Matthew 6:9-15 (Amplified Bible) - “Pray, then, in this way [as a model or pattern.]: ‘Our Father, who is in heaven, Hallowed [set apart, keep and treat as holy, revere] be Your name. ‘Your kingdom come [A plea for God’s kingdom to be inaugurated on earth.], Your will be done [Including what God wishes to be done by the individual believer—His commands and precepts.] On earth as it is in heaven. ’Give us this day our daily bread. [life’s essentials] ‘And forgive us our debts [sins, moral failures], as we have forgiven our debtors [letting go of both the wrong and the resentment].
‘And do not lead us into temptation [lead us away from situations where we are vulnerable and have the opportunity to sin. God does not tempt people (see James 1:13) but does allow people to be tested.], but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Not found in early manuscripts]’
For if you forgive others their trespasses [their reckless and willful sins], your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others [nurturing your hurt and anger with the result that it interferes with your relationship with God], then your Father will not forgive your trespasses.
Self Awareness
Jesus knows that we are unable to follow His commands all the time AND that we will end up needing to forgive and be forgiven.
Skye Jethani explains the reason that we both need to forgive AND be forgiven ourselves: …receiving forgiveness is NOT enough. A healthy soul must also give it. Holding on to our anger and resentment, clinging to our identity as victim and refusing to release others from their debts will leave us incapable of receiving Gods love - or anyone else’s.
In recognizing evil we easily see it in others and have a much harder time seeing it in ourselves. To have a healthy soul we must recognize evil in ourselves and seek forgiveness and freely forgive those whose evil may have wronged us.
The former president of the Czech republic was quoted as saying: the line between good and evil does not run clearly between them and us, but through each person.
Leading or Following
When we pray “deliver us from evil” we acknowledge that we can’t deliver ourselves from evil. We need Jesus to lead us. Too often followers of Jesus give the impression that the bible is a list of rules that we follow to get to heaven. Wrong impression.
Michael J Wilkins in the NIV application commentary of Matthew says that one of the motivations for doing good (instead of evil): is love in response to God’s love for us. To have experienced real love from God will move us mightily to love him and to love others. We might then be motivated to emulate Jesus, as a disciple will become more like (their) master.
Here again Skye Jethani helps us understand that it is not just about the removal of sin from our lives. God doesn’t just deliver us from something (evil/sin) but to something else. In this case God our heavenly Father, is leading us into His presence.
Reflection
- Is there someone you need to forgive? What is something you can do today to start the process? (ie phone call, text, email, visit)
- Are you stuck trying NOT to sin? How can you spend more time in the presence of God today?
Resources
NIV Application Commentary (Matthew)
What if Jesus was Serious?