The Lord's Prayer Blog Post Series by DUO Inspirations - - Part Five

“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.”
                             Matthew 6:13 (KJV)



 

Hi friends,

     How are you?  This verse is sort of a bottom line, summary, of our prayer to God and this post is the last post in this Lord’s Prayer devotion series.  I hope it has blessed you in some way to ponder the words of the Lord’s Prayer more closely and in depth.  I pray that you pray these words and not recite them.  I pray that I do the same.

     I believe that every word in the Bible means something and is meant to be there.  However, to be honest, I am not sure why “And lead us not into temptation” is part of this prayer.  I trust Jesus, and wouldn’t question their worth.  It just sounds kind of strange, knowing that our Father in Heaven is a loving God.  He wants the best for us and it is strange asking Him not to “lead us into temptation.”  Unless, maybe it is saying not to harden our hearts, as He did Pharaoh’s when we go against His will, but to give us more chances and more direction.  Often, once our heart is hardened and our mind is closed, we spiral downhill and we are not only tempted but sin in many ways.  What do you think?

     After consulting a friend, praying, and rereading this verse, I believe that the word “lead” is the important word in this phrase.  We are to put our trust in God and let Him lead us.  We are to be obedient to His will and not try to do things our own way.  Trust me, the latter isn’t good.  We are often our own worst enemy.  Yet, God is good and will lead us away from temptation if we ask and put our trust in Him.

     I understand the part about, “but deliver us from evil.”  I have prayed that many times.  I want to do God’s will and I don’t want anything evil to come near me, tempt me, or hurt me in anyway.

     The last part of this verse is a powerful one.  I believe that it is meant for us to acknowledge that we are nothing without God and that everything we do should be for God and to grow His kingdom.  I believe that it is meant to acknowledge that we pray and we do what we do as Christians, because we want to be of the kingdom of God and not of the world.  That is our focus.  We are called to acknowledge and understand that God has the power to help us, to hurt us, to give us life, to give us death, to move mountains, to heal us, to create everything from nothing, to destroy everything, as well as to love us and provide for us unconditionally or conditionally.  Acknowledging God’s power also is intended to assure us that we can put our faith in Him fully and that we are to fear Him in a loving way and be obedient to Him.  We are His creations.  We are His servants.  We are His children.  We are called to give Him the glory.  And, I believe as Christians, that this isn’t a chore or a task given to us by a master, but an act of love.  We want to do these things.  We know that God loves us and we want to love Him back.
    
Heavenly Father,
     Thank you for sending us Jesus, your only begotten Son, to be our teacher, our savior, and our ultimate role model.  Thank you for these words on how to pray.  Help us to pray them and not just recite them without thought or feeling.  Help us to strive to build, to pray for, and to uplift your kingdom.  Help us to acknowledge your ultimate power and to fear you and love you in the most loving and obedient way.  Help us to give you the glory in all that we do and not do or seek our own glory.  I ask you this through your Son, Jesus. Amen.
 
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Reflective questions for Matthew 6:13 (KJV):
*What does Matthew 6:13 mean to me?
*Do I pray these words or recite these words?
*Have I truly pondered or prayed about the meaning of the Lord’s Prayer?
*Do I pray for God’s kingdom and try to uplift it and grow it?
*What can I do to uplift and grow God’s kingdom?
*Do I acknowledge God’s power?
*Do I both fear God and have faith in Him, knowing that He has the power to
 help me or hurt me?
*Do I give God the glory in all I do or do I seek the praise and the credit for
 myself?
    

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