“Lead Us Not Into...”
The King and His Kingdom
OKAY – this morning we are jumping back into our verse by verse study of the Gospel of Matthew.
Specifically ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ that powerful prayer that Jesus unveiled in His Kingdom Manifesto.
YEAH – I know it’s been a minute, since November 20th.
NOW - so far we have looked at the first 44 words of this prayer, and remember...
Our
calls us into community, into relationship. Understand, it is not just about ‘me and mine’ it is about us and our.’
Father
invites us into intimacy with the Maker of Heaven and earth. Yes God is the Sovereign King of the universe who: breathes out stars, holds oceans in the palm of His hands and stretches out the heavens like a curtain...BUT - He is also Father. (1 John 3:1)
Who art in the heavens
reminds us that Our Father is great, Our Father is near and that there is ‘always’ more going on than our eyes can see.
Hallowed be Your Name
calls us (me/you) to live lives that are different and distinct from the world around us... lives that passionately pursue a personal-practical-progressive holiness... bringing honor and glory to God’s name by the way that we live.
Not simply by the way that we talk, but by how we live out our lives.
Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven...
reminds us that we are part of a kingdom, that we are a people, called and empowered to show this world a different and better way to live... as we help to restore ‘garden image and intimacy’ throughout this broken world, one life at a time, Bringing...
Hope to the hopeless, Freedom to the captive
Food to the hungry, Drink to the thirsty
Belonging to the lonely, Purpose to the drifting
Salvation to the lost
Give us this day out daily bread
transforms us from:
fear to confidence – grumbling to gratitude
selfishness to selflessness – troubled to trusting
greed to contentment – merely living to life...
Reminding us that our greatest need this day and every day is to depend on and connect with our Father who art in the heavens, and with Jesus the bread of life!
AND...
forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Reminds us of the sheer power and beauty of God’s forgiveness of us and the absolute necessity that we do the same.
Wow Talk about 44 words that are just overflowing with power, purpose, peace, perspective, praise, confidence and hope. AMEN!
AND – this morning we will begin our dive into these next 11 words...
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Prayer
NOW – I want to begin today by taking a look at the stuff I have on this table for a moment.
UNDERSTAND – what you see on this table, are instruments of death. I picked them up at Lowes this week.
NOW – most bugs don’t know it…
BUT – they have an enemy.
AN ENEMY – that is bigger, smarter, faster, stronger and more determined than they are.
AN ENEMY – that stays up late at night and invests large sums of money to figure out ways to lure little bugs and other pests to their death.
AND – on this table are some of the methods that this enemy has come up with.
AND LISTEN – bugs will choose to enter into these things. LIKE – they will willingly choose the very things that will lead to their death.
QUESTION – why do they do that?
WHY - would they choose to enter into something that is designed for no other purpose than their death and destruction?
WELL YOU SEE – their enemy has done extensive research and in that research they have discovered that you cannot say to a bug or any other pest… “Choose death” and have them choose it…
THEREFORE – everyone of these things involve deception… THEY – involve the promise of life.
YEAH – a bug looks at them and thinks, “man, that sure looks good, it smells good… and I bet it tastes even better.
OKAY – let’s take a look at some of these instruments of death…
Power-Kill Mouse Trap
outsmarting rodents since 1898.
Easy to use... large trip petal... convenient... clean and humane.
pull back kill bar until it clicks and the trap locks in place
apply bait in the trough provided
Roach Motel
Roaches check in, but they don’t check out.
Raid ant baits
ants are attracted by the bait
ants eat the bait and return to the colony
bait id shared with the queen and others, killing the entire colony
kills ants for up to 3 months
Terro (Spider and house hold insect traps)
Traps and kills: spiders, ants, roaches, crickets and other crawling insects
Flowtron BK-40D Electronic Insect Killer
Patented high efficiency non clogging killing grid
“A 40 watt ultraviolet light excites insects and lures them into the electric grid, where they are electrocuted and fall harmlessly to the ground.” Got to love it.
