Worldview: The Prayer Chapter:
The Lord’s Prayer
-He is my mighty awesome God
-God is worthy of my respect and submission
-aligns ourselves with His will and purposes
-Jesus is the greatest example of prayer warrior
-Jesus provides a template and pattern so we pray like Jesus
-we should want to understand what prayer really is
-ask for His will in every area in our lives
-ask for HIs provision for our daily needs
-admit our sins and turn from them asking for forgiveness
-determine our minds to to forgive all those who have offended us
“God will allow hardship, challenges, needs, and sometimes even tragedy to enter our lives so He can reveal Himself to us in fresh ways and put His power and glory on display.”
Why pray?
-we need to pray because we are weak
-prayer shouldn’t be the last resort, but the first resort
-when I am weak I am strong
-thankfulness when life is going well
-because you have faith
-to stand in the gap for others
-go to God with your needs
-talk to Him about what is on your heart
-He loves to talk to you and hear your voice
“That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weakness, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10).
“Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord” (James 5: 13-14).
-the Lord’s prayer is really the people’s prayer
-the Lord’s prayer should be called “the disciples prayer”
-the Lord’s prayer is a model, or pattern for the sort of prayers we should offer every day
Here is the Lord’s Prayer spoken by Jesus
Our Father who art in heaven
Hallowed be thy name
Thy kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth a sit is in heaven
Give us day by day our daily bread
And forgive us our sins
For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us
And do not lead us into temptation
But deliver us from the evil one
(Luke 11:2-4)
The Lord’s prayer is divided into two sections
-the first deals with the glory of God
-the second concentrates on in this chapter
Three Petitions
1. Our Daily Needs
“Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11).
-bread was a staple for the first-century Jew and a part of every meal
-Satan himself brought bread into the conversation when he challenged Jesus to turn stones into bread in the wilderness to curb his physical hunger
-the Bible is not speaking of physical bread as food
**it is speaking of food in general
-when we pray “give us this day our daily bread”
-we are asking for the Lord to provide me with my human needs that I need to live (ex. Food, clothing, shelter, etc…)
-so we ask God to provide for our needs
-God wants us to come to Him in prayer to make our requests
“You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God” (James 4:2).
-ask for His provision over your life and the lives of your family, friends, and community
“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him” (Luke 11: 11-12).
**Make note that Jesus said pray for needs and not greeds
**The Bible doesn’t promise that God will meet our every desire so he may overrule you
**God willingly provides but we should not just sit around, be inactive, or neglect to work
(don’t be a lazy bum saying the Lord will provide)
“For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10).
When you pray
-acknowledge that everything we have comes from God for all days
-speak to Him about this provision “our daily bread” on a daily basis
-keeps you connected with Him as our Father and Provider
-to be a good steward of what He does provide for me
-faithfully give back to Him and invest in the work of the kingdom of God
“But you have turned from the way and by your teaching have caused many to stumble; you have violated the covenant with Levi”, says the Lord Almighty. “So I have caused you to be despised and humiliated before all the people. Because you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality in matters of the law” (Malachi 2: 8-11).
2. Forgiving and Being Forgiven
“Forgive our debts, as we forgive our debtors” (Matthew 6:12).
--we need to pray for the forgiveness of our sins
-we are always in the process receiving forgiveness and forgiving others
-the term “debts” is not referring to credit cards
-the team “debts” is translated as “sins”
-to forgive our trespasses means our shortcomings or our resentments or what we owe to You for the wrong we have done
-we need to pray that God opens our eyes to how we have sinned against others
-to remove the stain called pride
“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8).
-thoughts that go through you mind can leave a stain
-attitudes of the mind can leave a stain
-we all fall short of the standard of God
**As we receive that forgiveness, we should extend it to others
**Forgiven people ought to be forgiving people
Embittered people are unwilling to forgive:
-our culture esteems vengeance and payback
-they spread bitterness
-the bitterness grows to be more and more toxic
-society does not value forgiving and is seen as a sign of weakness
-not being forgiving brings sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit
-holding grudges or hate grieves the Holy Spirit
“See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (Hebrews 12:15).
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4: 31-32).
***The Bible says we are to be forgiving and to extend this forgiveness over and over again
“Everyone says forgiveness is a lovely idea, until they have something to forgive” (C.S. Lewis).
2. “Lord, Don’t Let Me Fall!”
“And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matthew 6: 12).
-we all need to pray the we not fall into temptation
-pray that the Lord will not allow to be tempted above my captivity to resist
“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
-satan is like an expert who knows just the right bait or lure that will attract you most
-pray daily to the Father to keep me from falling
-pray that the Father guards me from the temptations I will encounter today
-we can be quick to condemn sin in someone else’s life
-we can easily rationalize our own sin or compromised behavior in our own life
-pray God keeps you from doing wrong and displeases the Lord
Jesus encourages us to keep praying and not give up
-our Father wants to answer so be persistent and keep asking
-Jesus says to ask, seek, and knock
-the word “ask” implies requesting assistance
-we realize our need and we ask God for help
-set that we are not going to stop praying for the answer and provision from God
-intercessory prayer means you stand in the gap for someone
-interceding for someone’s life or someone’s salvation, and refuse to give up
-ignite our passion into prayers for nonbelievers
-asking should be your passion
-seeking should be your patience
-knocking should be your persistence
-ask God to reveal any sins or attitudes that displease Him
-extend God’s forgiveness to those who have hurt or offended you
*****To Pray is a Privilege
“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear” (Isaiah 59: 2).
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is an offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139: 23-24)
“Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity[a] he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.
9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Luke 11: 5-9).
