Deliver us from evil

“But deliver us from the evil”... Matthew 6:13

Once we have been called, and the call has been heard, we then will respond to it by repenting and believing. This now entitles us to a Father son relationship with the only true and eternal God. Through the process of regeneration (we are born again) we receive the spirit of God and His spirit comes to make his abode with us. I would like us to just ponder this thought and marvel at its meaning, spend time digesting it and once you have understood it, cry out, our God reigns! It means that God the Holy Ghost comes and inhabits this body, our vessel, and abides in us. That is why Paul the apostle has this to say and teach us... 1 Corinthians 3:6 Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwells in you?

I want us to look at the Lords reaction to those in the physical temple in Jerusalem at the time.

Matthew 21:12 And Jesus entered the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money changers, and seats of them that sold doves; There is much to say about this, but the only point I wish to now make is that there was a physical temple. In other words there was a place we people went to learn of God. It represented all that should be holy and true and what had it become? God house was to be called a house of prayer, but men had turned it into a den of robbers. With that in mind how can we learn from this? Well the physical temple is no longer a building but it is now made up of individuals, the body of Christ. So people with the spirit of God come together and now make up the church. What must we not do? I is obvious, we must not use our liberty in Christ to achieve personal gain at the expense of others. We must not be church goers to receive a blessing financially because that is exactly what those men were doing in the temple. They were selling doves and exchanging money and how did the Lord react? We see the Lord Jesus not impresses with what He saw and it compels Him to executing righteous anger and turn over the tables. No more needs to be said on this point.

“Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the spirit dwells in you?” With this thought now in mind I think of my life and how I have hashed it. The places I have gone, the things I have done and the unbelief I have walked in at times leaves me feeling very disappointed an inadequate. How I have spent my life not occupying the time with diligence and looking to walk here on earth as if I was in heaven. Yet with that thought in mind, it has not all been failure, disarray and disobedience. There have been times when I have stood on the mountain tops with the tranquillity of peace surrounding me and with the love of God reassuring me of this Father son relationship. Other times God in His mercy has disciplined me for my disobedience. Yet, through it all He remains faithful and how this love relationship grows from strength to strength as He continues to love me. How great is my God, to begin to tell my lips can only start?

However the instructing from God’s Word reminds us because we are the temple of God and that the spirit dwells in us we need, no we must, act in a certain manner. Let us therefore refrain from any appearances of evil, whatever they may be.

So now let us look at what will keep us from achieving this objective?

As children of God we now have insight to see where we once could not see. The word of God has now an illumination to it that gives us life. It is a path for our footsteps. Yet, there is an enemy that goes around like a “roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.” We also have a body that was born into sin but now we have God’s spirit that enables us to walk in the spirit. The spirit and the flesh are at war with each other; Paul again gives us teaching on how we need to combat against this evil.

Galatians 5:16-18 “But I say walk by the spirit and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh, for the flesh sets its desires against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so you may not do the things you please. But if you are lead by the spirit you are not under law.”

Here we have two enemies the devil and our flesh which will try and keep us from walking in the spirit. But we never lose sight of the truth and that the victory over both these enemies was accomplished on Calvary by our very own Saviour, the Lord Jesus. So if we are “lead by the spirit you are not under law.” How then do I walk in victory and walk in the spirit. This topic has no end it is vast and full of gold nuggets. I address one point only, “but deliver us from evil”. We have established that evil come from the devil but it also comes from the flesh. When we look at our verse mentioned above, “but deliver us from evil.”

Who must deliver us from evil? This is where in now gets exciting. Our Father in heaven will deliver us from evil. But I will be as bold to say if we are not praying and asking Him to lead us not into temptation and to deliver us from evil, then I think until we learn this truth we might walk in circles for a very long time. How Can I make such a statement you may ask? It was the Lord himself who taught us how we should pray and in that teaching He instructs us to pray to the Father and ask Him to not lead us into temptation and to deliver us from evil. Let me now conclude by reminding us that God is Sovereign and the whole of creation, seen and unseen is subject to His rule. That is why we need to trust and depend upon Him. The Lord sometimes allows his children to be driven into a corner so that they by experience may learn the necessity to depend upon Him. Whatever our mornings needs may be, let us hasten to Him while he waits to meet us.

Signing off

Tyrone