Day 20: Deliver us from Evil

Today we'll consider this addition to the final line of The Lord's Prayer from the gospel of Matthew; "Deliver us from evil." It's a natural step forward from "Lead us not into temptation," where we come to see God as our rescuer, the one who is able to deliver or rescue us both from our heart condition of sin as well as from the entangling evil that threatens to trip us up.  And while we are prone to quickly point to outside evil that we need to guard against, the greatest thing we need to be rescued from is actually inside of us. I need to be rescued from me.

Yesterday we said that we are saved, but also are being saved. Perfected forever and yet in need of continuing sanctification. It is only one in a long list of beautiful tensions held by the life of the one who puts their faith in God. As believers in Jesus we stand in a “place of in-between.”  You’ve likely heard it called "The Now and the Not yet.” Jesus reigns in some sense now and he will reign ultimately although all things are not yet put to right.  We are painfully aware of the reality of our broken world and yet we stand firm in the belief that all things are being restored.

It is not just you and I that need deliverance, but creation itself. Romans 8:20 says that what God has made very good has also been broken by sin; it has been subjected to futility, that it is in bondage to decay as all living things are. But the narrative arc of scripture also reminds us that God is in the business of making everything new!:* new creation, new heavens, new earth, new life altogether. All of time is marching towards a moment when a voice from the throne will declare, "Look! God's dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them!"

Which reminds us of one more thing we should mention. I think it's powerful to remember that God does not just deliver us from something, but also to something. The people of Israel were not just freed from slavery in Egypt to cross the Red Sea and then decide for themselves where they would head off in the brave new world, they were freed from Egypt to Mt. Sinai, from the gods of Egypt to covenant with The One True God, from slavery and to relationship. In the same way, we are not freed from sin, awakened from our dead spirits, eyes opened to spiritual reality simply to go on charting our own path and serving ourselves. Rather we are delivered from the kingdom of self, and to the Kingdom of God; into the fullness of truth, beauty and goodness. In the words of pastor Jon Tyson; from distraction to adoration.

While in church circles we often end the Lord’s Prayer with “For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever…” those are not Jesus' words as his prayer was recorded either by Luke or Matthew.** And yet they certainly align with the heart of “deliver us from evil.”  Because the truth is, He has, and He will.  Regardless of what our eyes see physically in this world and our own life, there is a spiritual truth that can not be denied or undone. It is finished. Consider the words of Jesus in the final book of the bible:  

“Do not be afraid. I am the first and the last. I am the Living One. I was dead and now look- I am alive forever and ever!  And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”***

Therefore we are people who declare with our words and actions that Jesus’ Kingdom does not rise and fall with the kingdoms of this world. Present brokenness does not prevent future wholeness. We count on it. We wait for it. And we pray desperately, “Deliver us from evil.”  

Today we'll look at a prayer of Judah's King Jehoshaphat. Unlike his father and most of Israel at the time, Jehoshaphat was faithful to Yahweh and the LORD was with him. 2 Chronicles 17 tells us that God himself established the kingdom in Jehoshaphat's hand, and riches, honour, strength and wisdom were markers of his reign. In 2 Chronicles 20 we find Jehoshaphat facing enemy invasion. Read 2 Chronicles 20:1-5 to see for yourself the nature of what Jehoshaphat was facing as well as how he chose to respond. Then read on to Jehoshaphat's prayer in 20:6-12. How does Jehoshaphat begin his prayer for deliverance? Pay specific attention to the Jehoshaphat's final summation at the end of verse 12. What does his prayer presuppose or show he believes about the LORD as deliverer? About the ones in need of deliverance? Then continue on to read 20:13-23. How does the LORD respond to Jehoshaphat's prayer for deliverance? What must they do? What do the people do and how does God deliver?

Consider what this teaches us about God's deliverance. What is his part? What might ours be? Consider from what you saw in this text, what part your worship and praise of God plays in the deliverance from evil in this world. What might this mean for you practically?  

Then let's pray. You know what to do!

Our Father,

in Heaven,

Hallowed be your name,

Your Kingdom come...

Give us each day our daily bread,

Forgive our sins as we ourselves forgive those indebted to us.

And lead us not into temptation.

What sin struggle do you need to be rescued from today? What evil do you see, in yourself, your country, the world that causes you to cry out with confidence to the one who ultimately will deliver? Confess it to your Father. In the face of evil, we often feel ill-equipped to pray. Sometimes it just seems too big, and our words are insufficient. If that is true for you, borrow the prayer of King Jehoshaphat declaring in faith and hope, "LORD, we do not know what to do, but we look to you."

May His face shine upon us today...and give us peace.

Amen.

See you next week friends. Day 21!

* This line might come from King David in 1 Chronicles 29:11-12! Another powerful prayer to be formed by.

**Rev. 21:5

***Rev. 1:18