Stop Entering into Temptation

And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” – Luke 22:40

The cross stands before the disciples. Sorrow fills them. Temptation is coming. Jesus encourages them to pray so that they can stand. Jesus offers them true rest, the source of true strength.

Burdened and confronted with spiritual warfare, with their own weakness and vulnerability, the disciples attempt to gather strength for the coming fight. They seek rest.

So, they sleep. It seems natural. It seems logical and even reasonable. We are physical creatures. And when life wearies us and presents us with huge challenges we try what we can to comfort ourselves and strengthen ourselves.

We all do this. The money doesn’t add up so we withhold our tithe. The time doesn’t add up so we sleep, in the morning and veg out in the evening. We have a few extra minutes at the end of the commute so we grab a coffee. The energy doesn’t add up so in the face our spouses’ need we appeal to our need for sleep or some time to just “relax.” The resources don’t add up so we’ll wait to invite that family till our house is bigger or cleaner or nicer.

Advertisement

The Wrong Way to Pray

You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. – James 4:2-3

If James says there is a wrong way to pray, a wrong way to ask, then it follows that there is a right way to ask, a right way to pray.

God’s reception of and interaction with prayer is conditional. One condition to God not hearing your prayers is envy.

Envy affects fellowship with the body and fellowship with God. Envy causes you to murder, fight and quarrel – even if you only do so in the hypocritical confines of your own heart. Envy causes you to demand things from God that are self-serving and self-glorifying.

You cannot be an envious, ungrateful, quarrelsome and covetousness person and expect God to listen to you. He will not. Envy is a discontented or resentful longing aroused by someone else’s possessions or qualities. It’s not just wanting what someone else has but envy leads to negative feelings about the person and your own circumstances. Bitterness. Ingratitude. Inordinate longings. Strife. Quarrels and fights. Envy unsettles relationships and it unsettles prayer. Envy creates negative feelings about the person who has what you are coveting. It’s hard to prefer another or to think well of others when you hate them for what your coveting. Envy grabs hold of our desire for a better spouse, better job, more money, less belly fat, better cars, jobs, friends, families, homes and jobs and inspires a host of unholy thoughts and actions in response.