The Lord's Prayer: The Sixth Petition

The sixth petition of the Lord's Prayer is this:  "And lead us not into temptation."

We may think we already know, but what does this really mean? The Reformers started their answer  with "God tempts no one."

But if nothing happens apart from God's permitting it to happen, can we really say that God doesn't tempt us?  It's a fair question, but we need to distinguish between "testing" and "tempting."  Because God most certainly tests us.

In Deuteronomy 13, Moses conveys this Law to God's people: "If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, 'Let us go after other gods,' which you have not known, 'and let us serve them,' you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams.  For the LORD your God is testing you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul."

Hence, the Reformers go deeper with their answer:  "We pray in this petition that God would guard and keep us so that the devil, the world, and our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair and other great shame and vice.  Although we are attacked by these things, we pray that we may finally overcome them and win the victory."

In the end, there is a real difference between "testing" and "tempting," even though they feel the same when they are happening.  The Tempter wants you to fail; God wants you to succeed.  And He sends His Holy Spirit to you to provide for you and protect you when you are tested so that you do not fail.  Trust Him!