The Final Chapter of the Lord's Method of Prayer

Here it is. The finale to a several week long series on the Lord's method of prayer. If you've missed the previous posts, you can find them here (The Lord's Method Of Prayer).

This has been such a great study for me. I've learned so much about prayer and how it's not just something we say in passing. This method is deep with spiritual insight and yet simple enough for any Christian, young or old, to understand in Bible study. So without further ado, here is the final article on this amazing method of prayer.

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." Matthew 6:13(ESV)

First, I would like to look at the word temptation that's used here. It's interesting to note that this same word, temptation (pi-ras-mos'), is the same one used in Genesis 22:1 in the Septuagint, where God instructs Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. Why is it interesting? Because it can be translated as testing, rather than tempting. Which makes sense due to the fact that God does not tempt us, (James 1:13). So we can rightly say that what is meant here is referring to testing in our lives, and that it's not inferring, in any way, that God tempts us or leads us into temptation. No, what we find here is a plea for God to not allow us to be tested beyond our limits, allowing us to be brought into a place where sin would overcome us; a place where we could possibly yield to sin. Read how the New Living Bible translates this passage, "And don’t let us yield to temptation..."

Saints, we wrestle against spiritual darkness (Ephesians 6:12), and against our own fleshly desires (1 Peter 2:11). We, as Christians, are in the process of sanctification, being brought into the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18, Philippians 3:21). So we pray for help in this struggle, for God to not allow us to yield to temptation.

The second part to this plea is a perfect match to the first.

"...but deliver us from evil."

Like all of Scripture, there is so much more than how this text appears at face value. These are the reasons we should be diligently studying the Scriptures. God has so much more that He wants to reveal to us than simply reading His beloved Word.

Deliver us (rhoo'-om-ahee hay-mas'), is a very expressive word and means, "break our chains, and loose our bands - snatch, pluck us from the evil, and its calamitous issue." (Clarke's Commentary)

In other words, we are praying for God to rescue us from captivity. But from captivity to what?

The word evil (pon-ay-ros'), represents evil in its entirety. This is not just deliverance from a single being or crime, but every form of evil.

Do not allow us to be tested beyond our capabilities, Lord, which would bring us to fall into sin, but rescue us from every form of evil.

In summary, this method of prayer teaches us that;

1. God loves us with a perfect, fatherly, love.

2. We are to always put God first.

3. We are to come before Him with reverence.

4. We are to come before Him with praises on our lips.

5. We are to come seeking His kingdom and will.

6. We come to Him for spiritual and physical nourishment.

7. We come to Him for forgiveness.

8. We look to Him for guidance away from temptations and testing.

9. We look to Him for deliverance from every kind of evil.

It also teaches us that for every prayer, there is a call to action. We seek for God to show us and guide us through His will. If we ask for forgiveness, then we must have already forgiven all those who have sinned against us.

What an amazing guide for prayer! I am so thankful that we were not left without a tutor, that the Holy Spirit is here to guide us into all the truth of Scripture (John 16:13).

I leave you with the words of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Matthew 6:9-13

Repent and believe before it's too late

 

Praying to God: Mercy

"and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us." Matthew 6:12(NLT)

One of the many interesting things about this Scripture is that it shows universal sin. Jesus didn't say, "Forgive us our sins, if there are any..." No, it's just, "forgive us our sins." Romans 3:23 identifies with this Scripture in showing us universal sin;

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,"(ESV)

Without a doubt, we are all sinners and in need of God's forgiveness. If you doubt this click NeedGod. There are many passages that show our need for confession of sin and God's willingness to forgive us of those sins.

"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:8-9(ESV)

That is the good news of the Gospel. Praise God for His wonderful mercy! Beloved Christian, we are pardoned because of what Christ did on the cross at Calvary. Many times our hindrance in praying comes from a sense of guilt and shame. But Christ died to take away the sins of all who repent and put their trust in Him. We can come before the throne of grace boldly, (Hebrews 4:16), and seek mercy in our time of need. That is very good news indeed! But we can't stop there. There is a second part to this Scripture that needs to be addressed. It is the call to action that we've been seeing throughout this method of prayer.

