Keep alert and pray.

Matt. 26:41  “Keep alert and pray.  Otherwise temptation will overpower you.  For though the spirit is willing enough, the body is weak.”

Most professing Christians are not paying much attention to their souls.  They take salvation and eternal life for granted.  They make assumptions about not needing to be too careful about how they live since they made a profession of faith in Christ.  They assume that grace takes care of any sin issues that they may have and that God will accept them regardless of how careless they may be about how they live.  They trust in past experiences and do not worry about any future consequences.  They embrace the love of God and dismiss for the most part the holiness of God.

Most will admit that what Jesus says here is true.  Experience teaches us that when we let our guard down, temptation overpowers us and we fall into sin.  Very few people would ever disagree with this truth.  But, there is the thought that it doesn’t really matter all that much.  We are covered by Christ’s righteousness so a sin here or there won’t matter to God.  He knows what we are like and will overlook it.  What we fail to consider is what the Word of God teaches us about holy living.

God is holy and no sin will ever be in His presence.  God declares that we must become like Him in holiness.  We cannot tolerate sin in our lives and still be holy before God.  Holiness is a separation from sin.  It is living with the intent to not sin.  It is taking care of the soul so that when temptation comes we will be able to resist it.  It is striving to please God and not taint our souls with sin.  And when we do sin, it is confessing our sin and seeking Christ’s forgiveness.  It is diligently seeking to live above sin instead of bucking underneath it.

We are alert best when we pray the most.  Prayer keeps Christ close to us.  It keeps us wanting to not sin.  It keeps us wanting to live consistent with the righteousness and holiness of Christ.  Staying in close touch with God is our defense against falling into sin when we face temptations.  Failing to pray opens the door to certain failure.  The spirit may be willing, but without much prayer, the flesh will prevail and we will fall into sin.