“This model whacks bugs day and night. Death to flying insects”
YOU SEE – bugs look at the light and they think, “wow, that really is a cool looking light, it’s awesome. YOU KNOW - I think I’ll just cruise on over for a closer look… then zap.
OKAY – humor me for a minute, like you haven’t already, right? Or like you don’t every week. BUT ANYHOW – let’s walk down that humor Steve path again… SO – let’s try to get inside a bugs head and think like a bug.
NOW – you would think that after awhile, these bugs would wise up. I MEAN - you’d think that they would notice that lying in the tray underneath the light, are the bodies of hundreds of their little friends… You know, other impulsive bugs who have gone before them.
AND LISTEN – electrocuted, dead, toasted… on the bottom of a bug zapper is not where they intended to end up.
BUT – as we’ve mentioned the last 2 weeks, It’s...
Direction not intention that determines our destination.
BUT STILL – you would think that there would be at least one thoughtful bug, who would say, “Whoa!!!! Wait a minute. Yeah, I’m starting to see a pattern here, All my friends who have flown that way, they never come back.
NO - I’m not going to fly any…closer….. but it really is a beautiful light…. ZAP!!!
BUT – no bug ever does…
APPARENTLY – they all say to themselves,
“I know what I’m doing. I’m strong enough. I’m smarter than the other guys lying in the bottom the bottom of the tray. I’m much too clever. I can handle this attraction without getting zapped.
Even if everyone else gets zapped I never will.
AND – we know what happens, don’t we.
WE KNOW - the rest of the story, they like their friends end up at the bottom of the tray, dead, crispy, fried...
electrocuted by a 40 watt ultraviolet light bulb…
YES - there are ways that seem right to a bug, but they only end in death…
BUT ONLY – a bug would be that stupid, right?
Only a bug would go flying mindlessly into the same trap that countless other bugs have died in, right?
Unfortunately we know this is not the case
I MEAN – if we listen closely we will hear it.
WE – will hear the 40 watt ultraviolet light of the world crackling like a bowl of rice crispies as you pour milk on them.
Snap, crackled, pop, ZAP! ZAP!
UNDERSTAND – Zapping is no respecter of persons…
The Rich… ZAP!
The poor… ZAP
Teenagers… ZAP!
The elderly… ZAP!
Pastors... ZAP!
Construction workers, teachers, home makers, students, pastors, doctors, nurses, salesmen, business leaders, republicans, democrats, Christians, non-Christians
ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!
OKAY – let me show you another instrument of death.
Anybody want to guess what kind of bug this one catches?
NOW – the book of Genesis doesn’t say what kind of fruit it was, but we’re told that in the garden there was a tree that grew fruit and that it was forbidden.
AND – in Genesis 3:6 when the woman, when Eve saw that the fruit of the tree was; good for food, pleasing to the eye and desirable for wisdom – she flew right into the light and was zapped! AND - so was her husband Adam, who was flying right beside her.
NOW MGCC – you’ve got to wonder.
Every time you hear about another person who falls into temptation…
WHO: destroys their life, wrecks their marriage, rocks their family, turns upside down their world and does serious damage to their soul… WHY – does it happen…?
I MEAN – why do we choose to violate our values?
Why do we voluntarily give in to what we know is going to be destructive?
Why do we fly into the light?
Why do intelligent people who really do love God, engage in actions and behaviors that they know pulls them away from God, and that they will later be they ashamed of? Why?
UNDERSTAND – the bible says that a HUGE part of the reason is that like the bugs we talked about earlier.
I. We Have An Enemy
AND LISTEN – our enemy is bigger, faster, stronger, smarter and more determined than we are…
AND SINCE – Genesis chapter 3, he has stayed up night and day investing all of his time and energy looking for ways to lure us in… and ZAP us!
UNDERSTAND – the bible is very clear on this…
B/S - you may not know it. You may not like it. You may not want to think about it. You may want to ignore it.
