Finding Shalom
James 1:13-15
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
Most of us have prayed the Lord's Prayer countless times. We've recited the familiar words, "Lead us not into temptation," often without pausing to consider what we're actually asking. This phrase has confused Christians for centuries. After all, would God actually lead us into temptation? If James 1:13 clearly states that "God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone," then why do we need to ask God not to lead us into it? This question isn't just theological nitpicking, it points to the heart of how we understand God's character and our relationship with Him. It shapes how we approach life's challenges and how we handle our own desires.
When we look at the original languages of the Bible, interesting nuances emerge. In Hebrew, there isn't actually a specific word that precisely matches our English concept of "temptation" as enticement to sin. The primary Hebrew word we often translate as "tempt" is נָסָה (nasah), which more accurately means "to test, try, or prove." This testing isn't inherently negative, but it's about revealing what's truly in someone's heart or determining the quality of their character. We see this testing throughout the Old Testament. God tested Abraham's faith by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. He tested Israel in the wilderness for forty years "to humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not" (Deuteronomy 8:2). These were challenging situations, but they weren't enticements to evil, but they were opportunities for growth and character revelation.
When we turn to the New Testament Greek, we find πειρασμός (peirasmos) and its verb form πειράζω (peirazo), which have a broader range of meaning than our English "temptation." These words can refer both to testing (in the positive sense of refining character) and tempting (in the negative sense of enticing to sin). Context determines which meaning is emphasized. This dual meaning helps us understand the apparent contradiction between the Lord's Prayer and James 1:13-15. When Jesus teaches us to pray, "Lead us not into temptation" (Matthew 6:13), he's not suggesting God might entice us to sin. Rather, he's acknowledging our vulnerability. We're asking God to guide us away from situations that might overwhelm us, to steer us clear of trials that might become temptations because of our weaknesses.
James clarifies the source of temptation: "Each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed" (James 1:14). The problem isn't external circumstances, but it's internal desire. Temptation begins with our own misplaced longings. The same situation can be either a test (strengthening faith) or a temptation (leading to sin) depending on what's in our hearts. Think about it this way: two people face the exact same challenging situation. For one person, it becomes an opportunity to trust God more deeply. For another, it becomes an occasion for sin. The difference isn't in the situation, it's in their hearts.
This brings us to the concept of shalom. In Hebrew thought, shalom means far more than just "peace" as we typically understand it. Shalom represents wholeness, completeness, well-being, and harmony. It's the state of perfect relationship with God, others, creation, and ourselves. It's what we were created for. God doesn't lead us into temptation, rather He leads us toward shalom. Like a shepherd leading sheep to green pastures and quiet waters (Psalm 23), God guides us toward what truly satisfies. His desire is for our wholeness, not our fragmentation. He wants to refresh our souls, not deplete them. The problem is that we often look for shalom in all the wrong places. We try to find wholeness in things that ultimately break us. We pursue peace through paths that lead to turmoil. The prophet Jeremiah captured this tragedy perfectly: "My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water" (Jeremiah 2:13).
This is the essence of temptation. We are being lured away from true shalom in God toward a counterfeit version promised by our own desires. James lays out the progression clearly: desire gives birth to sin, and sin, when full-grown, gives birth to death (James 1:15). What begins as an attraction ends in destruction. What promises fulfillment delivers emptiness. We all experience this. We think that one more purchase will satisfy us, but it doesn't. We believe that achievement will secure our worth, but the validation fades quickly. We imagine that power will bring security, but it only increases our anxiety. We're constantly tempted to find shalom in things that can never provide it.
In biblical language, we're seeking shalom in idols. An idol isn't just a statue, but it's anything we look to for what only God can provide. It's anything we believe will give us significance, security, comfort, or control apart from God. These idols promise shalom but deliver bondage. They offer life but lead to death. The modern world is full of sophisticated idols: success, comfort, control, approval, pleasure, possessions, relationships, and even religious performance. Each promises a version of shalom; "If you just have enough of me, you'll be complete." But none can deliver.
This brings new meaning to "Lead us not into temptation." We're asking God to guide us away from the situations where our idol-making hearts might lead us astray. We're acknowledging our tendency to seek shalom in all the wrong places. We're confessing our vulnerability to being "dragged away by our own evil desire and enticed."
God's response to this prayer isn't to remove all testing from our lives, because testing develops our character and faith. Rather, His response is to provide a way through testing without it becoming temptation. As Paul writes, "God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13). Moreover, God provides the ultimate source of true shalom in Himself. While temptation pulls us away from relationship with God, God draws us back into relationship with Him. This is why Jesus identified the greatest commandment as loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30). When we're fully oriented toward God, temptation loses its power.
Think of how Jesus himself faced temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11). Each temptation targeted a legitimate need, but Satan suggested meeting that need in a way that bypassed relationship with the Father. Jesus responded to each by reaffirming His commitment to the Father's path and the Father's timing. He showed us that true shalom comes through submission to God, not through grasping for it on our terms.
