Praying against temptation
Lk 22.31-32, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again (converted, come back to me), strengthen your brothers.”
1) This is firstly a reminder that the devil exists, roams around and that his intentions towards us have not changed since the Garden of Eden: he only seeks to steal, kill and destroy (Jn 10.10).
2) Satan demanded to have you… This is a reminder that even though he was cast out of heaven and thrown down to the earth with his demons (Rev 12.8-9), Satan still has access to God. It is to Him that he places his demands. Indeed,
Zec 3:1-5, “Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?" Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, "Remove the filthy garments from him." And to him he said, "Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments." And I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD was standing by.” This is why he is called the accuser of the brethren (Rev 12:10). He spends his time looking for faults on our part that he can use against us before God, the Just Judge, and force Him to leave us on our own. Psalm 109 rightly says: “They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause. In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer. So they reward me evil for good, and hatred for my love. Appoint a wicked man against him; let an accuser stand at his right hand. When he is tried, let him come forth guilty; let his prayer be counted as sin!” (Vs 3-7) ? The KJV reads: let Satan stand at his right hand. And he does this day and night!
Job is another example of the devil’s presence before the LORD. Read this: “There was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. The LORD said to Satan, "From where have you come?" Satan answered the LORD and said, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it." And the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?" Then Satan answered the LORD and said, "Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face." And the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand." So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.” (Job 1:6-12)
So, the devil can do nothing without the LORD’s permission. In fact, speaking of His sheep, Jesus said that they will never perish, that no one could snatch them out of His hand, and that His Father who had given them to Him is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand (Jn 10:28-29). No wonder the devil himself had to acknowledge the fact that God had put a hedge on every side around him, his house and all his possessions. In other words, nobody can touch us except God first removes that protecting hedge around us. Indeed, the verse « stretch out your hand and touch all that he has » is not accurately translated because the Hebrew word shâlach, translated by stretch out, actually means send away, let go, let loose, put away, send off, cast away or push away.
3) I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail… And we know that God always hear the prayers of Jesus (Jn 11:42)… The first thing that this verse teaches us is that our faith is what matters the most to the LORD. This is what He is keen to preserve it above all. Then, this passage also teaches us that when the devil demands to sift us like wheat, God has two options. Either He destroys Satan’s plans by removing our iniquity/sin and changing our filthy garments by pure ones (the blood of Jesus), or He lets him do as he wishes, but only after our advocate with the Father, Jesus (1Jn 2.1), has prayed that those trials would not break us. This is why Paul says that no temptation has overtaken us that is not common to man and that, God who is faithful, will not let us be tempted beyond our ability, but will provide the way of escape with the temptation, that we may be able to endure it (1Cor 10:13). And we know that Job’s faith was not shaken. In spite of all his losses –his children, his wealth and his health- he refused to curse God and simply said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." (Job 1:21)
Our part is to avoid any presumption like Peter who thought he could face jail and death with the LORD (Lk 22:33), only to deny Him shortly after. We should be aware that all those who are standing are susceptible to fall (1Cor 10:12). This is why Jesus exhorts us to watch and pray not to enter into temptation (Mat 26:41). And the prayer we must pray is: Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil (Mat 6:13).
Have a great week and God bless you!
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