“but deliver us from the evil one.” Matthew 6:13b
This is a continuation of the petition of asking God to not lead us into temptation. It is another way of praying the same thing. It is the recognition of one in particular who is evil who would have us not recognize God as our Father, not hallow the name of God, not recognize God as king nor desire his rule on earth, not depend on God for daily needs, not forgive others who are in debt to us, not recognize our own severe debt to God, not recognize his willingness to forgive our debt. All of these attitudes and behaviors are self destructive and cause unnecessary injury to our relationships with God and others. Yet the evil one is a master at luring us into these things and once he has lured us there, he is a master of how to snare us and keep us there. It is proper when we pray to ask for God to deliver us from evil and from the evil one. This is a prayer that indicates awareness of who we are, who Satan is, our propensity to do evil, and our inability to set ourselves free from the snare of evil.
The Lord’s Prayer builds up to this petition. Our aim and passion as believers is to hallow the name of God and to live supernatural relationships on earth. The evil one’s aim and passion is to prevent us from doing this and to exercise his expertise in making it so. But to pray “deliver us from evil” is an answerable prayer, one we can confidently pray in the name of Jesus, one we can be sure will be answered and one that should evoke the deepest praise and thanksgiving and worship as we pray it.
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