Undermining God's Purpose

Luke 19:45-48.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on August 9, 2015.

The term “undermine” has no shocking origin.  It refers to the fact that valuables are often underneath large amounts of overburden (earth that has no value to the miner).  Even though mining has been honed to quite a science we still have cave-ins today.  In 2010 a mine in the Atacama Desert of Chile had a single block of stone break free from the mountain and fall through each layer of the mine in a collapsing chain reaction.  When the dust settled it was recognized that this “stone” was at least 45 stories tall and had trapped 33 miners half a mile under the surface.  It took 17 days to drill a hole to the location of the miners and find out that they were still alive.  After 69 days, the world was able to see these miners return to the light of day.  The greater the thing you undermine the greater the consequences if you don’t do enough to mitigate your actions.

Today, Jesus reminds us that God has purposes that he is accomplishing.  It is easy for his people to lose sight of those purposes and, in fact, undermine them.  The eternal purposes of God are far “heavier” than that 45 story block of stone.  If we do not let God correct us, we will eternally endanger ourselves and the lives of our loved ones, and eventually suffer a spiritual collapse.

Jesus Removes That Which Offends God

On the heels of being declared King-Messiah by the large crowds of people, we see Jesus resolutely head to the temple and begin to clean house.  Over time the leaders of the temple had instigated and allowed practices that were undermining the purpose God had in having a temple in the first place.  Let’s take a closer look at the problem.

The temple presented a very practical, logistic problem.  People were required to bring animals for sacrifice, and those animals needed to be inspected and judged.  Also, once a year a temple tax had to be paid in the Hebrew coinage.  Some people were traveling great distances and thus would have trouble trying to bring animals to Jerusalem.  They would also have foreign money and would need to exchange it to pay the tax.  On top of this many people didn’t have their own flocks and would need to purchase animals once they got to Jerusalem.  Thus people would bring money with them in order to exchange currency and secure an acceptable sacrifice.

Now sometimes the solutions to problems can create other problems.  So, at first, people would get animals in the surrounding area and bring them to the temple.  At some point, the place of getting an acceptable animal kept moving closer to the temple until it was moved into the outer court of the temple (also known as the court of Gentiles).  On one hand this was more convenient for the people and allowed them to buy “pre-approved” animals.  This convenience led to what it always does, higher prices.  In fact Jesus called it a den of thieves.  They were price-gouging the people.  This solution had begun to undermine the purposes of God.  The people were commanded to come, give sacrifice and pay the tax.  Yet, the priests and vendors were taking advantage of that situation to “rob” the people.  When leadership takes advantage of those who are trying to obey God’s commands, it has crossed a line that God will not tolerate for long.  This happens in the Church today.  Many false leaders have taken advantage of the fact that people are commanded by God to believe on Jesus and become a part of his Church.  They undermine God’s purposes as they fleece the flock and abuse their authority. 

Another problem is that the vendors in the court of the Gentiles had become an added distraction to worship.  Now let me first say that even if everything was done perfect, there would still be plenty of distractions to worshipping God.  They still had to bring an animal that would be relieving itself wherever.  They would also have the slaughtering of the animals and other people.  We should never fool ourselves that worship of God in this flesh is meant to be a perfect event.  The flesh is always distracted.  Part of the challenge of a believer is to learn to see God in the midst of those distractions.  In fact, salvation and redemption is messy business.  But the lust for money and convenience was adding more distraction than was necessary.  Also, the rip-off prices would fill the heart of people with anger at men, and ultimately anger with God.  “Why should I come to Your temple and get robbed?  Is this just?”  It is hard to worship when you feel like you have been abused.  Commercialization within the Church diminishes and trivializes our participation within it.  Leaders may think they have created a wonderful thing, but they are undermining the ability of people to truly worship.

