Teach us to Pray

 Deliver Us From Evil

Praying like Jesus

Part 9

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

 And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.

 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

So far in this prayer model, we have learned that;

1. Prayer is Personal “We pray to Our Father”

2. Prayer is Honoring “We Hallow or Honor His name”

3. Prayer is Proclaiming “We proclaim the coming of the kingdom”

4. Prayer is Trusting “we pray for His will to be done”

5. Prayer is Asking “we ask God to give us our daily bread and our other daily needs”

6. Prayer is confession “we ask for forgiveness”

7. Prayer is Declaration “we declare that we will in turn forgive others”

8. Prayer is Protection “we ask God to lead us not into temptation.”

And finally in the last part of Jesus’ prayer we learn another important truth; that Prayer is Spiritual Warfare; Jesus tells us to pray “Deliver us from Evil.”

Anything and everything you need to know about prayer is found in this model that Jesus gave us.  There is not a part of this prayer that is unimportant or insignificant, and so it is important to note that Jesus was sure to include in this prayer that we are to pray for deliverance.   

In this petition we see that Jesus is not denying or ignoring the fact that there is real evil in this world that we have to face, and we need God’s help to overcome it.  As a matter of fact, a more precise interpretation of this verse is not “deliver us from evil,” but “deliver us from the evil one.”  Jesus is telling us that we do not just have an innate desire to do bad things, but we have an adversary whose mission is to kill, steal, and destroy us.  This “Evil one” that Jesus is referring to is no other than Satan Himself.  He is the created, fallen angel who has become the adversary of God and the adversary of mankind. 

Some people’s idea of “spiritual warfare” is simply ignoring the Devil.  Remember when you were young and you would lie in bed at night; you would hear a noise in the closet, or a tapping on the window, or the moon would cast a wicked shadow on your wall?  Out of fear you would throw the covers up over your head and hide, because everyone knows that if you dive under the covers, the monsters can no longer find you; it is like a force field they cannot penetrate. 

if I ignore it long enough, it will simply go away.  This is a lot of Christian’s approach to spiritual warfare; they throw the covers up over their heads, and try to convince themselves it isn’t real…they simply try to ignore it.  But ignoring something doesn’t mean it isn’t real, and it doesn’t make it go away.  I found out—even when I was young—that hiding under the covers and trying to convince myself that it was just my imagination doesn’t always drive the fear away, but sometimes I have to be bold and “rebuke” the devil in the name of Jesus before I find relief.  Because fear itself is an evil spirit that needs to be rebuked.

2 Corinthians 2:11 tells us that if we are ignorant of Satan’s schemes or plans, He will take advantage of us, or He will outsmart us.  Spiritual warfare is knowing your enemy, knowing his methods, knowing his plans, and knowing how to combat them.  You can’t win the battle if you are ignorant! 

What is ignorant?  The word “Ignorant” means; uninformed, or unaware.  “Ignorant” can also mean lacking knowledge or training.  But the part of the word “Ignorant” that really jumps out at me is the root word; ignore.   It is ignoring the obvious.  When I think of someone who is ignorant, I think of someone who is ignoring the obvious truth that is right there in front of them.

I think most Christians don’t have a clue as to what is going on in the spiritual world …and are being taken advantage of because of their ignorance.  I don’t think their ignorance necessarily comes from just a lack of knowledge, but I think they choose to “ignore” the obvious truth.  Have you ever heard the old phrase ignorance is bliss?  Well it may be “bliss” for a little while, but in the end it will get you killed…and there is nothing “blissful” about that.  Ignoring it doesn’t make it go away, but on the contrary, it gives it more power.

 Through Jesus, God tells us to pray for deliverance from the evil one, and through Paul, God tells us to know who and what we are fighting against.  So in our quest this morning of praying for deliverance and disbursing ignorance, let me give you some Biblical knowledge about our enemy so you will know who this “evil one” is that you are praying deliverance from.

Here is 5 Characteristics of The Evil One

John 8:44 

For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.

1. Satan is a leader.

This verse says Satan leads his followers to perform his lusts!  This is an interesting thought… that the ungodly lusts we go after are not our own, but actually Satan’s lusts.  The world would try to tell us that these lusts are natural to us, but they are not—they belong to him.  When you go after these ungodly lusts, you are patterning your life after your father the Devil.  Think about that next time you are struggling with a temptation; you are not fulfilling your own lust, but the lust of Satan.

