Happy Friday, everyone
“This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” [Matthew 6:9-13]
“And lead us not into temptation,…“–as fallen human beings, temptation is ever-present in our lives. The first and most important concept to realize is that temptation does not come from God, (although I’m sure He gets blamed easily enough by some): “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;,,,” [James 1:13].
“…but deliver us from the evil one.“–why do we need to be delivered, or protected, from the evil one? Let’s recall how Satan operates here on earth: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” [I Peter 5:8] You are free to disagree, but I have stood in front of multiple classes expressing my belief that Satan is the second-most powerful being in the entire universe. The most powerful? That would be the Triune Godhead, God the Father, God the Son, and God
the Holy Spirit. Without their power, we would be helpless against Satan. I think I’ll stick with the Power Team.
So I thank you for indulging my exploration of the Lord’s Prayer for these several weeks. I will admit that not every verse in the Bible is crystal clear, and can be, in some cases, subject to interpretation. In this case, however, the disciples asked Jesus how to pray, and He told them directly. No interpretation required–case closed.
Finally, it is my desire that this prayer has taken on a deeper meaning for you, whether you pray it corporately in church, or pray it yourself. I know that it has for me.
God bless,
–Keith