God Desires Prayer From All Nations

Jesus reminds the priests that God’s purpose was that the temple be a place of prayer for all nations.  He does this by quoting from Isaiah 56:6-7, which says, “Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants-everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant- even them I will bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer.  Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on My altar; for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”  Thus God wanted His temple to be a place of prayer, and not just for Israel.  That passage says that God wants to make the Gentiles joyful in his house.  Prayer is basically a person reaching out to God and interacting with Him.  This was done with sacrifices and words.  Whether to cover sins or to honor God, prayer is our approach to God.  The symbolism of the temple speaks to the importance of approaching God correctly.  But we should never lose sight of the main point.  There is a way to approach God, interact with Him, and be accepted.  This is a joyful thing.  Whether we are glorifying Him, petitioning Him, or confessing and repenting before Him, we can know that He accepts us.  This was being lost through the actions of the leaders of that day. 

God’s heart is to take those who are separated from Him and to bring them near.  The whole chapter of Isaiah 56 is worth reading because he is dealing with the reality that some people were separated from going all the way into the temple.  In fact, the closer you got to the temple the fewer people who could continue.  Thus those who were not Jews could only approach the first level.  Then the next level was the Court of Women.  Only the Jewish males could go in to it.  Then there was the temple building itself.  Only the priests could enter the Holy place.  And then only one priest, the High Priest, could go into the Holy of Holies, and it only on one day out of the year.  Some people see this cynically and say something to the affect that they couldn’t worship a God who appears so racist or misogynistic.  However, they are completely misreading the reason for these barriers.  Isaiah 56 is a prophecy to Eunuchs and Gentiles who could feel badly about being separated.  He encourages them not to be discouraged.  You see the whole point was to show that no matter how “qualified” a person was in the flesh, it still couldn’t guarantee their hearts were in the right place.  The High Priest in the days of Jesus wasn’t even a son of Aaron.  He had manipulated and bribed his way into the post.  It was those who were most removed from God in the flesh who were the most easily brought near in the Spirit.  In fact, Israel as a nation rejected Jesus and when the Gospel went to the Gentile nations it was initially received my many.  Thus instead of thinking God is racist, recognize His well illustrated point that no race, biology, sex, station in life, or physical ability can ensure a person’s heart will truly believe God and worship Him.  Yes many worshipped God with their lips, but their hearts were far from Him.

The New Covenant

So what does this say to us today?  Yes, it can apply to us under the New Covenant.  First of all, we should receive Jesus as our King.  Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords, and God requires all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30).  There also is no other name under heave given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12).  Jesus is the master and we are His disciples.  Thus His Word is authoritative in our life by His position.  Yet, he has also saved our lives by dying on a cross for us.  Thus His Word is authoritative in our life by His value to us. 

We should also let the King cleanse our life.  Jesus knows exactly what it is that is getting in the way between us and God.  If we accept Him as king then we should also accept His judgments of the things in our lives.  He prunes us and enables us to be fruitful.  Thus the true believer in Jesus is in a relationship of learning to surrender to the wisdom of Christ.  It is easy to say that all our sins were covered 2,000 years ago and thus we don’t have to worry about sin at all.  However, this overlooks the fact that to embrace Jesus as our savior is to admit that we need saved, aka “I am a sinner.”  Jesus didn’t die so that we can keep on sinning.  Rather, He died so that we can be freed from our sins and enabled to truly change.

Lastly, we should draw near to God in Spirit and in Truth.  Regardless of what you are in the flesh, God has enabled you to come into the Holy of Holies through Jesus.  Regardless of race, gender, or lineage, you can come into the holiest place of all, the throne of God.  He accepts you not because of your flesh, but because you put your faith in His Son Jesus.  Let embrace and worship Him today!

Undermining audio

Praying Without Losing Heart

June 14, 2015-Luke 18:1-8

After warning about the Kingdom of God and the judgment that will initiate it, Jesus then speaks to his disciples about prayer.  Perhaps the logical connection is the reality that living in a world that is coming under the judgment of God is not easy.  Even in “easy times” the disciples of Jesus should pray in asking for wisdom and care, and giving thanks to God for His blessings.  However, difficult times would lead to an even greater need for prayer.  We will see today that prayer is an expression of our faith in God.