This is the paradox of shalom: we find it by surrendering, not by grasping. We discover it by letting go, not by accumulating. We experience it through giving, not taking. Jesus put it this way: "Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it" (Matthew 16:25).
So what are we supposed to do?
We need to identify our idols as the things we're looking to for what only God can provide. What do we believe will make us whole? What do we fear losing most? What makes us most angry when threatened? The answers often reveal our functional idols. We can recognize our patterns of temptation. James says we're "dragged away by our own evil desire and enticed." Each of us has particular vulnerabilities based on our past experiences, personality, and circumstances. Knowing these patterns helps us avoid situations where temptation's pull might be strongest. We can cultivate practices that keep us connected to God. Prayer, reading Scripture, worship, service, and Christian community all help maintain our orientation toward God as our true source of shalom. As Jesus advised, "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation" (Matthew 26:41). We can build healthy boundaries around situations we know are particularly tempting. This isn't about legalism—it's about wisdom. Just as a recovering alcoholic avoids bars, we can make wise choices about what situations to avoid based on our known vulnerabilities. We can remind ourselves of the true satisfaction found in God. Temptation loses its power when we remember that God offers something better.
Finally, we can remember that even when we fail, God's grace is greater than our sin. The path back to shalom is always open through confession, repentance, and trust in God's forgiveness. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). When we pray "Lead us not into temptation" with this understanding, it becomes a confident request. We're asking our Good Shepherd to guide us toward green pastures and quiet waters, toward true shalom. We're expressing trust that God's path for us is better than the paths we might choose for ourselves.
The beauty of the Lord's Prayer is that it continues: "but deliver us from evil." We're not just asking to avoid temptation, we're asking for active deliverance. We're recognizing that we need God's protection and intervention. We're admitting that we can't navigate the dangers of this world on our own. This is the heart of the gospel, God doesn't just show us the way to shalom; He becomes the way through Jesus Christ. Jesus called himself "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). He is our path back to relationship with God. He is our shalom personified.
So when we pray, "Lead us not into temptation," we're really saying, "Lead us into deeper relationship with You, into true shalom." We're choosing God's path over our own. We're rejecting counterfeit sources of wholeness and embracing the real thing. We're acknowledging that what we really need isn't found in giving in to our desires but in submitting them to God.
This is the invitation of the Lord's Prayer, to align our hearts with God's purposes, to seek His kingdom first, to trust Him for our needs, to extend and receive forgiveness, and to follow His leading away from destruction and toward life. It's an invitation to find in God the shalom we've been searching for all along.
When we look at the original languages of the Bible, interesting nuances emerge. In Hebrew, there isn't actually a specific word that precisely matches our English concept of "temptation" as enticement to sin. The primary Hebrew word we often translate as "tempt" is נָסָה (nasah), which more accurately means "to test, try, or prove." This testing isn't inherently negative, but it's about revealing what's truly in someone's heart or determining the quality of their character. We see this testing throughout the Old Testament. God tested Abraham's faith by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. He tested Israel in the wilderness for forty years "to humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not" (Deuteronomy 8:2). These were challenging situations, but they weren't enticements to evil, but they were opportunities for growth and character revelation.
When we turn to the New Testament Greek, we find πειρασμός (peirasmos) and its verb form πειράζω (peirazo), which have a broader range of meaning than our English "temptation." These words can refer both to testing (in the positive sense of refining character) and tempting (in the negative sense of enticing to sin). Context determines which meaning is emphasized. This dual meaning helps us understand the apparent contradiction between the Lord's Prayer and James 1:13-15. When Jesus teaches us to pray, "Lead us not into temptation" (Matthew 6:13), he's not suggesting God might entice us to sin. Rather, he's acknowledging our vulnerability. We're asking God to guide us away from situations that might overwhelm us, to steer us clear of trials that might become temptations because of our weaknesses.
James clarifies the source of temptation: "Each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed" (James 1:14). The problem isn't external circumstances, but it's internal desire. Temptation begins with our own misplaced longings. The same situation can be either a test (strengthening faith) or a temptation (leading to sin) depending on what's in our hearts. Think about it this way: two people face the exact same challenging situation. For one person, it becomes an opportunity to trust God more deeply. For another, it becomes an occasion for sin. The difference isn't in the situation, it's in their hearts.
This brings us to the concept of shalom. In Hebrew thought, shalom means far more than just "peace" as we typically understand it. Shalom represents wholeness, completeness, well-being, and harmony. It's the state of perfect relationship with God, others, creation, and ourselves. It's what we were created for. God doesn't lead us into temptation, rather He leads us toward shalom. Like a shepherd leading sheep to green pastures and quiet waters (Psalm 23), God guides us toward what truly satisfies. His desire is for our wholeness, not our fragmentation. He wants to refresh our souls, not deplete them. The problem is that we often look for shalom in all the wrong places. We try to find wholeness in things that ultimately break us. We pursue peace through paths that lead to turmoil. The prophet Jeremiah captured this tragedy perfectly: "My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water" (Jeremiah 2:13).