You may choose to think that this is just ‘church talk,’ no big deal and doesn’t apply to you…
BUT - the truth is you have an enemy.
AN ENEMY - who hates you and who longs to destroy you…
AN ENEMY – who wants to see you (electrocuted, dead, toasted) on the bottom of his tray.
HEY – tell the person to your right and left ‘you have an enemy.’ Now repeat after me...
I have an enemy
And he is smarter than me
Stronger than me
More determined than me
YES – we have an enemy.
THIS - church has an enemy, your marriage has an enemy, your children have an enemy, your family has an enemy, your friends have an enemy… the people around you in this room have an enemy, our world has an enemy…
AN ENEMY - that is even now (as we sit in this room or watch online) is making plans for our destruction…
QUESTION – who here believes that the bible is true?
Who here believes that we can trust what it says?
AWESOME!
OKAY – checkout what the bible says about our enemy.
The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. - John 10:10
UNDERSTAND B/S - that is what this thief, that is what your enemy, that is what satan wants to do to your life, and the lives of those you love (steal, kill & destroy).
AND – do you know what?
As we look around us, as we gaze at the bottom of his tray, it obvious that he is doing a pretty good job accomplishing that purpose…
Snap, crackled, pop, ZAP! ZAP!
Paul says the following in Ephesians 6 about our enemy;
A final word: Be strong with the Lord’s mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.
For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. Eph 6:10-12
NOW - in these verses, Paul makes it quite clear that we are in a fight, that we are in a struggle, a struggle that is ultimately not against people made of flesh and blood...
BUT - against the devil.
Against an unseen enemy, against a wicked an enemy, against an enemy with mighty powers of darkness, against an enemy who has countless strategies and tricks up his sleeve (that he has be honing for centuries) – all designed to attract you to his 40 watt ultraviolet light, so that he can steal, kill and destroy you.
UNDERSTAND – his primary and all-consuming goal is to see you spiritually dead and separated from God forever.
PETER – also talked about this enemy in 1 Peter 5:8…
Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. 1 Peter 5:8
UNDERSTAND – satan is our great enemy…
AND he prowls around like a roaring what?
A roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
QUESTION...
Do you see the picture?
A lion in the bushes, watching his prey – looking for those who are weak or straggling behind. Waiting for the right moment to pounce.
AND when he finds that moment, he pounces and devours them…
AND LISTEN – he is prowling around our lives right now.
SURE – we can ignore it... but brothers and sisters that does not make him go away.
The final passage I want to look at that talks about our enemy is Revelation 12:17…
Let me give you a ‘very brief’ background of what is going on in this chapter… John is writing about the great spiritual battle that was fought and won when Christ put on flesh, lived… died and rose again. And in so doing really ticked off satan.
Then the dragon became angry at the woman, and declared war against the rest of her children, all who keep God’s commandments and confess they belong to Jesus. – Revelation 12:17
UNDERSTAND - satan (the dragon) is very angry... Why?
Because the blood of the lamb, because Jesus Christ defeated him on the cross…
AND SINCE - there is nothing more that he can do to Jesus, satan now turns his fierce anger against the church (the woman) – and against all those who keep God’s commands and who confess that they belong to Jesus…
Any Jesus followers out there?
Understand this powerful dragon has declared war on you.
QUESTION
Why do we choose to violate our values?
Why do we voluntarily give in to what we know is going to be destructive?
Why do we fly into the light?
Why do intelligent people who really do love God, engage in actions and behaviors that they know they will be ashamed of?
AGAIN – the bible teaches that part of that answer is that we have an enemy.
YOU KNOW – almost 500 years ago... Martin Luther wrote a hymn called, ‘A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,’ that speaks to this very thing that we are in a battle and that we have an enemy.
For still our ancient foe
doth seek to work us woe;
his craft and power are great,
and armed with cruel hate,
on earth is not his equal.