We Ought To Pray

Jesus establishes our need to pray by using a parable of a woman in need.  Normally a parable is explained by Jesus after the fact.  However here, Luke precedes the parable with a clear statement of what it teaches.  The first aspect of this statement is that prayer is something we “ought” to do.  There is a part of any follower of Christ that knows they “ought” to pray.  In fact, for new believers, praying can feel strange and be something that they neglect to do.  Typically a feeling of guilt will accompany this as we know we should be doing it.  It is also possible for those who have been believers for a long time to let a habit of prayer slip into neglect.  We can let the busyness of life and distractions take the place of prayer.  Yet, the oughtness of prayer is more than a duty or command. 

The woman in the prayer has an adversary who has done an injustice towards her.  She is also without the power to rectify this situation herself.  She is a woman and widowed, and both things would make it difficult for her to confront her adversary.  Thus it is necessary for her to turn to the courts for justice.  It is in a similar vein that the disciples of Jesus ought to pray.  We too have an adversary that is far greater than us.  The devil is a real being who works night and day to destroy our faith in Christ.  Injustice is one of his main tool to turn our hearts away from Jesus.  We ought to pray because we can’t fix things on our own.  We need God’s help.  1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”  We are in a darkened world that is under the sway of the devil.  We are also surrounded by temptations on every hand.  Lastly, we are filled with fleshly desires that make us an easy target.  We are not enough for every situation in and of ourselves.  We need the help of our Lord and should ask for it in prayer.

It is also important to see that the end we desire calls for prayer.  If we desire to participate in the Kingdom of God then it is necessary that we pray.  Prayer is the means by which we wrestle with God over our situation in life.  Without prayer our faith will quickly perish under the barrage of questions and doubts.

Lastly we ought to pray because it is only right and proper that we do so.  As children of God we should call upon our Heavenly Father for wisdom, aid, and benefit.  To not call upon Him and rely upon Him is not just independence.  It is a rejection.  Just picture a young toddler who will not allow a parent to help and stubbornly insists on doing everything themselves.  How about a young teenager?  Even as adults we need others to help us in life.  Thus it becomes a sin to have a loving Father and yet reject Him at every hand.  In the parable the woman approaches a judge who couldn’t care any less about her.  Yet, she still approaches him.  What a contrast to our Father in heaven.

We Ought To Pray Always

Luke adds the word “always” to this spiritual truth.  In the parable we are told that the woman troubles the judge.  He doesn’t want to help her, but she keeps bothering him, or dare we say nagging.  The word translated “always” could also be translated, “at all times.”  She has a particular problem that she wants fixed.  But because the judge isn’t doing anything about it, she continues to badger him for help.  Now the judge in the story is not helping because he doesn’t care about her.  But God does care about us.  We might think this means God will answer us immediately.  However, prayer is not about us telling God what we want and Him doing it in a knee-jerk reaction.  Prayer is not just a request.  It is a relationship.  Thus the believer will find themselves continually coming back to God for particular things and for the never ending parade of new things to pray for.  Prayer is not something we can “finish.”  It is a daily conversation with God regarding our life and His hand in it.  In life we will receive many injustices and situations that are worthy of much prayer.  Thus we should persist in our prayers instead of quickly giving up.  God loves us and cares for us.  Yet, He is wiser than we are.  Prayer helps us to understand God’s plan in our lives.

