Deliver Us From Evil

Some of you may have noticed that when we say the Lord's Prayer corporately at Christ Church we use a more literal translation of the Greek by saying deliver us "from the evil one" whereas many traditional translations use a more generic "deliver us from evil." While within the range of correctness, I think the more generic translation misses some of the specificity that Jesus intend when he literally said, deliver us from the evil (ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ). By placing the direct article before the noun, Jesus is is reminding us that evil has a source, namely his and our old enemy, Satan.

I mention this because Satan figures in our text for Sunday as Peter confronts Ananias with these words, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit ..." It is fascinating to me that Peter is the one to recognize the shadow of Satan lurking behind the actions of Ananias and Saphira. Perhaps you remember this little encounter that Jesus had with Peter, "But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man (Matthew 16:23)” . Or maybe this moment from the last supper, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat (Luke 22:31–32).“ Or maybe you recall that it was Peter who wrote, "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8)." Like Jesus, Peter was well acquainted with the work of Satan.

Sunday we are going to talk a bit more about the shape of Satan's work that took place with Ananias and Saphira. For today though, I thought it would be good to pause and remember that we have an enemy. One that lurks and seeks to destroy. In this season of Lent, we want to hone the vision that allows us to see the shadow that would twist our own hearts, sift our souls and pull us away from the sweetness that is ours in Christ.

But even as we hone that vision, we must also hone the vision that brings us through the shadow to the finished work of the cross. For it was there that Jesus, "disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them ... (Colossians 2:15)." Martin Luther captures this truth of the ultimate victory of Christ beautifully in his hymn A Mighty Fortress is our God:

And though this world, with devils filled, Should threaten to undo us, 
We will not fear, for God hath willed, His truth to triumph through us: 
The Prince of Darkness grim, We tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, For lo! his doom is sure, 
One little word shall fell him.

The gospel really is good news!