II. We Are In A War
YES - we have an enemy and we are in a war…
UNDERSTAND – we were not born into the wonderful world of Disney, but into a literal war zone!
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. – John 10:10
HEY CHECKOUT...
What John Eldredge wrote in book – ‘Waking The Dead.’
Have you ever wondered why Jesus married those 2 statements? Did you even know He spoke them at the same time? I mean, He says them in one breathe. And He has His reasons. By all means, God intends life for you. But right now that life is opposed. It doesn’t just roll in on a tray. There is a thief. He comes to steal and kill and destroy. In other words… yes, the offer is life, but you’re going to have to fight for it because there’s an enemy in your life with a different agenda.
– John Eldredge (Waking The Dead)
MGCC - like it or not. Whether you want to think about it or not… You have an enemy and you are in a war.
And so am I. Now, I don’t like that fact any more than you do. HOWEVER – the sooner we acknowledge this truth, the better chance we will have of standing our ground against Him.
YES – God’s intentions for us are life, but those intentions are opposed…
AND LISTEN – until we come to terms with reality of ‘this war’ we will misunderstand most of what happens to us…
QUESTION...
Have you ever (like me) wondered...
why is it such a struggle for you to live the life God has for you , the full and abundant life.
MAYBE – it’s not just that you keep messing up and blowing it, maybe it’s because you have an enemy.
MGCC – here’s the deal, the B/L...
Jesus wasn’t kidding when He said that we have an enemy who is seeking to steal, kill and destroy… the full life He died to bring us…
THEREFORE – we should not be surprised when our enemy
does just that.
AND HEY – do you know one of the times that he you and I the hardest...
During the month of January.
We have an enemy
We are in a war and…
III. Our Heart Is His Target
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. – Proverbs 4:23
You are not what you think you are. There is a glory to your life that your enemy fears, and he is hell bent on destroying that glory before you act on it… The Story of your life is the story of the long and brutal assault on your heart by the one who knows what you could be and fears it. - John Eldredge (Waking The Dead)
MGCC – you have an enemy and he is and will always be attacking your heart. Why?
BECAUSE – everything flows from the heart.
NOW – I don’t know about you I have had many heart attacks over the years...
Times when the enemy has attacked my heart with his lies.
Lies about who I am, Lies about where life can be found.
Lies that lure my heart into his light and I have gotten zapped.
AND THEN - he uses that ‘zapping’ to beat up my heart even more. You see he is both my tempter and my accuser.
We have an enemy, we are in a war, our heart is his target and...
IV. Temptation Is his Method
NOW – as we talk about Temptation… the fundamental weapon, of the evil one… I want us to look at a verse in 1 Corinthians 13 that is one of the classic verses on temptation in the entire Bible.
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. – 1 Corinthians 10:13
UNDERSTAND - this verse, teaches us 3 things about temptation… And the first one is found in the very first sentence.
"No temptation has seized you except what is common among man"
a) Expect temptation.
UNDERSTAND B/S - you will be tempted so don’t be surprised. Don’t get caught off guard.
AND LISTEN – when we let this truth sink in… ‘expect temptation’ – it will keep as awake and alert for the places that the roaring lion may be seeking to devour us…
AGAIN – no one is temptation free… and this means that your ability to identify and resist temptation is enormously important.
NOW - there is an experiment in psychology.
It was started a few decades ago. It’s been continued for many years. It’s about resisting temptation. The way that it works is an experimenter would leave a little kid–four years old or so–with some marshmallows.
They’d then say, "I’m going to leave the room. There’s one marshmallow here. If you wait until I get back, you can have two marshmallows. But if you eat it while I’m gone, you’ll only get the one marshmallow."
It’s a test to see if kids can resist temptation. Now, the original experiment was done many years ago, and they divided these little kids into a "grab the marshmallow now" group and a "delayed gratification/resist temptation" group.