We see the phrase, “praying at all times” in Ephesians 6:18.  This is right at the end of the passage about putting on the armor of God.  It is then that we are told to pray.  “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for the saints.”  Thus prayer is part of the work of the soldier of God.  We are in a battle against spiritual forces.  We must be armored up and we must be praying at all times and in all ways.  At all times is not just about persistence in prayer, but it is also about the many different things we encounter in life.  Everything that we encounter in life will call for some kind of prayer.  Some things will call for praises and thanksgiving.  Others may call for confession and repentance.  We will often have need to petition God on our own behalf and on behalf of others.  Everything we encounter should be bathed in prayer and petition of some sort.  When our life falls short of this we begin to affect our discipleship in Christ.

Now the woman’s persistence and “always” bothering the judge gets her what she wants.  We cannot say that such persistence will always work with God.  However, such persistence will help us to grow and become more like Christ, as well as help us to receive things from God that we would not have received without asking.

We Ought To Pray Without Losing Heart

There were many things that could have made the widow lose heart.  Now the word “to lose heart” is defined as follows: to be utterly spiritless, to be wearied out, exhausted.  This woman is coming before a judge who does not fear God and thus is not concerned about justice.  Neither does he care about the woman to give her help.  These things alone could cause her to lose heart and give up.  Even if she had enough strength to ask several times, she could have wearied out too quickly.  It is important that we do not become exhausted in our prayers with God.  Too many people get offended or tell themselves that it doesn’t work and they quit praying.  Don’t do this.  Often God is simply testing our faith to see if we really do believe that He loves us and will help us in life.  There are also some things that He has purposed to only give in answer to persistent, faithful prayer.  So the next time you are tempted to give up on prayer, you might ask yourself just who has a vested interest in you ceasing your prayers.

Persistence in prayer is ultimately about faith in God, which is why Jesus ends with a question about whether or not he will find faith when he returns.  Jesus tells us that God has a speedy judgment planned to avenge the righteous of all the injustices they have experienced.  This speedy judgment is clearly linked to the coming of the son of man, aka Jesus.  Jesus is coming back to give a judgment on behalf of the saints.  However, how many believing people will he find when he returns?  I don’t think Jesus asks this to imply he won’t find any.  But, rather, it seems to function more as a personal challenge to those who hear it.  Will he find faith, in me?  This question has a tendency to give life to those who are weary and stir up the faith of those who are spiritually fainting.  Thus persistence in prayer not only comes from faith, but it also strengthens our faith as well.  The enemy is daily working to chip away at our ability to trust the way of the master, Jesus.  As we lose faith in Jesus, we will let down in prayer and that prayerlessness will precipitate defeat in our life.  Don’t let the enemy steal the victory that God has reserved for you.  Keep your eyes on Jesus and daily approach him in prayer for the needs and praises of that day.

Praying Without Losing Heart mp3

Motherhood in Perspective

Today is Mother’s Day and as such we are going to talk about how important it is for mother’s to keep things in proper perspective.  By way of illustration I am going to read a short letter from a college student to her parents, which has no known origin.  By the way, this letter is not purported to be an actual letter, but was more than likely created to emphasize how perspective affects our outlook.  Here is the letter:

Dear Mom and Dad,

Just thought I’d drop you a note to clue you in on my plans.  I’ve fallen in love with a guy called Jim.  He quit high school after grade eleven to get married.  About a year ago he got a divorce.  We’ve been going steady for two months and plan to get married in the fall.  Until then, I’ve decided to move into his apartment (I think I might be pregnant).  At any rate, I dropped out of school last week, although I’d like to finish college sometime in the future.  (Letter continued on the next page)…

Mom and Dad, I just want you to know that everything I’ve written so far in this letter is false.  None of it is true.  But, Mom and Dad, it IS true that I got a C- in French and flunked my math class…and it IS true that I’m going to need some more money for my tuition payments.

Being a mom is a difficult task that presents a unique set of challenges.  Yet, it is easy to lose perspective about it.  What is it I am really supposed to do?  What is success and what is failure?  Today we are going to look at three phases of life for moms: before being a mother, during the child rearing years, and after the kids leave the house.

Is Motherhood To Be Desired?