"...as we have forgiven those who sin against us." Matthew 6:12b(NLT)

Here we see a stipulation to asking for forgiveness. We must, in turn, forgive those who have sinned against us. Even though this is said after, if you look closely at the passage you see that this action actually comes first. It says, "as we have...", past tense. Look a couple of verses down and Jesus clarifies this.

"For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Matthew 6:14-15(ESV)

Over and over again, Scripture reveals to us just how important forgiveness is, not only in our lives, but to God. Forgiveness, and it's many derivatives, are mentioned over one hundred times in the Bible. It's so important in fact, that when Peter asked about how many times one should forgive someone, Jesus replied and gave a parable showing just how important forgiveness is in the life of a believer.

"Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. 'Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also My heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” Matthew 18:22-35(ESV)

Oh how important it is that we forgive!

How can we plead for mercy when we ourselves are not willing to give it? The good news of the Gospel is mercy, forgiveness, and grace! If we do not show this in our own lives then we must come to God in repentance until our hearts explode with the same grace and mercy that He is showing us.

One last thing.

Forgiveness is an action on your part. The other person isn't required for you to forgive them. Remember, "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8(ESV) He began the process of forgiveness well before you were even born. Now if you're able to get an apology for the sins committed against you, great. The main concern however is your relationship with God. Holding onto that bitterness and anger will only do you harm in the end. So let it go, and let God wash you clean of all that hatred and show you true forgiveness, mercy, and grace.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-Ij_PPI_XU&w=560&h=340]

7x70 by Chris August

Repent and believe before it's too late

Praying To God: Our Father (Our Provider)

In the previous posts we saw how prayer should always begin with God. With reverence, as children, we should approach the throne of God boldly, giving God the glory He deserves. We should be seeking Him first, His will, His kingdom... In other words, He should always be first.


With that said, I want to clarify that this is for devoted times of prayer. God knows the heart and He knows from what place your prayers are coming from. If you are heading off a cliff, and it appears that the end is near, praying to God for help first is not putting Him second. Making sure that you give God devoted prayer time, locked away in your prayer "closet", putting away the distractions of the world, and giving God your full attention, will make those micro prayers you say throughout the day more meaningful. It will show God that He is worth more in your eyes than just a few short prayers a day.

 

"Give us this day our daily bread." Matthew 6:11 (NASB)

Now that we've put God first, given Him all glory, and sought after His kingdom and will, the time has come for us to pray, well... for us.

Jesus began this method of prayer with the words "our Father" and so it makes perfect sense that the next request is for our sustenance. As our Father, God is interested in our well being. Jesus expounds on this just a few verses later in Matthew 6:25-26 where He tells us not to worry about our food.


“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?"(NASB)


Remember, it's because of His great love that He even adopted us as children to begin with. (John 3:1) But that's not all. He's not only concerned about our physical nourishment, but our spiritual sustenance as well. Jesus says in John 6:27,


"Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”(ESV)


Jesus gives us a real life application for the above verse. When tempted by the devil over whether or not He should turn stones into bread, Jesus replied, "It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’" Matthew 4:4 (ESV)

On top of that, the Father provided only the best bread for our spiritual nourishment.


"Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.'" John 6:35 (ESV)

 

Just like our physical nourishment, our spiritual nourishment comes from the things that we digest. If we fill our lives with things we shouldn't, i.e. pornography, any entertainment (books, movies, or t.v.) with lust, sex, or horror, foul music...the list could go on, our spiritual life will suffer. If it's true that we are what we eat, what does that say about our spiritual life? Our spiritual nourishment comes from reading the Word. Jesus is the Word made flesh (John 1:1-2), so by studying and reading the Word of God we will grow in our spiritual lives and by default our prayer lives. How much we grow will depend on how much "healthy" food we eat compared to "unhealthy" food we digest.


"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." Philippians 4:8 (ESV)


As we see in both this and the last post, Jesus didn't just give us an example of prayer, but a call to action as well.


