The Agenda of ‘The Evil One’

The Agenda of ‘The Evil One’

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one….

How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

Matthew 6:13a; Isaiah 14:12-14

Christ would have us pray with understanding. When we pray, ‘and lead us not into temptation,’ we are praying that God would deliver us from ‘the evil one,’ who is the instigator of temptation. Our natural depravity and the culture of the world in which we live, aid and abet the overall agenda of Satan. We find in the passage which we have associated with our text, a clear setting forth of that agenda. Before he bore the name ‘Satan,’ the evil one bore the name Lucifer and was ‘the anointed cherub that covers.’ His transgression was his proud ambition as our passage indicates. Ezekiel 28 details his fall. Notwithstanding his fall, he remains unrepentant and pursues his agenda of self-exaltation. While we do not need to dwell upon him inordinately, we do need to be aware of who he is, his history, and his long-term goals. We also need to understand that Satan is the sworn enemy of Christ. We are the subjects of one or the other.  Let us consider today, where we fall in the grander scheme of things. When we pray, ‘lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one,’ we are declaring our loyalty to Christ. We are proclaiming that we are the subjects of King Jesus. This sets us apart from the subjects of the evil one and makes us his enemies. We cannot be neutral. So Christ teaches us to pray, ‘and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’

High King of Heaven,
we are Your loyal subjects.
We praise You that You rule over us in righteousness
and deliver us from every evil work
and preserve us unto Your Heavenly Kingdom.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning