Deliverance from Evil -10/10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 10 -Deliverance from Evil

God provides the tools – patience, strength, willpower – to protect us from temptation and therefore the natural the follow up is a request to be delivered from Evil. Ancient authorities read, “the Evil One” but either way, it is clear that ours is to avoid evil or simply, that which is not good.

Over the last 10 days we studied the prayer offered to us by our Lord Jesus in parts. In conclusion, as a whole, we may say that it is an affirmation of our Faith in God, a commitment to the celebration of the life and world in which we live, and an acceptance of our responsibility to others, our world and to life itself. To which we may appropriately add, “Amen.”

Today’s one minute on the Lord’s Prayer, for Summertime.

Protect from Temptation -9of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 9 – Protect us from Temptation

“And lead us not into temptation” is a bit misleading, when we recite it at the end of the Lord’s Prayer. It lends to the belief that somehow, we are on the puppet strings of the Grand Puppeteer, and we are begging that he does not steer us in toward temptation.

The true request here is, may God protect us from temptation. When we see, hear, or think tempting thoughts, may God give us the wisdom, the clarity of vision and the openness of mind to stay away from those things that draw us to sin.

Temptation is all around us. God doesn’t take us there. Rather, He gives us the tools with which we can overcome temptation.  When Jesus offers us the Lord’s prayer, it is in the context of the Sermon on the Mount, where he is challenging us all to find purity of mind as we live our lives. God gives us the strength and will to not be led toward it.

Today’s one minute on the Lord’s Prayer, for Summertime.

As we Forgive -8of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 8 -As we Forgive Others

The one request in the Lord’s Prayer that is conditional is in regard to forgiveness. Forgiveness is granted by God, Jesus tell us, on the same standard by which we forgive those who trespass against us. As we learned in yesterday’s message, the measure and degree of forgiveness for us is dependent on our ability to forgive others. So great is this one provision and the understanding of forgiveness, that Jesus spells it out very plainly at the end of the prayer.

Not quite an addendum to the prayer, rather as an elucidation of the concept that is central to Jesus’ teaching – that God works through us. He says, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15)

Forgiveness is the Christian mandate. Today’s one minute for Summertime.

Forgive our Debts -7of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 7- Forgive us our debts

Trespasses, debts, we’ve heard both these words used in the English translation of the Lord’s Prayer. Whether it is something you owe, such as a debt, or something you’ve violated, we ask to be forgiven of our debts and our trespasses. It is the one statement in the prayer that is conditional. We ask God to forgive us our sin by the weight and measure by which we forgive others. “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” If I forgive my debtor only half of his or her debt, I can be assured to be forgiven half of my debt. Understood this way, we come to understand that our forgiveness, our being cleaned of debt, is completely in our hands. Very clearly, Jesus is guaranteeing us a clean slate, complete and total forgiveness of sin, to the point that you do not have to second guess it. Whatever is hanging around your neck is released, provided, you release the debt of those who owe you.

Like all of Christianity, we are called to responsibility through our actions.

Today’s one minute on the Lord’s Prayer, for Summertime.

Daily Bread – 6of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 6- Give us our Daily Bread

Since we began this series six days ago,  for the first time we hear, what we may refer to as a shopping list item. appears now: Give us this day our daily bread. It is the only tangible requested item in the entire prayer. Equally important as bread is the framework in which it is presented – it is for this this day, and it is a daily need.

In fact, this one statement draws our attention and focus to what is truly needed and necessary in our life, as Jesus teaches, Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?  … For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 32-33)

As the prayer moves forward, we understand that the entire cosmos is held together by the Will of God, and we have a unique and necessary place within that world.

Today’s one minute for Summertime.

Thy Will on Earth -5of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 5- Your Will in Heaven and on Earth

Prayer often takes the form of a shopping list. In our conversation with God we present Him with a list of items we want, such as good health and peaceful days. But, as we heard early, in presenting the “Lord’s Prayer” Jesus informs us that our Heavenly Father already knows our needs before we ask him.

When we ask, May Your Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven, we are acknowledging and submitting to God’s will. We have our wants and desires, in a word, we have our will, but herein we are relinquishing our will in favor of God’s Will. We submit to the power of God, who makes His sun shine on the good and the bad. (Matthew 5:45) And in so doing, we leave our selfish desires to one side and focus making His Kingdom come.

This is the fifth of 10, one minute for Summertime.

Your Kingdom Come – 4of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 4 –Your Kingdom Come

Before Jesus arrived at the River Jordon to be baptized, John the Baptist was proclaiming, “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” (Matthew 3:2) In common parlance use the expression “To Kingdom come” after words such as blow, blast, or send as a threat, e.g., “I’ll blow you to Kingdom come.” And so, often God’s Kingdom is seen as a location, someplace in the future which also signals an end to all things.

But as Armodoxy attests, the original message and Kingdom was ushered in with Christ. We read from Scripture, “Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed,  nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.” (Luke 17:20-21) It is not by chance that Jesus was standing in their midst when he said these words.

Our request in the Lord’s Prayer is that God’s Kingdom may be revealed to us. We are asking for His presence in our lives, today, in the here and now.

This is the fourth of 10, one minute for Summertime.

In Heaven & His Holy Name – 3of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 3 – In Heaven & His Holy Name

Our Father has a location; it is in heaven. Even though that beautiful blue sky and the clouds above our head are often referred to as heaven, we are merely conditioned to look up in reference to this word. As the dwelling place of God, it is more than just a location. Think of it as a state of being – a state of perfection, of communion, joy and transcendence.

Our Father, who is in Heaven, is another way of saying the God of the universe is everywhere – beyond us and within us. We each have the potential for goodness, completeness, and transcendence, as Jesus invites us to “Be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5)

In the Devine we acknowledge the sacredness of that perfection and therefore, Our Father’s name is hallowed – sacred and holy.

The third of 10, one minutes for Summertime.

Lord’s Prayer -2of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Number 2 – Our Father

Jesus sets the tone for his prayer, with the first words. This is a conversation with God, but He is not overwhelming. He is “Our Father.” He is approachable. He is father, that is, one who cares, and is responsible to share His love with us. He is father, who embraces us in our pain and hurt and smiles with us in the beauty we absorb. He shares our joys and suffers with us in times of distress.

Furthermore, He is our Father, not my father, not your father, but our father. As such He is the God of all. There are no favorite children, we are all his children. He is the Father who distributes His love equally among all His children. And we therefore understand, that every war is a civil war, because the argument and misunderstanding is between us and with a brother or sister, for we all share the same father. The first two words of the prayer set the address of who we are talking with. Our Father.

This is the second of 10, one minute for Summertime.

Lord’s Prayer – 1of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Number 1

Wars, threats of wars, floods, disasters, shootings, and the response to these tragedies seems to be a standard: Pray! Newscasters tell us, “We keep them (the victims) in our thoughts and prayers.” While thought we understand, our idea of prayer ranges from a shopping list of wants to put before God to a quiet meditation on the tragedy.

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus instructs us with the words, “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases… for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then in this way:

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us to the time of trial,
but rescue us from the evil one.

Each word in this prayer is a power-word making the entire prayer meaningful and effective. Over the next few days we will look at each phrase and its meaning for the Christian today.

This is the first of 10, one minute for Summertime.