Repent and believe before it's too late

 

Praying to God: Our Father, Your Kingdom come

"Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." Matthew 6:10 (ESV)

 

May 'Your kingdom come', not just to overshadow this sin ridden world, but to completely replace it. We should be seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness before expecting our own wants and desires. (Matthew 6:33) Jesus spoke of God's kingdom over one hundred times and almost every parable He spoke was about that kingdom. To pray for that kingdom to come is to desire for that kingdom to come. To understand and know that our world is fallen and our hopes, our desires, even our passions are tied up in God and His kingdom. It brings our focus away from ourselves and brings it to His kingdom. Our goal should be for His kingdom to come in our lives, to be witnesses, ambassadors of this kingdom to the outside world. Whatever we do should be done with the thought, "Is this appropriate for God's kingdom?" If we are truly desiring God's kingdom to come, then we will be preparing for its arrival. So to pray, 'Your kingdom come', is also a call to action and a preparation for the next part of this prayer.

 

'Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.' The first prepares us for the second. If we are seeking God's kingdom, then we will most assuredly be seeking His will. Just like Jesus in the wilderness, in His humanity, seeking for what was to come to pass from Him, but nevertheless, He said, "not as I will, but as you will.” Matthew 26:39 (ESV) What a glorious example of this method of prayer in action! At the moment of His greatest trial, He sought only after His Father's will! This too, should be our response in adversity. It's easy to seek for the kingdom of God and His will in good times. But every step should be taken only after we've sought for God's kingdom and His will.

 

As we have seen, the first to this method of prayer is all about God.

1. Our Father in heaven - We come as children with full assurance of His love.


2. Hallowed be Your name - With praise and awe we bow before Him.


3. Your kingdom come - Seeking His kingdom in replace of our own.


4. Your will be done - Desiring His will and not our own.

 

That is the way all prayer is to begin. God first, me second.

Repent and believe before it's too late

 

Praying To God: Our Father - The Lord's Method Of Prayer

Well, here we are. I'm very excited to begin this study on the "The Lord's Prayer". Now you may be asking why I keep putting the Lord's Prayer in quotes, like in the last post, and why the title is The Lord's Method Of Prayer. You see, the Lord's prayer is not an accurate title. This wasn't a prayer that Jesus prayed, He has no need to ask for forgiveness and He needs no help with temptation. If you want to find a prayer that would be worthy of that title then turn to John 17 where Jesus is praying to the Father just before being arrested. No other person could ever pray that prayer as it's a prayer suited only for our great High Priest. No, this prayer is for us and it was given so that we have a template to help guide us into communion with God. So let's dig in...

 

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name." Matthew 6:9 (ESV)


As 'our Father,' we see that this is not a method of prayer for just anyone. This isn't for the lost soul, yearning for an audience with God. It isn't for the heathen looking for forgiveness of his crimes. It isn't for the agnostic whose seeking for answers in a universe as vast as any imagination could ever stretch. This is for the child of God. Only those who have received the adoption as children of God can truly pray this prayer. (John 1:12)

He shows us compassion and love that goes beyond just words. We are calling out to our Father. This is a relationship with a personal loving Father, not just some cosmic deity in the sky who doesn't care for us. He loves us as His children and He cares about all of our needs.

As our Father 'in heaven' He ascends higher than any earthly father ever could. He is majestic and so far above the earth's limitations, changes, frailty, and imperfections. He is able to see beyond our own finite human perceptions to know what is best for us as His children. Childlike familiarity is turned into reverence as our eyes go beyond our earthly surroundings and our hearts are drawn upwards, removed from all our feeble attachments.

As our Father in heaven, 'hallowed be Your name'. He is holy and righteous. We come to our Father with praises on our lips, in awe of His majesty and glory. We bow down before the King and His throne, yet lay at the feet of our loving Father with full assurance of His grace.

He is to be first in our prayers as well as our lives. That is the way all prayer is to begin.


Repent and believe before it's too late

 

Praying To God: Our Father

"Pray then like this: '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 lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.'" Matthew 6:9-13 (ESV)

This is one of the most well known passages in the Bible. People recite what is commonly known as "The Lord's Prayer," as easy as they quote John 3:16 or any other passage of Scripture. Matthew Henry calls this Jesus' method for prayer and over the next several posts I would like to break this method down to see what all I can learn from it. But before I do, I would like to address a common misunderstanding concerning this prayer.

A popular site for prayer says this about the "Lord's prayer";

"The Lord's prayer is a very important Prayer. It was given by Jesus in Matthew 6:9-14 ("This is how you should pray," He said). It praises the Lord and covers everything we need in this life and to attain eternal happiness. Pray it every day, and may God bless you in every way."

