And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Matthew 6:13 (NIV)
I Pray Because – Teach Us How To Pray – Part 6
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Paul wrote to his friends in Rome and said:
“I’m a mystery to myself, for I want to do what is right, but end up doing what my moral instincts condemn.” (Rom 7:15 TPT).
Ever feel that way?
I’ll never:
eat chocolate again.
drink that much again.
gossip again.
cheat again.
let them down again.
say those things about myself again.
lie again.
go there again…
yep.
I’m mystery to myself, too.
When Jesus was teaching his disciples how to pray, how to live present WITH and TO God, he knew that God DOESN'T lead people into temptation. The temptation isn’t dualistic like that.
Temptation isn’t something that we can run away from, or even avoid. It’s not something we can really cast out or obliterate. Temptation is like a thorn in our side, a stone in our shoe. A decision we have to make daily. A crossroad.
Choose life, or death. Which will you choose? (Deut 30:19).
And I wish it was as easy as that. (Life is a mystery to me, too.) Sometimes I’ve unwittingly chosen death. Sometimes I've surprisingly stumbled upon life. Other times I couldn’t tell life from death at the fork in the road and took a good old risk on which was what, and won some and lost some, too.
I think the point is to include this messy mystery in our connection with God. (Deliver us from temptation.) Don’t hide it from him. Don’t allow the shame we sometimes feel due to our humanity to stop us from leaning in and searching the Divine out.
I think the point is more not to want to continue to live a life that separates us from God and others, more than being able to achieve that desire perfectly. Intention is, in fact, powerful. Because let’s face it, perfection is impossible. Sin isn’t the problem anyway, our lack of vulnerability and honesty and our resistance to growth and transformation is.
Make peace with yourself, make peace with your humanity. Breathe. Presence is a safe place for all of your mysteries.
And being delivered from the evil one? Some think this could be the devil, the little red guy who causes us much spiritual grief and wages war on the Kingdom of God. But we should consider the way Jesus First Century Jewish audience would have interpreted this line.
“Ha-satan” literally means “the accuser”, and “devil” comes from “diabolos” which literally means to slander or to accuse falsely. In this prayer, Jesus teaches us that being in touch with the spirit of God means to desire to be free from attitudes that would lead us to accuse and slander others, causing conflict and division.
Being delivered from the evil one could very well mean reconciliation to others.
Either way, deliver us from all kinds of evil, Oh God.
There are no saints and sinners in God's glorious Kingdom, just sons and daughters. And either we are all children of God (although, some may not realize it) or none of us are. God is not afraid of our brokenness, he invites it into his story, through his hands and feet and side and blood and water and wine and bread, and includes all of us, every part of us, into his Kingdom.
Love is not a victory march, it's a cold and its a broken Hallelujah. All the stories in all the scriptures testify to this. (As did Jeff Buckley… and Leonard Cohen.)
So sing, friend, sing.
CS Lewis said: “I pray because I can’t help myself. I pray because I’m helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time – waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God – it changes me.”
I pray “lead me not into temptation and deliver me from evil,” because “I can’t help myself… because I’m helpless… because the need flows out of me all the time – waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God- it changes me.”
Your turn… Leave us your comments below.
Go to Part 7 – God Bless You »
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