Pray to avoid temptation and sin

Exodus 19; Job 37; Luke 22; 2 Corinthians 7

At first the two passages that startled me this morning were not related, but after reading all of the above, the Lord showed me what they have in common — some very good counsel.

The first is in Job. Young Elihu is still telling Job that if he would abandon his pride then God would listen to him. He says:

The Almighty—we cannot find him; he is great in power; justice and abundant righteousness he will not violate. Therefore men fear him; he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.” (Job 37:23–24)

In the margin of my Bible, I had a small reference to this verse, also a statement by Elihu:

I will get my knowledge from afar and ascribe righteousness to my Maker. For truly my words are not false; one who is perfect in knowledge is with you. (Job 36:3–4)

If the interpretation is correct, this young man is the pot calling the kettle black. He claims to be perfect in knowledge and while some commentators think he speaks of God, he seems to be speaking about himself. His speeches indicate his arrogance yet he accuses Job of having the same problem!

Then I read this familiar passage in Luke. Jesus is with His disciples just before He will be arrested. He knows what is going to happen and is in agony:

And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” (Luke 22:39–46)

Twice He tells His disciples to pray so they will not be tempted to sin. In this context, sin is refusing to accept the will of God, first by not praying and second by saying NO to His will.

Oh, I get it. Elihu as well as the other three ‘friends’ of Job, as far as I remember, never once talked to God in their speeches. They accused Job but no record shows that they sought the will of God concerning him. However, Job talks back to them yet as he does, his words to them are intermingled with his words to God, seeking God’s input. Even though he was not hearing answers and becoming increasingly frustrated, Job was praying.

In my experience, praying and sinning are incompatible partners particularly if the prayer is full of worship. From the words of God to Job, worship may have been missing more often than in his prayers and for that he was corrected, yet he was praying and seeking answers from God. This is preferable to no prayer and pointing fingers like his ‘friends’ were doing.

APPLY: The Bible tells me to pray without ceasing. According to Jesus, this is a great way to avoid temptation. While Satan certainly tries to interrupt my conversations with God or stop them altogether, prayer protects me from sin. As in Job’s situation, it protects me especially from pointing my finger at what I perceive is the sin of someone else. As the saying goes, when I do that, three fingers are pointing back at me — usually because I am guilty of the same thing. If I’m praying honestly with God, that accusation will not be pridefully directed to others but humbly realized and put where it belongs.