Prayer Keeps You from Falling into Temptation (1)

“…could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation…”- Matthew 26:40-41 (NKJV)

Beloved, do you know that praying often can keep you from falling into temptation? Well, in case you do not know, I am telling you now. Before our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross of Calvary, He took His disciples to gethsemane and said to them, “sit here while I go and pray over there” –Matthew 26:36 Then He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me” He went a little farther and fell on His face and prayed, (Matthew 26:37-39) but something happened while He was praying. The Bible recorded that after Jesus had prayed for some time, “He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “what! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation…” Matthew 26:40 When Jesus saw them sleeping, He was shocked that they could not stand with Him for one hour in prayers. So, He told them to try and pray so that they will not enter into temptation. 

Now the reason He told them this was because before this particular incident took place, He told them “…all of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night….”- Matthew 26:31 but Peter specifically said to Him,” Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble” Matthew 26:33 NKJV. Instead of meditating on what the master had said, he insisted that he would not stumble. He even went as far as saying “Even if I have to die with you, I will not deny you! Matthew 26:25 NKJV, but finally He denied Jesus, why? Because he was sleeping when he was supposed to be praying, Jesus told them to watch and pray. So that they will not enter into temptation, but they just could not pray. Even when He left them to pray, when he came back, they continued to sleep. So when the temptation finally came, Peter fell for it in a huge way and this lets us know that If he had prayed for at least one hour, that temptation could have been avoided. So, you must cultivate the habit of prayer at least one hour daily. And as you grow in the things of God, you can start praying one hour in the morning, afternoon and evening. If you can maintain this routine daily, the devil will never be able to take advantage of you because you have fortified yourself through prayers. Hallelujah!

Today’s Rhema 

If you can start one hour, three times daily, the devil will never be able to take advantage of you!

Confession for the Day 

Thank you Heavenly Father, for this wonderful exposition, I receive the grace to pray for longer hours and as I do this, I decree that I am fortified against every satanic attack of the devil in the name of Jesus. Amen!