The Lord's Prayer (pt. 5)

Let’s begin this morning by reading the Lord’s prayer together.

Matthew 6:9–13 CSB

9 “Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

This is the last message in our series on the Lord’s prayer. We have looked at the first petition in the Lord’s model prayer. “Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy.” God is exclusive. He is our Father. God is personal because he is Father to us. God is transcendent. He is not subject to nature or nature’s laws. God is holy. God is absolutely unique.

We looked at the second petition in the Lord’s prayer. “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” We pledge allegiance to the kingdom of God. We humble ourselves before God. We fully submit to the will of God. We put God first in every area of our lives.

We spoke about “give us today our daily bread.” God provides everything we need. He is our source and our supply. He gives us what we need when we need it. We can boldly go to God asking him to provide what we need.

We talked about the need we have for God’s forgiveness and to forgive others. If we are withholding forgiveness from others, we have no right to seek God’s forgiveness. We pray to be forgiven by God and to have the strength to forgive others.

Today, we are going to look at the final petition in the Lord’s Prayer in verse thirteen.

Matthew 6:13 CSB

13 And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

When we first approach this verse, we are confronted with the word “temptation”. This seems like an odd word because we know that God does not tempt man to do evil.

James 1:13 CSB

13 No one undergoing a trial should say, “I am being tempted by God,” since God is not tempted by evil, and he himself doesn’t tempt anyone.

God does not solicit men to do evil. He doesn’t tempt us to sin. So, what is going on here? To understand, you need to understand the two words in the original language. The first word translated “bring” and the second word translated “temptation.” Frankly, I don’t know why the translators chose the words they did because they are a little misleading. The first word is “aisphero” and it means “to bring in or lead into”.

εἰσφέρω (aisphero / bring) - bring in or lead into

We might say it this way, “Do not let us fall victim.” Don’t let us become victims. There are things all around us which can cause us to fall, especially in these days of isolation. The news and media can make us fall to fear, anger, anxiety, and even despair. They are fear mongers and hate peddlers. I remember the old adage, “If it bleeds it leads.” The news media is doing and has done irreparable damage to our country.

The Internet is full of evil and many of us are spending countless hours on it. We are exposed to lust, greed, jealousy, and malice. We see what others have and we want it. We post things we would never say in public or want printed in the church bulletin.

For some of you being in such close proximity for such a long amount of time with your family is causing some strain. Your routines are interrupted, and we are realizing that life may never be the same again. These stresses can make us fall victim to feelings and actions we otherwise would not do. Don’t let us fall and become victims to “pairasmos”. The word “paiasmos”, here translated “temptation”, means “to examine, submit another to a test, to learn the true nature and character.”

πειρασμός (pairasmos / temptation) - examination, submit another to a test, to learn the true nature and character

Don’t let us become victims in times of testing. I think, right now, many of us are going through a time of testing. We are experiencing things we have never dealt with before. As a matter of fact, in our culture, some people even invent new ways to become victims as if it is desirable to be victimized. We should not desire to be victims, rather we should pray to be spared from difficult days of testing.

1. Pray to be spared from difficult days of testing.

When thinking about this, I turn to the example of Jesus. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed to be spared from the cross. He knew it was God’s plan and purpose from the foundation of the world, but he still prayed to have the cup of suffering pass from him.

Jesus told his disciples,

Mark 14:38 CSB

38 Stay awake and pray so that you won’t enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Pray that you won’t enter into temptation. Pray that you will not fall during a time of difficulty and examination. Testing is what brings our true character and nature to light. It can reveal good things and also character flaws. Right now, we, as a church, are going through a time of testing. For some of us, this time of testing will reveal our good character. As the Psalmist said, we will come through as gold.

For others, the time of testing will reveal poor character. People will allow fear, anxiety, and other negative emotions to drive their behavior. They will forget the teachings of Jesus and will lean to their own understanding. Some will say, “Well, online church isn’t real church anyway, so I don’t need to be a part of it.” Some will become unsupportive and will cast aspersions on the church leadership. We need to pray to be spared from difficult days of testing, but also, we pray to be delivered from evil and the evil one.

