Whenever God is the agent of trials (temptations)…it’s for the purpose of testing, never for the purpose of causing us to fall. For God can’t be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone. (James 1:13) And with each test, He will not only never tempt you beyond what you can bear, but He will also provide a way out. (I Corinthians 10:13) But we know our biggest adversary when it comes to temptation is the devil…the evil one. In this verse of the Lord’s Prayer, we are asking to be rescued from evil or the evil one. This statement is echoed in the Prayer of Jabez which says, “..Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me far from evil, that I may not cause pain.” ( I Chronicles 4:10) NKJV So anytime we ask God to keep us from the evil one…the devil must flee.
Tag: hate evil
Psalm 38:19-20 ” Many are those who are my vigorous enemies; those who hate me without reason are numerous. Those who repay my good with evil and slander me when I pursue what is good.”
To quote I John 3:13, “Don’t be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.” And we shouldn’t as evil abounds in the world and the boundaries between right and wrong become blurred. We shouldn’t be surprised when our Christian walk is met with opposition…or we are attacked for trying to do what’s right…or we are accused of not being “politically correct and inclusive” in our thinking. Those who repay evil for good will always be around, so don’t be surprised…for it’s your reaction to hatred that really counts. Jesus encountered many haters and those who disagreed with Him…but Jesus chose to never be disagreeable or nasty back.
Psalm 97:10 ” Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for He guards the lives of His faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.”
In one breath the Lord admonishes us to hate evil, in the next, He teaches us to love one another and to love our neighbor as our self. So how can we love someone who’s immoral and unethical behavior goes against everything Godly we stand for? Or how can we show love and compassion to someone who flippantly thumbs their nose at God? It’s all about separating the sin from the sinner. We are to hate the sin but love the sinner. We can abhor the sin, but still show true affection…we can detest what’s happened to the person, but still remain devoted in friendship…we can loathe the mess they’ve gotten themselves into, but still love the person we know. By hating the sin and not the sinner, we show the true love of Jesus Christ and the truth of the Gospel.
Safetypinlove 