Satan is a leader. He led one third of the angels out of Heaven on a revolt against God; this alone shows his power of deception, persuasion and manipulation.  He led those who stood in the very presence of God on a revolt against Him.  Since them he has led millions of people away from God, and continues to do so.  A lot of people say they don’t follow God because they want to do their own thing, but the truth is that we are either following God, or we are following Satan.  We may think we are doing our own thing, but we are not; it is his lusts that we are following after, and his lead we are following.

2. Satan is a murderer.

John tells us in this passage that Satan has been a murderer since the beginning.  Since the beginning he has worked to murder the image and likeness of God that was evident first in Adam and Eve, and now in us.  All these senseless murders that we see going on all around us; the school shootings etc.…they are the all works of Satan.  These murders are performed by the hands of men, but inspired by the devil. 

The Bible tells us that Satan has three goals on this Earth; “to steal, kill, and destroy.”  This is his ultimate motivation.  This is what drives him.  This is his mission statement.  He hates you, and he wants to kill you!  Why does he hate you so much?  It is because God loves you so much.

And Satan doesn’t want you to die just a physical death…but he also wants you to die a spiritual death.  He wants you to burn in Hell for eternity in the place that was created for him and his angels.  Satan is a murderer!

3. Satan is a liar.

This scripture also says that Satan hates truth, and there is no truth in him.  He is a liar!

Every lie begins in the heart of the devil, and ends in the heart of the speaker.  The devil is a liar, and people who lie are demonstrating his number one quality.  When you lie, you are speaking the Devil’s language.  Lying goes against the very fabric of who God is. God is truth!  Satan is a lie!

What does this tell us?  You cannot trust anything Satan or one of his demons say.  Even when it contains truth, if it comes out of his mouth, it is a lie.  Satan will twist truth until it becomes a lie.  And there is no such thing as a little white lie; because any color of lie comes from Satan.

4. Satan desires to destroy God’s people and seeks any opportunity to do so.

· Luke 22:31; "Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat..."

· 1 Peter 5:8 "Satan walketh about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour..."

Satan is watching, waiting, planning and plotting on how to destroy you.  Like a lion crouching in the weeds watching a herd of antelope, he is watching for his chance, looking for an opportunity, seeking an opening when he can pounce and destroy.  He is always watching.  He is always plotting.  Satan seeks any opportunity he can to destroy God’s people.  And we are going to look at some of his tactics here in a few minutes.  

5. Satan will do whatever necessary to keep lost people from getting saved

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Satan’s number one enemy is the gospel!  He will do whatever he can to hide the gospel from the minds of the lost.  He will confuse them.  He will cause them to be suspicious.  He will cause them to use reason, logic and science.  He will do whatever he can to keep people getting saved. 

Satan’s goal is to keep people from following and serving God.  His goal is to keep people from being saved.  His goal is to see all of us dead and in Hell, and he will appeal to the pleasures and emotions of the flesh in order to make that happen.  Meaning he will give you what you desire NOW, so that you die LATER.  He doesn’t want people to know about Jesus and the Good News, so he does whatever he can to hide it from them.

So don’t be ignorant…know who you are dealing with;

Satan is a leader, Satan is a liar, Satan is a murderer, Satan desires to destroy God’s people and seeks any opportunity to do so, and Satan will do whatever necessary to keep lost people from getting saved.

Now that you know who the Evil One is, let me share with you…

Six Tactical Attacks of the Evil One

This is how he attacks us…

1. Distraction

1 John 2:15-16 "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world."

Satan seeks to distract us by getting us to focus our attention on the material instead of the spiritual, on methods rather than the message, or on men rather than God.  He will use whatever he can to distract us and get us to lose our focus.  Even in the church we can get distracted by methods, men and materials, and lose our focus on the goal. 

Let me tell you a story; It was a 99-degree September day in San Antonio, when a woman accidentally locked her 10 month-old baby niece inside a parked car. Frantically the mother and aunt ran around the car in near hysteria, while a neighbor attempted to unlock the car with a clothes hanger. Soon the infant was turning purple and had foam on her mouth; it had become a life-or-death situation.   Fred Arriola, a wrecker driver, arrived on the scene.  He grabbed a hammer, and smashed the back window of the car to set the child free.  He later commented, "The lady was mad at me because I broke the window. I just thought, what’s more important--the baby or the window?"