AND CHECK THIS OUT - those who resisted temptation at the age of four grew up to be more socially competent, more decisive, to have a higher level of self-esteem, less anger-management problems, a lower rate of delinquency and a lower divorce rate than the "grab the marshmallow now" kids.
AND SO – I have one question for you...
what’s your marshmallow?
what’s the temptation you can’t or won’t resist?
UNDERSTAND – temptation is nothing more than a method of that our enemy uses to lure us into his light and away from the life that God has for us.
SO – what’s your marshmallow. What temptation of the enemy do you find difficult to resist, Maybe it’s
a problem with lust
gossip, anger, pride, lies, resentment, bitterness
experiencing pleasure being popular, an addiction
the desire for the things of this world
being judgmental of other marshmallow eaters.
SO – I’ll ask you again… what’s your marshmallow?
Do you know?
NOW – I’ll tell you who knows what your marshmallow is… your enemy (the thief, the lion, the dragon)
The second observation from 1 Corinthians 10 is that...
b) God Controls The Intensity Of Our Temptations
And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.
UNDERSTAND – as a Jesus follower there is no temptation that we will ever face that is not first filtered through the loving hands and caring eyes of the Father…
MGCC – our father is faithful and He will not allow our enemy to tempt us beyond our ability to resist.
QUESTION – does that encourage you?
It should… Everything has to get past your Father first…
BUT LISTEN – this also means that we can never rationalize giving in to sin by saying,
"I couldn’t help myself. I was just too powerful to resist."
UNDERSTAND - God doesn’t leave that excuse open to us. He didn’t intend to. James 4:7 says,
"Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
YES - He will flee, but it will take some resistance.
OKAY – here’s the deal.
We have a great helper - He’s with us all the time. And He watches us real close, and He knows just how much we can handle… great news, right?
BUT LISTEN - that means there are no excuses when it comes to this temptation deal.
"My circumstances are so bad," or "I’m so weak, I didn’t have any alternative,"
that is not the teaching of Scripture.
The 3rd observation...
c) God Always Provides A Way Out
But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
LISTEN – when temptation comes, we need to look around, because there is always a way out!
WE – might have to run or we may have to fight.
It could just be a big “NO!” OR – the exercise of spirit-led self control… but there is always a way out…
Expect Temptation
God Controls The Intensity Of Our Temptation
God Always Provides A Way Out
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
UNDERSTAND - Jesus concludes this prayer by talking about the realities of evil and about the need for our Father to lead us in such a way that we do not fall ‘into’ temptation and find ourselves doing evil.
NOW – that word ‘into’ is kind of huge to me.
YOU SEE – it’s one thing to walk by a pig pen, it’s another to fall into it. SO – Jesus conclude the model prayer by saying, ‘lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
BECAUSE - we have an enemy
BECAUSE – we are in a war
BECAUSE – we could end up doing evil
AND BECAUSE – none of the incredible stuff Jesus talks about in this prayer will ever become a reality in our lives, unless we overcome our enemy attacks and his plans to pull us away from Christ.
UNDERSTAND – in between us…
And being draw into real community ‘Our’
And really seeing God as our Father who art in the heavens
And living a life that brings honor, hallowed be Your Name
And having The Kingdom… This new way of life… reigning over us and expanding among us and throughout the world, Your Kingdom come Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven
And being transformed from fear-confidence, grumbling to gratitude, selfishness-selflessness, troubled to trusting, greed to contentment, living to life by those 7 words… give us this day our daily bread
And our receiving and giving forgiveness forgive us our debts as we have also forgiven our debtors
STANDS – a powerful enemy… “and on earth is not his equal…” AND – that is why Jesus concludes this prayer with these words, a prayer of protection…
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
B/S – we need to pray these 11 words every day, more than once, especially when we start our day.
SO THAT… - we will never forget that...
We have an enemy
We are in a war
his target is our heart, and
his method is temptation…
UNDERSTAND...
To be forewarned is to be forearmed
AND – what I want to do right now is to begin talking about what we can do to resist and overcome our enemy...
