Hot Water

I’m in Hot Water

My upstairs bathroom has a plumbing problem. The water has one temperature and that temperature is 3 degrees cooler than the Phoenix sun. So in effort to bathe the children while we have the plumbing problem we have to run the water earlier thank anticipated in effort for it to cool in time for a bath, in order to make sure the kids get in the bed on time.

In life it works a little different, many times we do not know we are in hot water until it is too late. Many people engage in relationships, occupations, and responsibilities that they do not believe will put them in hot water until it’s too late. The issue with hot water is, is does not take long for you to get burned. The same water that quenches your thirst can be at a temperature hot enough to burn your tongue, or leave you with 2nd and 3rd degree burns. The hot waters of life can leave you scarred for life, nonetheless we serve a God that has the ability to deliver you from the hot water of life no matter the temperature. Isn’t it a good thing that we have a God that will jump in to the waters of life and rescue us, even when we deliberately jump in to the water on our own.

Understand all hot water situations are different some situations are beneficial because they make us stronger, these are called test. One thing that we have to understand is there is a difference between a test and a temptation. Test make us stronger, but some temptations can destroy us. The interesting thing about test, is a lack of faith can cause us to fail, nonetheless the we serve a God that can deliver us from failure, and grant us with an even greater triumph.

It’s interesting to note the setting being staged at this moment. Jesus teaches us how to pray as a result of hypocritical displays of righteousness versus the mechanical formalism of doing things in order to check a box. This is the balance of lifestyle many Christians find themselves in.

Some of us live like the hypocritical pharisee and some of us approach the throne of grace with humility as the man who couldn’t lift his head up to the heavens.

But in order for this portion of the petition to make sense many of us have to understand the difference between being lead into something and being delivered out of something.

Where we struggle is we allow unstable people to lead us into hot water and wallow in it until they deliver us. This is what failure to forgive looks like. Toxic people lead you to hot water, and pride keeps you burning and miserable and refusing to be delivered unless the person who led you delivers you.

Jesus says “and do not lead us into temptation”

We do know that God allows us to be put to the test. Understand there are different meanings of temptation.

Peirasmos or temptation has multiple meanings. In this case it means to attempt to learn the nature of character of something, trial. Or an attempt to make something wrong, temptation or enticement to sin.

What we can exclude in this meaning based on the context of is the enticement to sin. states “Let no one say when he is tempted, I am tempted by God; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.

In this instance what we witness is a test, similar to what Job when through. “Then the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered by servant Job…And the Lord said to Satan, Behold all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person”.

Here’s the climax of the story, this is where the test becomes real.  But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Job, in the midst of a test, his wife encourages him to curse God and die. Deliverance looks different based on who you trust.

The test that God allows in our life usually have an exam, and when we get to this moment how will we respond? Deliverance can only if we refuse to give up. When we try to create our own sense of deliverance or find deliverance in anyone but God we fail this test.

Life in itself is a test, there are individual test in life, but the grade will be given at judgement. There’s a eschatological expectation with everything we go through. How we handle problems, how we bounce back from sin, how we live our life determines how God responds to us once our earthly life is gone.

Judas chose a different route of deliverance, his taking of his own life removed the ability of God being able to deliver him.

Some folks see suicide as deliverance. Some people see alcohol and drugs as deliverance from a trial. Some people see self hurt as deliverance. It may distract us from the problem momentarily, but it does not deliver us from the issue at hand.

What we are searching for is deliverance. Regardless what struggle, frustration or issue you are having right now you want to be delivered. It’s one thing to close the mouths of the lions, and we are thankful for that God, but I still want to be out of this den. I know you’ve allowed me to use my gifts in prison like Joseph, but dear Lord I’m looking for deliverance, I do not want to be in this place anything longer. I’m thankful for you allowing me to use what you have given me, I’m thankful for the protection but I want to be delivered.

Dear Lord, I’m thankful that you took the heat out of the fire in the furnace but I need deliverance from the furnace. Dear Lord, I’m thankful that you allowed me to slay Goliath, but I need deliverance from Saul too Lord.

Thank God for his strength and goodness “But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one”

Thankfully we have a God that protects us but also will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom.

Being pulled out of something is often times a one of the most humbling realizations of the fact that it could’ve been me. We typically have to be pulled out of things that should have killed us. The Evil One will wreck your life and set it on fire in hopes that you burn up in your trials, in hopes that your faith takes a blow and you begin lose faith in God because he didn’t “rescue” us. But praise be to God that even when we get in the wrecks of life we have a God that can pull us out of the burning vehicles of our mess to ensure us to safety.

Understand that the deliverance from the evil one, might be death which can lead to eternal life with God.

The prayer is a request for preservation. The reason we can be delivered is because the kingdom and the power belongs to God. And even in my deliverance God receives the Glory. You will get pats on the back, you will get hugs and encouragement that you persisted and were resilient, but God still gets the glory. None of us would be delivered if it was not for God.

The New King James Version. (1982). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.