Fighting the Enemy through Prayer

Al Mohler tells the story of camping with scouts as a 12-year-old boy. (Play up the excitement of camping for a young boy). They exhausted themselves playing in a palmetto field. They were awakened by three gunshots, and as they emerged from their tents, the scoutmaster laid three rattlesnakes across the hood of his truck, all shot in the same field the boys were playing in the night before.

How often do we carry on through life completely unaware of the enemy lurking, prowling, and seeking to destroy?

The Illusion of an Enemy-less Discipleship

We like to think…or at least live under the illusion…that the world is a safe place. (Recount driving through Tyndall yesterday before it was revealed that it was a training exercise that forgot to be a training exercise. It was a terrible reminder of just how quick evil could strike.)

Scripture reminds us of the reality of the Devil, the fact that his demons are real, and the truth that these “invisible enemies are bent on destroying our spiritual lives.”

With that said, how often do we think about this? Do we give much thought on how to live in light of this?

Some Christians avoid talk of spiritual warfare as a response to those that look for Satan under every stone and blame everything on the Devil.

Others may think that too much discussion of the enemy will undermine our own responsibility for our sin.

Consider C.S. Lewis’ observation in The Screwtape Letters:

“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.”

We will aim to take a center approach. Surely Satan and His minions are not lurking behind every corner, responsible for every spiritual ill we face. However, Scripture certainly and clearly warns us about demonic influence and power, encouraging us to remain diligent in spiritual warfare to oppose them.

Why we Need this Petition

Jesus teaches us to pray regularly against temptation.

This should remind us how prevalent and dangerous temptation is to our spiritual life. Consider Gen.4:7 “If you do what is right, won’t you be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”

Sin is a harsh master and it does not intend to play a minor role in our lives.

If we are members of God’s kingdom, daily we should seek to surrender control of our lives to Christ the King (we prayed for as much in Matthew 6:10 “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” So, our prayer here is one of kingdom warfare, asking God to conquer sin, Satan, and demonic influence so we might live for Christ.

There are several important points we’re reminded of:

“Christians must recognize that temptations are a real and daily threat to communion with God and life with Christ.”

“We are not able to resist temptation by our own power.”

Consider how hard it is to maintain simple disciplines in our lives. Fighting against temptation is much more difficult!

Jesus is not instructing us to pray for more strength and resolve to fight on our own. He’s teaching us to ask for the Good Shepherd to deliver us! This is an expression of our dependency, not ability and self-sufficiency. And, the Bible doesn’t teach us to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps because God helps those who help themselves. Rather, God will actually bring us to the breaking point so that we will depend on Him.

“Christians must pray for endurance in the fight against temptation.”

Does God lead People into Temptation

The wording may seem to imply (to some) that sometimes God indeed does lead people into temptation. Here, we must let Scripture become its own commentary. Consider James 1:13 “No one undergoing a trial should say, “I am being tempted by God,” since God is not tempted by evil, and he himself doesn’t tempt anyone.”

Indeed, there is no evil in God and no temptation exists for God. Temptation is certainly not a cruel game He plays with us, and the LORD certainly takes no delight in our sin.

Jesus’ teaching is that God would lead us away from evil and the lusts of our own flesh.

This does not mean God will not test us. Tests are often used by God for our shaping and spiritual formation. James 1:2-4 “Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.” Actually, the Greek word in James 1:13 and James 1:2 is the same root!

The issue is with our sinful hearts and the fact that we often treat trials as opportunities for sin.

We must petition God to deliver us from our own personal patterns of temptation, praying not only against generic temptation, but specifically battling against personal temptations, struggles, and enticing sins. Every single one of us has a (or many) sin struggle(s). And, just as a word of cautionary tale, if you wait to do battle with your weakness when your weakness rears its head, you’ll likely fail.

Jesus is teaching us diligent, pre-emptive battle.

The Anatomy of Temptation

First, realize that temptation is both an internal and external matter.

James 1:14-15 “But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death.” Clearly temptation emerges from inside our hearts when we are carried away by our own rebellious wants.

Unless we fight against internal, sinful desires, they will turn into external, outward sins.

Pride leads to arrogance. Lust leads to sexual immorality. Failure to forgive leads to bitterness and hatred and a failure to love your neighbor. Our fight against our greatest enemy…SELF…is constant and continual.

But, the Bible clearly teaches that temptation is external as well. Matthew 4 is one of the clearest portrayals of external temptation when Satan sought to lead Jesus astray.

In the world, we deal with temptation at every turn. As Christians, we must never entertain sin. We must constantly reject and flee temptation. Jesus hyperbolically warns us about our war with temptation in Matt.5:29-30 “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.”

Indeed, it is better to lose a hand in the fight than to lose our soul to sinful pleasure.

The Devil made Me do It — Really?

While we may have memorized the Lord’s Prayer “but deliver us from evil,” most modern scholars prefer something similar to the CSB — Mt.6:13 “And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” It is a reminder that evil is not some inanimate force — it is a personal evil being in opposition to God.

Beware of minimizing Satan!

We are tempted to not think much of him, and surely Christ has won the victory. However, he is a formidable foe nonetheless. Consider the words of Luther’s “A Mighty Fortress” — “But still our ancient foe / doth seek to work us woe. / His craft and pow’r are great / and, armed with cruel hate / on earth is not his equal.” And, Peter himself warns us: 1 Pet.5:8 “Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.”

We must be utterly dependent on God’s help.

While Satan is indeed fearsome, the battle and victory belongs to God. With God’s help we can stand against Satan’s advances. 1 John 4:4 “You are from God, little children, and you have conquered them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” While Satan is quite the match for us, he is not God’s equal and opposite. There is no competition.

Again, we turn to Luther’s great hymn: “And tho’ this world, with devils filled / should threaten t undo us, / we will not fear, for God hath willed / His truth to triumph through us. / The Prince of Darkness grim, / we tremble not for him. / His rage we can endure, / for lo, his doom is sure / one little word shall fell him.”

In all of this, the Lord’s Prayer reminds us that our best weapon in the fight against temptation is indeed prayer.

Finally, we must consider at last the role that the local church and fellowship plays into our fight against the darkness. After all, Jesus taught us to pray, “deliver us from the evil one.” It’s not a prayer solely for self but for a group. Every family and every church is called to be a deliverance ministry. The Lord uses the local church, striving together for holiness through Scripture and spiritual discipline, holding one another accountable, to keep His people from temptation, sin, and the evil one.