Over the last century being a mother has come to be a despised thing in some circles.  Whether it is Margaret Sanger calling for a 10 year moratorium on child births in the 1940’s or modern arguments that refer to motherhood as an enemy to women, a mom and dad raising a kid have much to overcome.  So, for a young woman, a very serious question to wrestle with is this: Is motherhood to be desired?  Is it some ancient form of slavery and restriction of women?  Does it necessarily ruin your professional and marital life?

Now before we deal with this question, I want to recognize that there are many women who, for one reason or another, have not or cannot have children.  I do not intend to diminish the difficulties of desiring to give birth to a child and being told you can’t.  Let me just say to those who are in that situation, trust God and talk with Him about your desires.  He may have something different for you that can be just as rewarding, whether becoming a foster parent, simply blessing kids around you, or mothering children spiritually.  So don’t make the act of birthing a baby of your own, the end all, of life and purpose.

Let’s go back to the question of the desirability of being a mother.  In Genesis 1:27-28, we see that motherhood is part of God’s design for women.  A man and woman coming together in a committed relationship to create the next generation is part of God’s design of humanity.  Whatever motherhood is, women were designed for it and it is not just a good thing, it is a God thing.

We also see in this Genesis passage that God refers to this process with the metaphor of being fruitful.  This is a powerful picture because no one would say that a tree without fruit is useless, and yet a tree that has fruit is something quite different altogether.  Throughout the Bible fruitfulness is more than physically giving birth to a child.  It is at its core a giving of life.  Yes, a child is birthed.  But it must be cared for and nurtured for it to be able to come to a point where it can live on its own.  Thus a woman’s fruitfulness is more than giving birth.  It is her ability to come alongside of another and give life to them.  This can be done regardless of one’s ability to conceive.  In fact the case can be made that the physical fruitfulness becomes a curse if the higher fruitfulness of physical and spiritual nurturing is neglected.  Rotten teens are not an argument against raising children.  They are an argument against the lack of a higher order of birthing that must happen.  The conception to birth process can be seen as an analogy of the higher order process that brings a child from birth into adult society.

In Psalm 127:3-4 we are told that children are an inheritance from the Lord.  In other words it is a portion that he has for many women that they can enjoy and tend to it.  It is not the only possible inheritance for women in life (If you are unable to have children recognize that God has an inheritance for you).  But neither should it be slighted as undesirable.

Motherhood is something that is good and desirable.  Take time to walk with God and He will make it clear if you are to be a mother or not.  Don’t lose perspective of the fact that you will come to the end of your life and there will be no going back.  Yes, we all have regrets, but don’t wall yourself off from motherhood without first spending the time in prayer to seek God’s will.

Am I A Failure As A Mother?

Once a woman has had a child, or more, it is very common to be plagued with doubts as to your success at it.  In fact they are very rarely doubts.  Generally you may feel quite sure that you have failed at it.  In Psalm 119:105, we are told that the Word of God is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.  Thus, if you feel that you are a failure and don’t know what to do, turn to God for wisdom.  Let His Word shed light on what you should do. 

James picks up on this in James 1:5.  However, he not only counsels us to let God’s Word be a light to our path, but also counsels us to pray and ask for it.  Reading God’s Word is the content side, but we also have a spiritual and emotional side.  Spend time in prayer asking for wisdom to raise your child.  On top of this we can take our anxieties and worries, and put them in God’s hands because we know that He cares for us both emotionally and practically.

Now here are some rapid-fire encouragements that all of us know, but need to hear often.  Be realistic in how you judge yourself.  We can expect far too much of ourselves and our children.  In fact, a unrealistic expectation can make our “failures” even worse, by an unhealthy emphasis on perfection.  Relax and realize that you are not God.  There is only so much that you can do.  God does not expect you to be super-mom.  But you can be a supernatural mom by relying on God for His help.