Sometimes priorities get out of order.  Sometimes we lose our focus.  Sometimes we get distracted by the task, and forgot the purpose of the task.  The mom and aunt were trying to get the doors open, instead of trying to get the baby out.  The purpose got confused somewhere in the midst of the process.

Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:4 "No man that wars entangles himself with the affairs of this life...."  Paul also tells us in Colossians 3:2 "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."  There are so many things in this world that can distract you; some good and some bad.  Don’t let the devil get you distracted, but keep your focus and keep your attention on God. 

Pray for deliverance from distractions.

2. Discouragement

Psalms 43:5 Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?...

Another one of Satan’s most potent weapons is trying to make you discouraged.  If he can discourage you, maybe you’ll give up. Discouragement is a lack of hope.  It is when this little voice whispers in your ear;

· you will never win,

· you can’t do it,

· you don’t have what it takes,

· you are not smart enough,

· you are not good enough,

· nothing has changed, nothing will ever change…

· you might as well give up

The Devil wants you to believe that things are worse than what they really are, and that you are the only one who cares.  No one else cares about you.  He wants you to think you are all alone, and there is no hope.  Life is hopeless.  If he can get you felling discouraged, he can defeat you. 

But don’t be discouraged!  You are not alone.  You are not all by yourself.  God cares.  We care.  And there is hope.  The rest of this verse in Psalms says, “…put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.”   Satan wants you to think that the situation is hopeless, but there is always hope, because God will deliver you.

Pray for deliverance from Discouragement.

3. Disillusionment

Disillusionment is the state of being disenchanted or disappointed by unfulfilled expectations.  Disillusionment is when you think things should go one way, but they go another.  It is when you have big dreams that are not fulfilled or big expectations that leave you empty and frustrated.

Proverbs 13:12 "Hope deferred makes the heart sick….

We are not talking about the hope that comes from God, but false hope that comes from others sources like; people, ourselves, personal entitlement, and the world.  If we let Satan build our hopes up, then it will all come crashing down leaving us feeling hopeless.  We have to be careful and guard ourselves against disillusionment by placing our hope only in God and none other.  Frederick William Faber said “There are no disappointments to those whose wills are buried in the will of God.”

Pray for deliverance from Disillusionment

4. Discontentment

1 Corinthians 10:10 says "Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer."  It seems by this scripture as if murmuring invites destruction.  This is another way that Satan attacks us—by making us unhappy and unsatisfied, and encouraging us to complain.

We live in a world of discontentment.  Half the world is unhappy because it can’t have the things that are making the other half unhappy.  People get what they want expecting it to make them happy, to find out that it doesn’t make them happy either.  Discontentment is not about what you have to make you happy, but the state of being happy with what you have.

· Paul told the church in Philipi in 2:14 “Do all things without murmurings…"

· Samuel Butler said “Complainers are the greatest persecutors.” 

Even in the church we have so many unhappy, discontent people who do nothing but complain.  You cannot give praise to God and complain at the same time—it is impossible. If Christians spent as much time praying as they do grumbling, they would have nothing to grumble about.     

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote Nine requisites for contented living:

1. Health enough to make work a pleasure;

2. Wealth enough to support your needs;

3. Strength enough to battle with difficulties and overcome them;

4. Grace enough to confess your sins and forsake them;

5. Patience enough to toil until some good is accomplished;

6. Charity enough to see some good in your neighbor;

7. Love enough to move you to be useful and helpful to others;

8. Faith enough to make real the things of God;

9. Hope enough to remove all anxious fears concerning the future.

Pray for deliverance from Discontentment.

5. Discord (division)

1 Corinthians 1:10-11 "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you."

I have seen Satan destroy many lives by bringing about division and discord in the family of God.  And as you can see, this tactic has been used since the birth of the church; in this passage Paul is dealing with the same things we deal with today.

There are four ways the devil brings about division in the church

1. Selfishness; which says “do it my way or no way.”

2.  Favoritism; which says “our way is better than your way.”

3.  Narrow-mindedness; which says “we’ve never done it that way.”

4. Lack of Fellowship; which says “you go your way and I’ll go my way.”

One church leader wrote, “The secret of every discord in Christian homes, communities and churches is; that we seek our own way and our own glory.”

A.W. Tozer said “It is too bad that anything so obvious should need to be said at this late date, but from all appearances, we Christians have about forgotten the lesson so carefully taught by Paul: God’s servants are not to be competitors, but co-workers.

