Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Petitions of the Lord’s Prayer

The Lord’s Prayer begins with God’s name, God’s Kingdom, and God’s will. Then Jesus teaches us to pray for our daily needs.

But He knows we need more than bread.

• We need forgiveness.
• We need help against temptation.
• And ultimately, we need to be rescued from every evil that sin has brought into this world.

So the final petitions of the Lord’s Prayer bring us face-to-face with the reality of life as sinners in a broken world.

“Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”

Christians never outgrow the need for those words.

Luther points out that we sin every day and deserve nothing but punishment. Yet, we ask our Father not to look at our sins or deny our prayers because of them. Instead, we ask Him to give everything by grace.

That is the Christian life: continually returning to God empty-handed and receiving again what Christ has already won for us.

Forgiveness:
Jesus carried your guilt to the cross. He suffered the judgment your sins deserved. So, your sins are forgiven. Because He rose again, you can approach your Father every day knowing that Christ’s death was enough.

That forgiveness also changes how we treat people who sin against us. We don’t forgive others to earn God’s forgiveness. We forgive because we have been forgiven. We give forgiveness out of the forgiveness we, ourselves, have already received.

Temptation:
Now, being forgiven, we don’t want to fall again into sin. So, Jesus teaches us to pray,

“Lead us not into temptation.”

God does not tempt us to sin, but temptation surrounds us in this life.

• The devil wants to destroy faith.
• The world constantly calls evil good and good evil.
• Our own sinful nature finds those lies appealing.

The devil, the world, and even our own flesh are against us, so we ask our Father to guard us.

Sometimes the victory He gives is strength to resist temptation and other times it’s a way of escape before we fall. If and when we do fall, He calls us back to repentance and the forgiveness Christ has won. Our lives as Christians are ones of repentance.

Evil:
Finally, we pray,

“Deliver us from evil.”

That petition is enormous. We are asking God to rescue us from every evil of body and soul, possessions and reputation. This includes disease, disaster, violence, grief, sin, the works of the devil and even death itself.

Sometimes God delivers us by removing the trouble. Sometimes He carries us through it.

And one day, He will deliver us from it completely.

That is where the Lord’s Prayer ultimately points us. We are praying toward the day when God takes us from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven.

Until then, we live as people who need our Father and His mercy every day.

We need forgiveness for yesterday, strength for today’s temptations, and confidence that whatever tomorrow brings, evil will not have the final word.

Jesus will.

He has already defeated sin, death, and the devil through His cross and resurrection. And the Savior who taught you to pray for deliverance will finally deliver you.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

Forgive all my sins for the sake of Jesus Christ. As You have forgiven me, help me to forgive those who sin against me. Guard me from temptation, strengthen me when I am weak, and protect me from every evil. When my last hour comes, grant me a blessed end and graciously take me from this world to Yourself. Through Jesus Christ, my Savior.

Amen.

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.