Also, learn to prioritize.  Priorities help you to decide between what is going to get done and what isn’t.  Being a parent is one of those jobs that is never done and you’re always on the clock.  Many things that we see as failures are simply our limitations as a human.  You can’t do everything and God doesn’t expect it from you.  Prayerfully set priorities that make the really important things primary and the not so important things tertiary at best.

Another important thing is to find some friends that can understand what it means to be a mother.  The power of being able to talk with someone who understands us cannot be underestimated.  Don’t wall yourself off from others because you are such a “miserable failure.”  Isolation can make a person feel lonely even when they are surrounded by family.  So purposefully counteract it by seeking out friends who are raising kids themselves.  Alongside this, you can pray for God to lead you to a good mentor who is further along in life, a seasoned mom who can help you gain perspective.  In the now it feels like it is never going to end.  But a mom who has raised her kid can help keep you encouraged.  Normally this would be your mom and/or grandma.  But if this isn’t an option for you, don’t sit there.  Proactively seek out a mentor.

Lastly, moms, trust God.  Ultimately this is what we all have to do.  Many kids have come from horrible homes and grown up to become amazing servants of God and society.  So clearly you don’t have to be perfect for them to become all God wants them to be.  However, this is not an advocacy for not even caring.  You will have to give account to God for how you raised your kids, but not in the perfectionist way that you often do to yourself.  Your kid is going to grow up and make their own decisions.  You will be a powerful influence on them, but yet only an influence.  It doesn’t take perfection to do a good job; it just takes a love that is willing to be perfected.  “Lord, teach me to love my kids as You would have me!”

What now?

It is called the empty nest syndrome.  Some people look forward to the empty nest with far too much glee and, yet, others dread it with far too much gloom and depression.  A hyper-desire for what is down the road can adversely affect our actions in the now.  No, you don’t have to be perfect, but you do need to be engaged in the here and now.  Emotional abandonment can be a very heavy thing to place upon the shoulders of a child.  On the other hand, those who are depressed over the emptying of their nest can develop an unhealthy selfishness and lack of faith that God has other good things ahead for you.  If God gave you kids to enjoy then He will be faithful to give you things to enjoy at the next stage.  Yes, all you have known for the last 20-30 years is suddenly gone and you face an unknown future.  But you have been there before.  The same God who has led you to this point has a plan forward.  Take His hand and rejoice!

We see such attitude in Hebrews 11:24-27.  Moses is given a task by God.  He knew what was being asked on the macro-level.  But there was much ahead that required trusting God.  Surrender to the next stage and let God lead you forward just as God led Moses.  There is a reward ahead.  This highly transitional time can go in many different directions and will definitely go through several transitions.  Some of them will be your choices, and yet, some of them may not.  Many a couple has emptied the nest only to immediately be presented with failing parents who need their care.  Or perhaps you have an adult child who has special needs and will never be able to live on their own.  Many things can lie ahead: grandkids, travel, new professions, hobbies, and expanded horizons.  No one thing is necessary for you to have a full and rewarding life.  The only thing you really need is to trust God as He leads you into the next phase of your life.

Let me close with a passage in Titus 2:1-4.  Here Paul encourages the older women to help the younger women to see the importance of loving their husbands and children.  Though he doesn’t use this word, I would see this as mentoring.  You have alot of experience that you can share with younger women.  It should not come across as a “know-it-all” attitude.  In fact mentoring is not so much about showing a young mother what she is doing wrong (this can short-cut her own learning and developing process).  At its heart is one woman telling another woman that, if she will lean on Jesus, she will be woman enough to meet the daunting things in her life.  Encourage them and keep them trusting in Jesus and His wisdom.  And, a practical tip from time to time won’t hurt at all ;)

Motherhood in Perspective audio

The Lord's Prayer

Today we will be looking at Luke 11:1-4.  Here we have an account of the disciples asking Jesus to teach them how to pray.  Two things are leading them to ask this.  First, they make mention that John had taught his disciples how to pray.  Second, it mentions that Jesus had just finished praying.  There must have been something about the way he prayed that caught their attention.  These disciples had heard plenty prayers through their life.  They are not asking to be taught because they have no learning, but because they can see that the prayers of John’s disciples, and especially Jesus, are very different from what they are used to seeing.