Mike Yaconelli wrote, “The problem with the church today is not corruption. It is not institutionalism. No, the problem is far more serious than something like the minister running away with the organist. The problem is pettiness. Blatant pettiness.”

Philippians 1:27 "Only let your conversation be as it becomes the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;"

This is our greatest testimony we as a church can have; that we stand fast in one spirit, and with one mind are striving together for the gospel.  Don’t let the enemy drive a wedge between us.  Be mindful of how he attacks.  Be mindful that he is always trying to sow discord among us.

Pray for deliverance from Discord

6. Disassociation

Hebrews 10:25 says "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching."

The devil loves it when believers do not fellowship: he loves it when we distance ourselves from each other.  Communion is strength; solitude is weakness. Alone, we are an easy target for the stalking lion. The devil would like to isolate believers just like predators separate their prey from the herd, thereby weakening it and easily killing and devouring it. Billy Graham said “Churchgoers are like coals in a fire. When they cling together, they keep the flame aglow; when they separate, they die out.”

We are a Community, and real community is a group of people who have learned how to care for each other (no matter what.)  Church is not a perfect place.  Do you know why?  because it is full of imperfect people!  But church is a wonderful place; it is a place where we can come together, worship together, learn together, fellowship together, and care one for another.  A place where we can be real about our problems, and real about the help we need.  Don’t let Satan single you out from the herd and get you by yourself where you are vulnerable to attack.  But stay with the group; there is safety in numbers.

Pray for deliverance from Disassociation.

So there you have Six tactics of the Evil One;

Distraction, Discouragement, Disillusionment, Discontentment, Discord, and Disassociation

Now that you know how he attacks, let’s look at how to face those attacks

Four Principles for meeting the attacks of The Evil One

Part of the problem is that we live in a society that has fictionalized the existence of the devil. According to a national survey conducted by the Barna Research Group, most Americans do not even believe in Satan.

· 60 percent of American adults – six out of ten – believe that Satan “is not a living being but a symbol of evil.”

· Only 25 percent “believe strongly” that Satan is a real being.

· And 45 percent of those who describe themselves as “born again” deny Satan’s existence.

Satan is real.  He is the enemy of God and the enemy of all of mankind…and he is especially the enemy of those who follow God.  If we are born again as children of God, then we must be prepared to meet his attacks.  Here are four principles to help you meet the attacks of the Enemy.

1. The Principle of Respect.

The Bible says in 1 John 4:4 that we need not fear Satan because, “ …. He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”  But too many Christians rely on fleshly strength to deliver them. We must remember that our confidence does not lie in ourselves, or in our own ability to counteract evil, but rather in the character and strength of our Father in Heaven who delivers us. In Jude 9 we see that Even the great archangel Michael did not dare take Satan on alone, but called on the Lord to rebuke him. 

Satan is not to be feared, but he is to be respected.  And to respect him does not mean we hold him to some high regard, but rather we understand that in ourselves we are no match for him.  So when you are attacked by the evil one, remember that the one inside of you is greater than him, but if you face the attacks in your own power, you will surely lose.  You need God’s help to overcome Him.  This is why Jesus said to pray, “deliver us from the evil one.”

2. The Principle of Removal

We talked about this a little bit last week, so we will not spend much time on it today…but it is important enough to repeat. (maybe we should keep repeating it until we get it.) 

Our heavenly Father endows us by His Spirit with the Spiritual common sense that He expects us to use in avoiding temptation. 1 Timothy 6:11 says, “But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.”  Use wisdom in where you go, who you go with, what you look at, and what you listen to.  Know your vulnerabilities, and stay away from those areas where you are more likely to be tempted.

If you were in a physical war, you wouldn’t get up out of your bunker in the middle of a fight, and walk over into the enemy’s camp to just “hang out”…you would be dead in a matter of minutes.  Use wisdom!  Use the brains that God gave you!  Stay out of enemy territory.

3. The Principle of Resistance.

A very important part of spiritual warfare is resistance; the Bible tells us to resist the devil.  The word “resist” literally means “to stand your ground.” How do we do that?  Because we know “resisting” temptation doesn’t work…so how do you resist the devil?  Let’s look at some scriptures;

1 Peter 5:8-9 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

What does this passage teach us about resisting? 