This is the essence of temptation. We are being lured away from true shalom in God toward a counterfeit version promised by our own desires. James lays out the progression clearly: desire gives birth to sin, and sin, when full-grown, gives birth to death (James 1:15). What begins as an attraction ends in destruction. What promises fulfillment delivers emptiness. We all experience this. We think that one more purchase will satisfy us, but it doesn't. We believe that achievement will secure our worth, but the validation fades quickly. We imagine that power will bring security, but it only increases our anxiety. We're constantly tempted to find shalom in things that can never provide it.
In biblical language, we're seeking shalom in idols. An idol isn't just a statue, but it's anything we look to for what only God can provide. It's anything we believe will give us significance, security, comfort, or control apart from God. These idols promise shalom but deliver bondage. They offer life but lead to death. The modern world is full of sophisticated idols: success, comfort, control, approval, pleasure, possessions, relationships, and even religious performance. Each promises a version of shalom; "If you just have enough of me, you'll be complete." But none can deliver.
This brings new meaning to "Lead us not into temptation." We're asking God to guide us away from the situations where our idol-making hearts might lead us astray. We're acknowledging our tendency to seek shalom in all the wrong places. We're confessing our vulnerability to being "dragged away by our own evil desire and enticed."
God's response to this prayer isn't to remove all testing from our lives, because testing develops our character and faith. Rather, His response is to provide a way through testing without it becoming temptation. As Paul writes, "God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13). Moreover, God provides the ultimate source of true shalom in Himself. While temptation pulls us away from relationship with God, God draws us back into relationship with Him. This is why Jesus identified the greatest commandment as loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30). When we're fully oriented toward God, temptation loses its power.
Think of how Jesus himself faced temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11). Each temptation targeted a legitimate need, but Satan suggested meeting that need in a way that bypassed relationship with the Father. Jesus responded to each by reaffirming His commitment to the Father's path and the Father's timing. He showed us that true shalom comes through submission to God, not through grasping for it on our terms.
This is the paradox of shalom: we find it by surrendering, not by grasping. We discover it by letting go, not by accumulating. We experience it through giving, not taking. Jesus put it this way: "Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it" (Matthew 16:25).
So what are we supposed to do?
We need to identify our idols as the things we're looking to for what only God can provide. What do we believe will make us whole? What do we fear losing most? What makes us most angry when threatened? The answers often reveal our functional idols. We can recognize our patterns of temptation. James says we're "dragged away by our own evil desire and enticed." Each of us has particular vulnerabilities based on our past experiences, personality, and circumstances. Knowing these patterns helps us avoid situations where temptation's pull might be strongest. We can cultivate practices that keep us connected to God. Prayer, reading Scripture, worship, service, and Christian community all help maintain our orientation toward God as our true source of shalom. As Jesus advised, "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation" (Matthew 26:41). We can build healthy boundaries around situations we know are particularly tempting. This isn't about legalism—it's about wisdom. Just as a recovering alcoholic avoids bars, we can make wise choices about what situations to avoid based on our known vulnerabilities. We can remind ourselves of the true satisfaction found in God. Temptation loses its power when we remember that God offers something better.
Finally, we can remember that even when we fail, God's grace is greater than our sin. The path back to shalom is always open through confession, repentance, and trust in God's forgiveness. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). When we pray "Lead us not into temptation" with this understanding, it becomes a confident request. We're asking our Good Shepherd to guide us toward green pastures and quiet waters, toward true shalom. We're expressing trust that God's path for us is better than the paths we might choose for ourselves.
The beauty of the Lord's Prayer is that it continues: "but deliver us from evil." We're not just asking to avoid temptation, we're asking for active deliverance. We're recognizing that we need God's protection and intervention. We're admitting that we can't navigate the dangers of this world on our own. This is the heart of the gospel, God doesn't just show us the way to shalom; He becomes the way through Jesus Christ. Jesus called himself "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). He is our path back to relationship with God. He is our shalom personified.
So when we pray, "Lead us not into temptation," we're really saying, "Lead us into deeper relationship with You, into true shalom." We're choosing God's path over our own. We're rejecting counterfeit sources of wholeness and embracing the real thing. We're acknowledging that what we really need isn't found in giving in to our desires but in submitting them to God.
This is the invitation of the Lord's Prayer, to align our hearts with God's purposes, to seek His kingdom first, to trust Him for our needs, to extend and receive forgiveness, and to follow His leading away from destruction and toward life. It's an invitation to find in God the shalom we've been searching for all along.
Recent
Archive
2025
2024
January
October
2023
February
March
June
August
November
Categories
no categories
1 Comment
Thank you for this very clarifying teaching on this part of the Lord's prayer!