2. Pray to be delivered from evil and the evil one.

The word in translated “evil” could be translated in two ways because it is ultimately speaking about “that which harms”.

πονηρός (poneros / evil) - that which harms

Some translations say, “deliver us from evil” because evil can take many forms. Murder is evil. Rape is evil. Theft is evil. Greed is evil. Racism is evil. Natural disasters are evil. These days are evil. Much harm is being done to so many.

We pray to be delivered from evil. Are you praying to be delivered from this virus? Are you praying for President Trump and his team who are working on this disaster? Are you praying for a cure? I said this last week, but it’s up to God’s people to humble themselves, pray, and seek God’s face if we are going to see our situation change.

Are you praying for our economy? People are losing their businesses and jobs. Are you praying that this evil in our country might be used for good? What if this disaster led to revival? People are being forced to stop their pursuit of things. They are being forced to stop the way they have always done things. What if this was a catalyst for God to move in the lives and hearts of people in a way we have never seen. What if our nation turned back to God and committed once again to serve and honor God first? Pray to be delivered from evil. Pray to be delivered from the evil one.

Some translations say, “deliver us from the evil one” because the evil one, Satan, desires to do us harm. He is described as a roaring lion who seeks to devour.

1 Peter 5:8 CSB

8 Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.

He is described as an insatiable dragon who seeks to destroy everything and everyone he can. Jesus told Peter what Satan desired for him.

Luke 22:31 CSB

31 “Simon, Simon, look out. Satan has asked to sift you like wheat.

You must realize this. As a child of God, Satan desires to destroy you. He desires to make your witness for Jesus ineffective. He desires to see you fall. He wants to destroy this church. He loves to see the destruction of God’s people. For so long, he worked actively to destroy the Jewish people because they are God’s people. Now, he has an additional target, the church, the Bride of Christ, and he desires to pollute and destroy the church. He desires to destroy you. We pray to be delivered from the evil one.

In this section of the Lord’s prayer, we pray for protection.

Pray for God’s protection.

Sometimes, I think we are like turtles. I have a soft spot for turtles. You see these poor guys trying to cross the road. I don’t know what they are thinking or why they need to get to the other side of the road. Perhaps they think their shell will protect them. They carry their protection around with them and think they are okay. If life gets to be too much, I got my protection. I will just go into my shell. They don’t realize their self-protection is limited and they can quickly be turned into greasy spots on the road. This is why I have a soft spot for them. I have been known to stop my car and get them out of the road. I don’t do the same for snakes. I have no deal with them.

We can be just like turtles. We think our 401k’s are our protection. We buy silver and gold to hedge the stock market’s instabilities. We think we are protected by our plans and jobs. We should have these things and conduct ourselves wisely; however, we must realize an important fact. These “self-protections” are all limited, which is something many people are learning right now. One virus and everything is turned upside down. Our self-protection is only so good.

We need God’s protection. He has promised to be our fortress and our strength. He has promised to be our shield. He has promised to be our Great Shepherd. I am not saying that because we have access to God’s protection, we should be foolhardy and unwise. God has given us the ability to think and reason and we should utilize those disciplines. However, we should recognize that our self-protection only goes so far. Ultimately, we are to be reliant on God’s protection.

Proverbs 18:10 CSB

10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are protected.

In history, walls and towers provided security from potential invaders. Walls have always been about keeping people safe from outside threats. Towers have always been about being able to see threats coming from a distance so they could be dealt with before they become an issue. God’s name is our strong tower. God is our wall. God provides protection for his people.

There have been so many stories told about how God has supernaturally protected his people. One story is told about two Japanese sisters. Here is the story. “My sister and I were traveling in a lonely mountain village in Japan, and night was coming on when we started to return home. We committed ourselves into the hands of the Lord and felt certain he would see us through. As we were about to enter a thick wood through which our road ran, we saw two Japanese men in front of us, and we felt they meant mischief, and as we cried to the Lord to stand by us, there came a great black Newfoundland dog. It stepped between my sister and me as if to protect us and then barked fiercely at the men as if to tear them to pieces and chased them away. The dog guided us directly all the remaining three miles right to our door. Then stepping inside, the dog lay all night on the floor keeping vigil. In the morning it went away as mysteriously as it appeared.”—Glad Tidings.