I pray that as we go through this you will be hungry to be able to pray as we see Jesus praying in these verses.  If prayer seems like a chore that you never seem to get around to then please take time to either read or listen to this sermon and ask God to help you embrace Him through prayer.  God clearly intends prayer to be something far more intimate than most of us are used to experiencing.

We Need To Be Taught To Pray

In some ways prayer is like the response of a baby to their need, “Waaah!”  It is an almost unconscious cry regarding our sin and the sin around us.  The Bible speaks of a cry that comes up to God from men and women on the earth.  It is clear in some of those contexts that the people are not actually praying to the Creator.  Often they are worshipping false gods.  Yet, God hears the cry of their hearts.  However, at some point prayer must become a more intimate exchange in which we approach God, not as a child, but as an adult child who knows his father.  Simply put, we need to grow in prayer.  We see the disciples recognizing that need in their selves.  Do you see the need in your own life? 

The foundational part of prayer is the recognition that we need help from God.  As much as the modern age has felt that it can meet all needs, humans are still needy people.  In fact, many of the claims of the past have proven to be more difficult than first believed whether we are talking about viruses or social dynamics.  No matter how great our technology we will never be able to “fix” our spiritual problems or satisfy our spiritual needs without God.  Prayer is the humility to toss arrogance and pride aside, and ask God for help.

Notice that the prayer Jesus gives is not complex.  This prayer is simple enough that a child could pray it and yet great enough that no one can be said to have mastered it.  God is not interested in complex and long oratories from us.  He wants a simple, heart-felt prayer that comes from the heart.  In fact, it could be said that God listens to what our heart is saying more then what our lips are saying.  Isaiah 29:13 “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,” (ESV).

It is good to memorize this prayer and pray it even today.  It is a timeless prayer.  Yet, it is clear from the differences between this version in Luke and the one in Matthew 6 that Jesus does not intend this prayer to be something to memorize only.  A memorized prayer can become a rote prayer.  It can be a mechanical thing that is absent any thought or feeling.  It is best to see this prayer as a firm starting place that we can use as a model to help us move forward.

A Model Prayer

The first phrase teaches us how God wants us to approach Him, as a child to a father.  This is a picture of a close and intimate relationship.  Now I know that earthly parents are not perfect and some are downright evil.  Yet, God cares for you better than any earthly parent could ever care for you.  As we become adults our hearts need to turn from our parents and towards God as our source of strength and help in the time of need.

Now Jesus is speaking to his disciples.  Although all people on earth are God’s children by right of creation, not all are his children spiritually.  In John 1:12 we are told that “as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in his name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”  Thus believers in Jesus are not just physical creations of God.  But, we are also a new creation spiritually.  As his spiritual children we can approach with closeness and privilege whether we feel it or not.

Notice that in this prayer Jesus prays for God’s sake first.  He makes three requests on God’s behalf and then three requests on our behalf.  It is important that prayer not be all about us.  We need to learn to put God first.  Pray for God’s things first.  Do you remember when Jesus was talking about anxiety what he said?  He said to seek God’s kingdom first and then all these material needs will be provided.  It may not be our first inclination, but we need to be concerned with God’s things above our things.  Or better put, our things need to find their proper place within the things of God.

The first thing he prays for God is that his name be made holy (hallowed).  One’s name is their reputation and character.  We need to be concerned with God’s reputation and character.  He is good, gracious and just.  Yet, many refuse to see that.  They are convinced that the God of the Bible is not worthy of praise.  We need to pray that God’s reputation and character are viewed and treated as singularly different from all others.  His character should be seen as the highest and best that we seek to attain.  When we are praying for God’s reputation it will make us aware of how our own life helps or hurts God’s reputation. 

