“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. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."
I have been thinking about the next statement in this model prayer, "and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." What does this exactly mean to us and why did Jesus instruct us to pray this way?
The Christian is always in the process of being "led" by God in everything we do. Especially in the Old Testament the people of God were constantly aware of God's leading them. Consider the pillar of fire by night and the cloud of smoke by day. The Children of God were making every move according to the leading of their awesome God and this thought carried over and continues today.
We know according to the New Testament that God doesn't tempt us so what are we to make of this part of the prayer? Well, as I reflect on this I see how faithful our God is that He should lead us into the path of righteousness and right relationship to Himself. The Psalms especially speak of God leading us in His own ways. Along with leading us in the paths of righteousness it is also implied that He would lead us "away" from unrighteousness. Therefore, the plea to our Lord to lead us away from temptation is shows the desire of the believer to avoid the presence of sin completely. Our prayers to the Lord express confidence in the fact that our God and King has power even over the evil one.
This can also be interpreted to mean that we are asking God to deliver us from the trials that we face. As we consider this, we know that sometimes we face trials that are ordained by God. This plea could be our hearts cry for only the will of God to be done in us and to us. The Lord has promised us not to put more on us than we can handle, but I believe in this sense the prayer is asking for God to grant us the wisdom not to enter into trials of our own making. Knowing that we are where God wants us, doing what God wants us to do, when God wants us to do it gives us confidence that we can trust Him in whatever circumstance we find ourselves.
I pray that I can have that confidence and know that where God leads is peace, love, and light. Then I can say, "Yet though He slay me, still will I praise Him." That is what I have been thinking..."
We know according to the New Testament that God doesn't tempt us so what are we to make of this part of the prayer? Well, as I reflect on this I see how faithful our God is that He should lead us into the path of righteousness and right relationship to Himself. The Psalms especially speak of God leading us in His own ways. Along with leading us in the paths of righteousness it is also implied that He would lead us "away" from unrighteousness. Therefore, the plea to our Lord to lead us away from temptation is shows the desire of the believer to avoid the presence of sin completely. Our prayers to the Lord express confidence in the fact that our God and King has power even over the evil one.
This can also be interpreted to mean that we are asking God to deliver us from the trials that we face. As we consider this, we know that sometimes we face trials that are ordained by God. This plea could be our hearts cry for only the will of God to be done in us and to us. The Lord has promised us not to put more on us than we can handle, but I believe in this sense the prayer is asking for God to grant us the wisdom not to enter into trials of our own making. Knowing that we are where God wants us, doing what God wants us to do, when God wants us to do it gives us confidence that we can trust Him in whatever circumstance we find ourselves.
I pray that I can have that confidence and know that where God leads is peace, love, and light. Then I can say, "Yet though He slay me, still will I praise Him." That is what I have been thinking..."
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