from the serpent. Here we see the interaction between external temptation and internal desire. The serpent enticed Eve; she desired what God had forbidden, embraced the enticement, and sin followed.

We Can Sometimes Become Our Own Tempter.

There is also a practical danger we must recognize: we can become our own tempter by keeping sinful influences, habits, or opportunities close at hand.

A person may know that something repeatedly leads him toward sin and still keep it nearby by returning to the same environment, entertaining the same influence, maintaining access to the same opportunity, or feeding the very desire he is asking God to help him overcome. Scripture warns us against this. Paul writes:

“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.” (Romans 13:14)

That word “provision” is important. The Christian is called not only to resist sin after temptation becomes strong, but also to avoid preparing the conditions in which sinful desire can flourish. If we know something repeatedly tempts us, wisdom tells us not to keep making room for it.

This principle applies to many areas of life. An influence may repeatedly draw a person toward anger, greed, lust, bitterness, drunkenness, envy, dishonesty, or some other sin. When we recognize such a pattern, Scripture does not teach us to keep the temptation close in order to prove our strength; it teaches us to flee from sin. Paul says:

“Flee immorality.” (1 Corinthians 6:18)

He also tells Timothy:

“Now flee from youthful lusts.” (2 Timothy 2:22)

And concerning idolatry:

“Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.” (1 Corinthians 10:14)

At times obedience requires standing firm against temptation; at other times wisdom requires getting away from it. In either case, we remain dependent upon God.

Christ says, “Lead Us Not Into Temptation.”

When we pray, “Do not lead us into temptation,” we are not accusing God of trying to make us sin. James has already told us:

“He Himself does not tempt anyone.” (James 1:13)

Instead, we are asking our Father to guide and preserve us so that we are not brought into circumstances in which temptation may overwhelm us. Jesus used similar language when He spoke to His disciples in Gethsemane. He told them:

“Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41)

The wording is important because Jesus tells them to pray that they “may not enter into temptation.” Jesus knew the weakness of His disciples and the difficult circumstances they were about to face, so He told them to pray. The temptation itself was not the same thing as their sinful nature; their weakness was what made the coming temptation dangerous. Peter is a powerful example. Earlier that evening Peter had confidently told Jesus:

“Even though all may fall away because of You, I will never fall away.” (Matthew 26:33)

But when Jesus was arrested and Peter was confronted, he became afraid. A servant-girl said:

“You too were with Jesus the Galilean.” (Matthew 26:69)

Peter denied it. Later he denied Jesus again. Finally:

“Then he began to curse and swear, ‘I do not know the man!’” (Matthew 26:74)

Peter entered into temptation and, because of fear and weakness, fell. His failure shows why Christ teaches His people to pray for preservation.

Praying This Prayer Should Change the Way We Live.

When something in our life continually leads us toward sin, we should seriously consider removing it. Jesus speaks strongly about dealing with things that cause us to stumble:

“If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you.” (Matthew 5:29-30)

Jesus is showing the seriousness with which sin must be treated. Even something valuable to us should not be allowed to remain an occasion for repeated disobedience.

We Need God’s Protection.

Christians should never think that they are too strong to fall. Paul warns:

“Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” (1 Corinthians 10:12)

Our confidence should not rest in our own strength, but in God. Paul continues:

“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

Then he gives this wonderful promise:

“Who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

God does not promise that believers will never experience temptation; Jesus Himself experienced it. He promises instead to remain faithful in the midst of temptation by setting limits, providing a way of escape, and enabling His people to endure.

Therefore, when we pray, “Lead us not into temptation,” we are confessing our dependence upon God. We ask Him to guide and protect us, keep us from circumstances where our weakness may lead us into sin, show us what should be removed from our lives, and give us strength to obey when temptation comes.

Jesus says, “Deliver Us From Evil.”

The Christian life is not merely about avoiding difficult situations; we need deliverance from evil itself. Jesus prayed for His disciples:

“I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.” (John 17:15)

Jesus did not pray for His disciples to be immediately removed from the world. They would remain in it and continue facing opposition, temptation, persecution, and spiritual danger, but He prayed that the Father would protect them. Paul writes:

“The Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” (2 Thessalonians 3:3)

This is the hope contained in the Lord’s Prayer. We are not left alone against temptation. Our Father is faithful.

Temptation Does Not Mean God Has Abandoned You.

Christians can sometimes become discouraged simply because they are tempted. They may think, “If I were really faithful, I would never experience this temptation.”

But that is not what Scripture teaches. Jesus Christ Himself was tempted. Hebrews says:

“He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.” (Hebrews 2:18)

Temptation should therefore drive us toward Christ rather than away from Him. We can go to a Savior who understands what it means to be tempted, yet unlike us He never sinned and is able to help us. Hebrews encourages us:

“Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

Our Hope Is in Christ.

That is why Jesus teaches us to pray before temptation arrives. We look to our Father for guidance away from dangerous paths, wisdom to remove unnecessary temptations, preservation when temptation comes, a way of escape, and deliverance from evil and from the evil one.

And when we do sin, we remember:

“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.”  (1 John 2:1-2)

When we pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” we are confessing something simple and profound:

Father, I cannot safely walk through this world without You. Guide me away from temptation, give me wisdom to remove whatever entices me toward sin, protect me when temptation comes, strengthen me to resist it, and deliver me from evil.