Please continue standing as we read what is most commonly known as “The Lord’s Prayer”
Matthew 6:9-13 (KJV)
“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.
“And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
Over the last couple of weeks we have been taking a look at The Lord’s Prayer and today we come to verse 13 which says …
Matthew 6:13
“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”
Now we know that God does not temp us to sin but He does allow us to be tested and in that testing we may, of our own selves, be tempted to sin. However, whether we ever reach the point of temptation the Lord has promised to make a way that we can be delivered from evil.
This verse can also be translated;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
James 1:13 tells us, - “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone …”
And we are told that God is actually an active Participant to help us overcome temptation in
1 Corinthians 10:13 (ESV)
“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”
Wow! What a faithful God we have!
This brings up a grave error which has been embraced by much of American Christianity and that is the belief in the concept of a carnal Christian, a Christian who lives in sin.
I am always amazed by the timing that is brought about by the hand of God.
The song that Christine and Vicki sang this morning is a song that I love and that I hate, depending on the perspective. The title of the song is, "Sinner Saved by Grace."
I love the song because it reveals the great truth that before we come to Christ for salvation we are slaves to sin and God reaches to us through the sacrifice of His One and Only Son on the Cross of Calvary and saves us!
I hate the song because it leaves you with the impression that even though I am saved I am still a sinner, the only difference being that I am now a saved sinner! The only difference being one of position in the sight of God with no change in behavior!
“Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil!”
Suppose there was a car repair shop that employed only the best mechanics in the world. When this repair shop worked on your car they would always correct the problem perfectly with only the best parts available! They would be the best repair shop in the world but before you could take the car out of the shop they would put a bumper sticker on it that says, “This car repaired at A1 Shop - it will break down for sure!”
Even though they would be the best repair shop in the world no one who saw the sticker would want to go there! Would you?
“Deliver us from evil.” What does it mean???
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Call someone up for a skit! Assure them that they will not need to speak but you will “reflect” their responses so that the congregation will know what they are thinking and asking.
Put a sign around their neck that says “Sinner”
Have a conversation with them like …
Hey Matt. How ya doin’? Not good, huh? That’s too bad.
Me" I’m doing fine. Why? Well, it’s because I love Jesus; I’m a Christian.
How does that help? Well, I used to life a life of sin.
The Bible says that we have all sinned!
Every one of us and sin separates us from God. In fact God HATES sin!
The Bible also says that the wages of sin is death, eternal death in Hell and while we are on earth sin will result in the death of many of our relationships and lead to all sorts of problems.
But here’s the good news, even while we were yet sinners God sent His Son to die on the cross as a payment for our sins!
The Bible also says that if we repent of our sins God will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Repent means we need to turn away from our sins and cling to God and follow Him all the days of our lives!
Then we ask Him for forgiveness and He makes us into a new creation!
We are children of God?
Do you want to do that?
Now, put a white sheet over him and place a big wooden (12”) cross around his neck and bid him farewell.
You walk to the other side of the platform turn around and walk back as if your are seeing him for the first time in a few days.
As you walk sing, “What a Friend we have in Jesus”.
Once again you will be reflecting their responses so that the congregation knows what they are saying …
Hey Matt, how ya doin’?
That’s GREAT! What you’ve stopped getting drunk and doing cocaine every night? That’s awesome!
You told your girlfriend about the Lord and she got saved?
You sent her back home to live with her parents until you get married?
And … you haven’t robbed a bank in over three days?
That’s awesome!
What do you mean it’s great to live a life free from sin.
I got news for you buddy, you’re still a sinner. We all are.
(At this point you pick up a big "sinner" sign and put it around his neck.)
Well, yes, I did tell you that God HATES sin!
Well, yes, I did tell you that sin separates us from God.
And, yes, I did tell you that the wages of sin is death.
Yes, I did say that we needed to repent and turn away from our sins.
Yes, I did say that Jesus makes you into a new creation, the old is gone and the new has come.
No, I wasn’t lying …
What’s the difference between before and now?
Hey!!! Where are you going?
You’re going to pick up a 12 pack of beer, call your girlfriend and ask her to move back in and check out a bank you want to rob?
Why ?????
(Announce to the congregation) And now for an alternate scenario ...
Hey Matt, how ya doin’?
That’s GREAT! What you’ve stopped getting drunk and doing cocaine every night? That’s awesome!
You told your girlfriend about the Lord and she got saved?
You sent her back home to live with her parents until you get married?
And … you haven’t robbed a bank in over three days?
That’s awesome!
What's the matter, Matt? Did you just remember something?
