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Those who have believed in Jesus Christ and have trusted Him to forgive
all of their sins already have all of their sins forgiven. God has forgiven
all of their past, present, and future sins. So is Jesus referring to
the sins of believers? Do believers need to make this request? The answer
is yes! Every follower of Jesus gets dirty from sin even though it will
be forgiven. Those who do not mourn their sin are not believers and followers
of Jesus. No matter how spiritually mature a believer becomes, he or
she will always have sin to mourn. This was the message of Matt. 5:4.
The holier a man becomes, the more he mourns the unholiness which remains in him. - Spurgeon Jesus is talking about our day-to-day walk on this earth. Yes, the followers
of Jesus are forgiven forever, but day-to-day we become “dirty” and
need to be cleaned up. This is the same message of 1 John 1:9. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (NASB) 1 John 1:9 Those who do not believe in Jesus have not been forgiven yet, and the rest
of the verse does not apply to them. They cannot have their sins forgiven
since they do not believe in the only one who can forgive them (Act 4:12).
As We Forgive. What does Jesus mean by “as we forgive our debtors”?
The Greek word used for ”debtors” is OPHEILEMETES and it refers
to someone who has sinned against you. That is, Jesus encourages us to forgive
others too!
Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. (NASB) Eph. 4:32 The passage is in the present tense. This means that we are to be actively
forgiving others. This is one of the marks of followers of Jesus Christ
- they forgive others. Two verses away Jesus adds these words as further
explanation,
For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions. (NASB) Matt. 6:14-15 Later in Jesus’ ministry, Peter asks Jesus how many times he, Peter,
should forgive others. Jesus said seven times seventy. At the end of their
talk, Jesus added these words,
My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart. (NASB) Matt. 18:35 One who claims to follow God should be a person who forgives.
If he/she does not forgive, it is doubtful that he/she is following God.
It is doubtful that the Holy Spirit is living within and spiritually
changing him/her. So one who is not forgiving others will not be forgiven
because he/she does not belong to God and only God knows of whom this is
true.
Lead Us Not Into Temptation. Jesus adds this curious statement,
And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.] (NASB) Matt. 6:13 The Greek word for “temptation” refers to a “trial.” So
Jesus is encouraging us to ask that we be protected from trials or testing.
Some believe that this is a heart’s cry asking for protection from
a trial of our faith. But there is a sense in which God allows us to enter
into a trial or a test. God allowed Job to be tested (Job 1-2). God has allowed
all of His children to be tested. It is one of the ways we grow in our faith
(James 1:2-4). James 1:13-14 also tells us that God cannot be tempted, and
He does not tempt anyone. But He will allow us to be tested. Our request
is simple. “Please, God, do not allow me to enter into a trial. I am
afraid that I might sin.” But He might let us enter into trials since
He uses tests to grow us spiritually. If He does, we need to remember, No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. (NASB) 1 Cor. 10:13 The last part of the verse (Matt. 6:13) is in brackets because the better
manuscripts do not include it. Therefore, the ending of the passage is
in doubt. Even if the words do not belong, the words are accurate and
true.
Conclusion. The Didache (A.D. 100-120) includes the Lord’s Prayer
or Our Prayer. This is one of the earliest Christian books. It captures
the early practices of the followers of the apostles. The Lord’s
Prayer was already highly valued. It is a reminder to treat Him as a
person (He is), to honor God first in our prayer, ask that His kingdom
come soon, that His will be done among us, and then to make our requests.
Do not forget to ask for forgiveness and protection from trials or spiritual
tests. May the Lord bless your prayer.
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