The Lord’s Prayer

Bruce Chant

Godzilla / generation-j

30/07/2004

Matthew 6:6-15
⁶But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. ⁷And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
⁹"This, then, is how you should pray:
" 'Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
¹⁰your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹Give us today our daily bread.
¹²Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.' ¹⁴For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

HOW DO YOU PRAY?

This passage of the Bible tells us very clearly.

It is about relationship – our relationship with God.

Prayer is about us seeking, knowing, loving, living with, desiring God.

It is not about manipulating, karma, spells, magic, good works or anything like that – prayer is not a tool you can use to get your own way. The purpose is you getting closer to God.

And so the HOW to pray also shows us the WHY we pray – because it is not a set list but a revelation about God and how we can know Him in a more intimate way. Of course when we do this as God tells us then good things happen for us and our lives. We are blessed, we walk in right relationship with God, we become more like Him, we love Him more and we change.

RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

It is the highest purpose in life to KNOW God. Not just know about God, but to know Him. Doing this we discover:

Truth – I am the way the truth and the life

Love – I am love

Life – I have come that you may have life and have it more abundantly

Freedom – where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty

Destiny – I know the plans I have for you…

WHAT THE LORD’S PRAYER TELLS US ABOUT GOD:

1. Reward in the Secret

⁶But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. ⁷And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.

There is no point only praying to look good. If you do that like the religious nuts the Pharisees were then you’ve missed the point.

Cultivating a relationship with God takes time, it takes your focus and attention, and it takes the right motive – that is to please God, not man. When you do you will find that God is the rewarder of those that diligently seek Him (not what He gives etc).

2. Needs v Wants

⁸Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

God knows what you need. You don’t need to ask.

Prayer is not really about asking for stuff as it is understanding where our needs are met – God. Note it says needs vs wants. For example – work, study, salvation of others, guidance, health etc vs Ferraris, bling, plasma TVs etc

3. Father

⁹"This, then, is how you should pray:
" 'Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,

The Jewish people were so scared of God they don’t even say his name or even spell it (G_d). Jesus flipped that on its head by saying God – creator, almighty, without peer – is actually OUR Father.

His name should be treated as HOLY – meaning totally different, other, nothing like it – because that is God, who He is.

4. God’s Kingdom on Earth

¹⁰your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.

God desires to bring the goodness of His kingdom as it exists in heaven, here to earth. He wants to bring complete order and harmony and peace to earth – ie His will – and he asks us to pray for it and prioritise God and His will and His kingdom (ie where God is King and where He rules) down to earth.

5. God the Provider

¹¹Give us today our daily bread.

Our Father is our provider. Every good Dad provides food, shelter, leadership, love, wisdom for His family. That is God’s provision for us. It is embodied in the life of Jesus who is the Bread of Life – the basic ingredient of an essential diet for eternal life

6. God is the Forgiver

¹²Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.

There is only one remedy for guilt – forgiveness.

There is only one answer for your guilt against God – God’s forgiveness.

¹⁴For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

But also we need to forgive others because God has shown us how to do this.

7. Keep us from Temptation

¹³And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.'

God keeps us from being tempted and falling into sin. More to the point, when we are in relationship with God, committing our ways to him, we are less likely to fall into temptation and sin.

Jesus tells us to seek God and He will guide you in ways where you will not be tempted to do wrong. God alone can do this. Anything else is to go the way of our enemy, satan, the evil one.

Summary.

When you pray remember it is to whom you pray – God – that is important.

Jesus came so that we could have relationship with Him and experience everlasting life.

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