· Be self controlled.  If you want to resist the devil, you have got to use self control…you have got to get yourself under control.  Self control is learning when to say when, and knowing when enough is enough.  When you exercise self control, resisting the devil comes easier, especially considering his attacks are usually in our areas where we lack control

· Be alert.   Don’t Fall asleep.  Satan would love to catch you napping…catch you with your guard down…catch you relaxing.  If you want to resist the devil, you have got to stay alert.    

· Stand firm in the faith.  You resist the devil by standing firm in the faith.  Studying the word of God.  Reading the word of God.  Spending time in Prayer.  Going to church.  Being a disciple.  It makes it easier to resist the devil when you your faith is on a solid foundation and you are not swayed this way and that by circumstances.  

· Know you are not alone.  You are not the lone ranger.  You are not all by yourself.  You are part of a community of believers who are resisting the devil and succeeding at it.  You can find encouragement and help from others.

Here is another scripture…

James 4:6-8 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to Godand he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

What does this scripture tell us about resisting the devil…

· Live a life of humility.  God resists the proud, but he gives grace to the humble.  Humility is remembering that your success does not lie in your own power, but in the power of God.

· Submit to God.  Submitting to God means being obeying God.  Obedience is so important.  God’s laws are for a purpose; they are pathways to freedom, they are protection from the devil.

· Stay close to God.  The closer you live to God, the harder it is for the devil to harass you.  David talks about being under the wing of the Almighty…stay under His wing…under His protection…do not stray away.  Like sheep who know to stay close to the shepherd, the only time you are vulnerable is if you stray…don’t stray…stay close.

· Wash your hands.  This speaks of repentance.  We need to be quick to repent of the things we do that are wrong.  If we live with unrepented sin in our lives, we do not have a strong foundation from which to resist the enemy.

· Purify your heart.  David prayed a prayer to God asking Him to search out his heart and reveal any impurities that may be there.  There could very well be some things in your heart that make you vulnerable to Satan’s attack.  Sin originates in the heart, therefore we need to keep our hearts purified through prayer, repentance, and the word of God.

Resist the Devil and he must flee from you.

And finally…the last principle for meeting Satan’s attacks…

4. Principle of Readiness.

If you want to stand against Satan’s attacks; be ready!  Jesus told us to “watch and pray,” and as I read earlier in Ephesians, Paul told us to make sure that we “Put on the whole armor of God…” This armor is given to us in order that we might stand against our adversary. 

This is how we stay ready… 

· The belt of truth. It was the soldier’s belt that held all of his armor in place. It is the truth that holds all that we believe in place. Since Satan depends on deception to maintain his power, our first line of defense is to know the truth.

· The breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate protected the vital organs (heart, lungs, kidneys etc.)  It is righteousness that protects us in those vital areas in our relationship with God. Any sin in our lives leaves an opening in our armor through which Satan can attack.

· The shield of faith. The Roman soldier’s shield was big enough that he could take shelter behind it from the arrows of the enemy. In order to quench the fiery darts of Satan, we need to have faith in what the word of God says and promises.

· The helmet of salvation. It is the helmet that protected the soldiers head.  It is the knowledge that we are saved that provides protection from Satan’s attacks of discouragement and doubt.

· The sword of the Spirit. God’s word is our only offensive weapon and it can only be used effectively when we know its promises.

I am ready for battle only when I dress for battle, and this is how we dress for battle.  These are things you need to know when you go into battle with the enemy

Our best defense against the evil one is a right relationship with God.  We don’t ignore the devil, but we also have to be careful not to get too focused on him either.  It is the light that overcomes and dispels the darkness; therefore if we focus on being the light, we will overcome and dispel the darkness.  Our main focus should be becoming more like Jesus, and becoming more like the light.

Let me close with a few scriptures;

Psalm 32: 7  You are a hiding place for me; You, Lord, preserve me from trouble, You surround me with songs and shouts of deliverance.

Psalm 91: 2-3  I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God; on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust! For [then] He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.

Psalm 18: 2  The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer; my God, my keen and firm Strength in Whom I will trust and take refuge, my Shield, and the Horn of my salvation, my High Tower.

Psalm 34: 19 Many evils confront the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

2 Timothy 4: 18  [And indeed] the Lord will certainly deliver and draw me to Himself from every assault of evil. He will preserve and bring me safe unto His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen (so be it).

Colossians 1: 13  [The Father] has delivered and drawn us to Himself out of the control and the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.