The most common misunderstanding regarding this passage is that it was given as a prayer to be recited. Some go as far as saying that it's some magical prayer and by reciting it God will bless you. But that is far from the truth. If we examine the wording used in the Greek, we get a clearer picture of what was meant when Jesus said, "Pray like this:"

Houtos oun humeis proseuchesthe

 

1. Houtos: In this manner



2. Oun: then, therefore

3. proseuchesthe: to offer prayers, to pray

4. humeis: you

A literal translation would be, "In this manner, therefore, you are to pray."

The wording used here isn't, "this is what you are to pray," but, "in this way you are to pray." This prayer was never meant for anything other than to be a framework for us to build our own prayers to the Father. To add anything else is to miss out on the greatest lesson on prayer. In the coming weeks I hope to break down this prayer so that I can fully understand what Jesus was teaching, and what the Holy Spirit is still teaching me concerning this method of prayer.

Until then, I leave you with the words of Charles Spurgeon;

"Let none despise this prayer; it is matchless, and if we must have forms of prayer, let us have this first, foremost, and chief; but let none think that Christ would tie His disciples to the constant and only use of this. Let us rather draw near to the throne of the heavenly grace with boldness, as children coming to a father, and let us tell forth our wants and our sorrows in the language which the Holy Spirit teaches us."

 

Father To The Fatherless

In Matthew 6:9, Jesus begins one of the greatest lessons on prayer with these simple words, "Our Father...". For some, to think of God as our Father can be a radical life changer. For others, sadly, the view they have of a father is tainted by experiences with their own earthly fathers. The word father can draw a blank stare from those who have never met their father and for others, it can bring about fear from the abuse they endured growing up. But whatever the case may be, you can rest assure that the Father Jesus refers to is unlike any father you have ever known.

For example:

He's a Father to the fatherless.

"Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation." Psalms 68:5 (ESV)

There are many who have never had the pleasure of having someone they can call Dad. As the years progress we see more and more fatherless children due to the rise in divorce and extra marital sex. To not have a father can leave a void in your life that may never be filled. Unless, that is, you allow God to take that role in your life, and He is more than willing to.

Now that Fathers day is here, being without a father, it just becomes another day, or worse, it becomes a reminder of what you've missed out on. It may even be a day of dread because your father was abusive, physically or mentally, and this is just another day to remind you of him. But this time, it doesn't have to be that way. God is calling out to you, He wants nothing more than for you to come running into His loving arms. He's waiting for you. He's made the way for you to come to Him today, as well as, any other day. Understanding two things can help change your entire life this Fathers day.

Number one, you must have a correct understanding of the sin in your life and repent from it.



"For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard." Romans 3:23 (NLT)

We have all broken God's law and stand condemned as criminals. The best way to understand this is by looking at the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20. Here are a few examples.

1. Have you ever told a lie?


2. Have you ever used God's name in vain?


3. Have you ever stolen anything?

That's just three of the Ten Commandments and already we see that some laws have been broken. With that in mind, let's look at James 2:10; "For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws." Now we're at the heart of the matter. By breaking one law we become guilty and are therefore law breakers and deserving of punishment under God's legal system. The Bible declares that we must repent, to turn away from, our sins.

"And you will perish, too, unless you repent of your sins and turn to God." Luke 13:3 (NLT)

Thankfully, God has made a way for us to be set free, and that's not all, but to also become children of God!

That brings us to number two, you must have a correct understanding of who Jesus is and what He's done for you.

"In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:9-10 (ESV)

"For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16 (ESV)

God sent His Son to take the punishment we rightly deserve by dying on the cross. The Bible shows us that;

"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23 (NLT)



Now, because Jesus has payed our fine, we can legally be set free and declared righteous before God. We are adopted as children of God!

"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God." John 1:12-13 (ESV)

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Galatians 4:4-6 (ESV)

Now what you have to do is come to God, confess and repent of your sins, then place your trust in Jesus. If you do that, you will be forgiven of all your sins. You will become a child of God!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

The big question is, when are you going to do that? Don't wait because you never know how long you have. Every day, 155,000 people die in this world. I don't want you to be one minute too late. Repent of your sins and put your trust in Jesus and you will never again be fatherless.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask. Just leave a comment below and I will get back to you as soon as possible.