The next thing he prays for is for God’s rule; specifically the rule of God’s Savior.  Right now Jesus rules in the lives of believers from heaven.  Thus we can pray for an increase of that rule to other hearts.  However, the Bible promises a time when Christ will return and administer a righteous kingdom from earth.  Thus we are also looking forward to and praying for this coming of Christ.

The third thing is to pray for God’s will.  Do I desire God’s will to be done in my life?  In a sinful world it is easy to desire others to obey the will of God.  However, my heart must be changed as well.  Prayer and reading of the Scriptures is where we cut our teeth on understanding just how good God is and just how important it is to listen to his direction in our lives.

So Jesus prays for the Reputation, the Rule, and the Will of God first.  Then he turns to pray about our needs.  In some ways we all need God’s reputation, rule and will in our lives.  However, God also wants to hear our desires that we have for our self.  Clearly he invites and expects us to share those desires with him.  Part of growing in prayer is learning when a prayer is improperly motivated by our flesh and when it has a proper motivation.

The first need is our daily bread.  This physical need will be with us every day and will not go away.  But we see it prayed for with some restraint.  It is not “Lord, give me enough bread to last forever.”  It is only asking for the bread I will need to day.  There is a foundation of trust here.  Our physical needs have a way of making us go overboard.  But we can approach our heavenly father with the trust that he knows our frame and will provide for us.  Be careful of rejecting prayer and attempting to insulate yourself from any need.  There is a place at which wise preparation goes out of bounds and becomes a neurotic desire to have no needs.  If we follow that path fear and worry will become our masters in the end.  Of course physical food is a reminder of our need for spiritual sustenance, but we shouldn’t be too quick to spiritualize this point.  God cares for our physical needs as much as he does our spiritual.  But he will always prioritize the spiritual over the physical.

Second Jesus says to pray for forgiveness.  Sin is referred to as a debt.  When you think about it you can see that our sins against each other leave us owing confession and repentance to each other.  We also owe each other restitution.  Here we ask God to forgive us because we are forgiving those who have sinned against us.  Clearly it would pose a problem to ask for God’s forgiveness when we refuse to forgive others.  He will not forgive such brazen sin until we break our hard heart and repent.  Yet, what about the sins I have committed against others?  What obligations to others have I left outstanding?  These things can become barriers between us and God if we do not make them right with each other.  Romans 13:8 says, “Owe no one anything, except to love each other.”  This does not mean we never have problems, but that we keep short accounts with each other both in material things and especially in our sins.  To the degree that we see our own sin and deal with it, we will act with greater mercy to those who sin against us.  This will release mercy from God to us.

The third thing Jesus prays for us is God’s leading.  We need God’s direction to avoid the traps and temptations of the evil one.  We are promised that God will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able to endure.  So the first thing we need to do is drop any excuses we have made and recognize that God wants to help us avoid it.  We must desire to be free from temptation not just externally but also internally.  Too many of us pray for God to take temptation away from us.  But the real problem is our heart’s desire for it.  Prayer is where we learn to lay down those temptations that our heart is drawn towards.  Ultimately Jesus prays that we will be delivered from the devil.  At the cross, Jesus completely neutralized the weapons of the devil.  However, we still need to learn how to walk in the victory that Jesus has secured for us.  We need God’s leading every day and in every way to avoid being manipulated by the devil. 

Don’t let the godlessness of this generation fool you into thinking you can live life without prayer.  Prayer is the fruit of true faith in God and it leads to His help and blessing in our lives.  That blessing takes on many shapes and forms.  However, every one of them will bring us through this world without becoming a casualty to our adversary.  So give yourself to prayer today in a simple yet heart-felt plea to God for the help that you need today!

The Lord's Prayer audio