You told a lie this week? You're still a sinner and you know that God hates sin?
Yes, you're right, He does, but, here, let me take this sinner sign off from you.
You are no longer a sinner you are a new creation, a child of the Living God!
Now, you may sin from time to time and we always regret when that happens and we always repent and ask forgiveness. As we grow in maturity in Christ we will sin less and less.
Let's ask the Lord right now to forgive you for that sin and to help you to never repeat it!
Praise the Lord!
Now, remember, you are a child of God! Don't wear that sinner label any more but cling to Christ.
Whenever, you are tempted to sin, pray, and if you want to, you can call me and I'll pray with you.
God bless you Matt! You're a child of the King!
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“Deliver us from evil.” What does it mean???
The Church of The Nazarene has what it calls a doctrinal distinctiveness and that is the belief, based on the Bible, that we can live holy lives. Not that we are saved and after that God sees us as holy but that we can actually be delivered from the power of sin over us by the transforming power of the Holy Spirit living within us!
Where on earth in Scripture is THAT found???
Romans 6:1-2
“What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?”
Romans 6:10-12
“The death [Jesus] died, He died to sin once for all; but the life He lives, He lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.”
1 John 3:5-10
“But you know that [Jesus] appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin. No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him.
“Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as He is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning.
“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.
“This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.”
In John 8:34 Jesus says,
“Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.”
And He says in Matthew 6:24
“No (slave) can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
And, there are many other Scriptures which could be used.
So, how did this concept of sinning Christians come about???
It may have come about partly because some people may not actually be Christians. They may claim to be Christians but they are actually in love with the thought of spending eternity in a beautiful place instead of in hell.
Let me give you an illustration:
Suppose a young woman comes from a very poor family. At her home there was hardly any furniture. In the summer it was sweltering hot and in the winter it was so cold you could see your breath. And she knew that one day she would have to leave that home and she would have to go out onto the streets to live and beg all the days of her life.
Now, suppose that she was to befriend a young man from a wealthy family. And suppose whenever she went over to visit she didn’t pay much attention to him but just wandered around the house looking at all of the beautiful furnishings and enjoying the warmth in the winter and the coolness of air conditioning in the summer.
And, suppose one day she is expelled from her home she runs to the home of her friend and boldly asks him to marry her. What would he say? From his observations he would know that she actually had very little interest in him but was only really interested in the fine comforts that she would enjoy living in a fine home. What would he say?
Many of those who call themselves Christians are like that today.
Many of those who call themselves Christians have very little interest in Jesus.
They think about heaven knowing that they will go somewhere when they die. Did you ever wonder why the Lord did not give us better descriptions of heaven? Perhaps it was because He knew that our hearts would long after heaven instead of Him!
They know that they do not want to go to hell when they die so heaven is the better option.
Many of those who call themselves Christians never mention seeing Christ when they get there, never mention worshiping at His feet and singing praises in His presence. But they will talk endlessly about seeing their loved ones, or having renewed bodies or even seeing their pets, but, Jesus is just an afterthought which we will someday get around to seeing.
This seems to be a point of divergence, are you a Christian because you want the benefits or are you a Christian because you love Jesus. One is a Christian and one is not. This will determine if you are a carnal Christian or a Redeemed, Reborn, Recreated, Holy Spirit filled child of God!
You see, if you are in love with the thought of being a Christian or the desire to end up in heaven instead of hell you may not actually be saved. And, as an unsaved person you will not have the power of the Holy Spirit living in you so that you can overcome sin. Hence there will be a need to create a term like carnal Christian.
Now, don’t get me wrong, many have come to Christ out of fear of hell or wanting to escape from the terrible tragedies brought about by sin, but, in true salvation this self-centered motivation will eventually transform into a love for Jesus and His kingdom here on earth.
You see, the great commandment is not “love the benefits of being a Christian with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength” but “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart and all of your soul and all of your mind.”
The first will result in a life still in bondage to sin. The second will fill you with the power of the Holy Spirit enabling you to be freed from bondage to sin and engaged in the kingdom of God.
You see, when Jesus told the disciples to pray
“Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Is it just wishful thinking on His part or a yearning that could never be fulfilled? NO! NEVER!!!
Because when we sincerely pray to God Our Father, who is in heaven with reverence, awe and humility in our hearts He knows that when He delivers us from evil, enabling us to lead a holy life, it will allow the fulfillment of His and our top priority. And that top priority is that His kingdom will come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven!!!
Would you be free from your burden of sin
There's power in the blood, power in the blood
Would you o'er evil a victory win
There's wonderful power in the blood