So that we will not be led into temptation.
NOW – there are many things that we can and must do to overcome our enemy and his temptations...
IN FACT – we have actually already talked about a few...
We need to...
Acknowledge and recognize that we are in a war
Know our enemy, we need to
Know his target (our heart)
Know his goal (to steal, kill and destroy)
Know his method/his battle strategy (temptation)
NOW – we are only going to talk about one more thing this morning, next week we will unpack several others.
V. Ask God For Help
YES – our enemy is too strong for us...
BUT B/S - he is not too strong for God…
YES – on own we are toast, electrocuted, dead, lying on the bottom of his tray.
BUT – with God’s help we can resist and overcome…
You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. – 1 John 4:4
A mighty fortress is our God,
a bulwark never failing
our helper he amid the flood
of mortal ills prevaling...
Did we in our own strength confide,
our striving would be losing,
were not the right man on our side,
the man of God's own choosing.
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is he;
Lord Sabaoth, his name,
from age to age the same,
and he must win the battle.
AS – God for help...
MGCC – I love you guys. I do. So I want you know this.
There is evil in our world.
Not all people are good. Not all people are trustworthy.
Not all things are true. Not all experiences will grow you in relationship with Our Father.
YES - this world is filled with sin and sinners and satan and demons and injustice and evil and folly and worldliness and darkness. Not everything’s good. Not everybody’s good.
YES – there is real evil in this world. AND IF – we are naïve and foolish and gullible we’re gonna get led into all kinds of temptation to sin and participate in evil.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
UNDERSTAND – these 11 words are a heartfelt prayer of a child saying,
“Father, I agree with you. I don’t want to be led into temptation so deliver me from evil. I don’t want to walk away from you. So keep me close to you.
I don’t want to dishonor, disobey, disrespect or disregard You. And so I am asking for You to please help me out. Because, sometimes I’m stupid and I’m foolish and when I’m tempted and I wander into doing evil.
Please help me to see what’s coming so I can resist and avoid it.
UNDERSTAND – Jesus calls on us to daily and often pray these words because we all have a marshmallow.
NOW - far too often we pray only after we sin. “God I’ve blown it. I’m sorry. Help.”
AND YEAH - if you sin and you’re in trouble, it a good thing cry out to God for help. Our Father is a good good Father who loves deliver his kids.
BUT LISTEN - it’s even better to pray in advance before you’re tempted. It’s good to pray in advance before you’ve fallen into evil.
SO... - Pray offensively. Pray before. Pray before.
Pray before you’ve blown it.
That’s why praying The Lord’s Prayer is so important.
That’s why we should ‘with thought and understanding’ pray this prayer every day and throughout the day.
It really does have the power to change everything.
UNDERSTAND - every one of us wrestles with this temptation business.
AND – when you do,
I want you to remember this little zapper.
YEAH - the next time you face temptation–and it may even be later today...
I want you to remember the damage it will do to your soul.
MGCC – giving into temptation can cause you to...
violate your integrity, destroy a relationship, damage your reputation, create guilt, shame and despair,
disrupt and hinder the possibility of worship
cause you to hide from other people,
lead you into hypocrisy and deception...
B/S... it’s just, it’s just bad.
Don’t do it! And remember God will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.
He will always make a way out.
Maybe you’ve been battling temptation for a long time. Maybe you’re discouraged.
Maybe the truth is the battle is not going at all that well. Maybe you have not even been making much of an effort. Maybe you are wondering right now, "Is there enough grace for me? Is there any hope? Will things ever be any better?"
YES – pray this prayer
Believe this prayer
YES - we have an enemy, and he is strong, but there is one who is stronger still. And he has already won the battle.
He can and will deliver us!
And though this world, with devils filled,
should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God has willed
his truth to triumph through us.
The prince of darkness grim,
we tremble not for him;
his rage we can endure,
for lo! his doom is sure;
one little word shall fell him.