Matthew 6:13 CSB

13 And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Pray for God’s protection.

Just after 9/11, Billy Graham’s daughter, Anne, was interviewed by the Early Show on CBS. The interviewer asked, “How could God let something like this happen?” She answered, “I believe God is deeply saddened by this just as we are, but for years we’ve been telling God to get out of our schools, our government, and our lives, and being the gentleman that He is I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and protection if we demand that He leave us alone?” (Lou Nicholes - Missionary/Author).

Let’s go together to God in prayer.

Father God, we come before you this morning in need of your protection. We don’t know the future, but we know you and we trust you. We know our future in you in secure and we know you are our fortress and strength. We know that you will provide protection for your people, but even if it is not your will and we must go through the trial, we know it will be your strength that sustains us. Give us courage and strength as we seek your face.

If it is possible to be delivered from this time of testing, we pray that you would deliver us, even today. We pray for our representatives who are making difficult decisions, Judge Tano, Governor Abbot, and President Trump. We pray that you would give them wisdom and insight. We pray that they would seek you and guide this community, state, and nation towards you.

We pray for those who are suffering right now. We pray for your healing hand to be on them and for them to have peace. We pray for those who are having financial troubles. We pray that you would provide good paying jobs for them and give them success as they seek to provide for their families.

We know you will provide. We know you will protect us. We know your way is perfect and we trust in you. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

I want to take a moment and talk to the one who is listening who hasn’t yet trusted in Jesus to be their Lord and Savior. You are not in a relationship with God. Let me tell you about who God is and the problem that we have. Our problem is our sin nature. We sin. We rebel against God’s ways. We do wrong things. Our sin separates us from God. This is amazing. God loved the world and he didn’t want us to remain dead in our sins. Sin leads to death. God doesn’t want anyone to die because he wants to be with us. The good news is that Jesus, who is God, came to earth and took on flesh. The Bible says that Jesus’ name would be Emmanuel, meaning God with us. Jesus who is perfect in every way became the sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus died in our place and rose from the grave to prove that everything he claimed is true. The Bible says that anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. The Lord is Jesus. Anyone who calls on Jesus’ name will be saved. You will be forgiven of your sins and you will be transformed.

You are not in a relationship with God. Let me tell you about who God is and the problem that we have. Our problem is our sin nature. We sin. We rebel against God’s ways. We do wrong things. Our sin separates us from God. This is amazing. God loved the world and he didn’t want us to remain dead in our sins. Sin leads to death. God doesn’t want anyone to die because he wants to be with us. The good news is that Jesus, who is God, came to earth and took on flesh. The Bible says that Jesus’ name would be Emmanuel, meaning God with us. Jesus who is perfect in every way because the sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus died in our place and rose from the grave to prove that everything he claimed is true. The Bible says that anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. The Lord is Jesus. Anyone who calls on Jesus’ name will be saved. You will be forgiven of your sins and you will be transformed.

You can’t work your way to him. You can’t be religious enough for him. You receive the free gift of eternal life through the grace of Jesus Christ. You call on his name and when you do, he will hear your prayer, forgive your sin, and make you clean. Your old life will be gone and your new life will begin. Come to Jesus this morning.

Pray with me, “Heavenly Father, forgive me for my sins, make me clean. I ask Jesus to be my Savior and to be the Lord of my life, first in every way. My life is not my own, I give it to you. Thank you for new life. In Jesus’ name, I pray.”

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, please contact me. You can contact us through the live chat on the side or you can email me, but we want to help you grow and understand the decision you have made to follow Jesus.

Also, if you need prayer or have another need, please contact me. We are praying for you and want to do our very best to stay connected with you, even during this time of physical separation.