13: Our Father In Heaven (Mt 6:9-15)

Parents and grandparents find much joy in children & grandchildren praying. How precious when you see them fold their hands, tightly close their eyes and sincerely say something like this: “God is gwate. God is good. Let us thank Him for our food. By His hands we are fed, give us Lord our daily bwed. A…..men.”

And that’s cute…until you start to notice that the child is saying it as fast as he/she can, without considering what it means - just to get to the grub. But it’s not just children who do that. Teenagers & adults do the same thing.

3 weeks ago we talked about the attitude behind our actions in praying to God. Remember how Jesus said…

Matthew 6:5 (NIV)

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.

Matthew 6:6 (NIV)

But 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.

Matthew 6:7–8 (NIV)

And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans [Gr. Gentiles], for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

The prayer life of Jesus was so sincere, it led His disciples to ask a question that some of us have maybe been to prideful to ask.

Luke 11:1 (NIV)

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

It’s then that Jesus taught His disciples how to pray to...

“Our Father in heaven”.

Of course, you know what Jesus said. You have heard it countless times. In fact, most of you can repeat they KJV version with me…

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, & glory forever & ever. Amen.”

Today we examine this prayer, often thoughtlessly repeated across the planet.

Sports teams pray it quickly before games, as if these magical words will effect the outcome.

Some pray it at a religious gathering in a ritual way, even praying it multiple times back to back as a penance for sins.

In truth, we have heard this prayer SO OFTEN that few pause to consider what it really means.

* 4 quick issues I want to address before we dig in:

We studied Sermon on the Mount back in 2018, so if you were around back then, it’s likely that you will remember some of this, although I have tweaked it.

We are using the NET (New English Translation) to teach from today - a fine translation from the original languages that will help us better appreciate the meaning of this prayer.

"For yours is the kingdom and power, forever and ever, amen” is not found in the oldest & most reliable New Testament manuscripts of Matthew & Luke. So, when we get to the end of this prayer and this phrase is NOT FOUND in our text [NET, ESV, NIV, CSB], you’ll know why. You can see more about that in the notes I’ve given you.

While this is referred to as ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ is would be better labeled as “The disciples prayer” as it’s an example to follow - some of it could never be prayed by Jesus: “forgive us our sins…” - as Jesus never sinned. Therefore we might refer to it as “The Disciples’ Prayer”.

PRAY

Appreciate Who we are talking to

Matthew 6:9 (NET)

So pray this way: Our Father in heaven, may Your Name be honored,

First things first, we need to appreciate WHO we are talking TO.

This is our Creator, the One whom Jesus said no one on this side of eternity has ever seen - except for Himself (Jn. 6:46). And if we are going to pray rightly, we must recognize there is a difference, a distinction from the Creator and His creation.

God is the creator of ALL, eternal, all wise, and without sin. We are sinful beings who live on the earth for a short time in these bodies that will eventually fail. But He is in heaven, not bound by time nor space.

God is not the ‘big man upstairs’. God is NOT our cosmic bellhop who exists to be on call for whatever we want.

God is different and distinct from His creation.

And yet there are similarities between us and God. After all, we are made in the image of God (Gen 1:27). Jesus even taught His disciples to call God our Father.

In America we often refer to our “Founding Fathers”. We would never call George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, or Benjamin Franklin our personal fathers.

In the same way, Jews in Jesus’ day did not talk of God as their personal Father, but the Father over their nation.

In fact, “Father” is found only 15 times in the entire OT referring to God, none in which where God is addressed as “Father” in prayer. [2]

Further, in all the other ancient Jewish literature, not one of the prescribed prayers has a single example of a Jew addressing God in the personal form of “Father” as Jesus uses here.

Yet when Jesus prays He addresses God as ‘My Father’ almost every time.

In telling the disciples to address God as Father, Jesus transfers this privilege onto them.

More than just our Creator or ‘the man upstairs’, Father is relational term, recognizing God as our Provider, Director, Protector, and Corrector.

God doesn’t answer prayer because we’re a bother. God answers prayer because He's our heavenly FATHER!

Calling God our Father is not just about YOUR upward relationship to God, but also about OUR outward kinship to our brothers and sisters who follow Jesus.

I have a sister. Her name is Elaine. If Elaine and I talk about “our father”, we are talking about “Glynn Watts", we are talking about OUR father - which makes us FAMILY.

If we really appreciate who we are talking to, we should want our Father’s Name honored.

To honor, or as most translations say - hallow God’s Name - means to recognize HIM as HOLY - different from all others - the perfect Creator of all life. To pray may Your Name be honored is saying that, before we ask anything OF Him, we bring something TO Him - our recognition that HE is GOD and He is GOOD…and because of that we desire to honor Him above all others. This is what was intended when God told the Jewish people to keep His Name holy (Lev 22:32; cf. Ps 79:9, Isa 29:23).

The Jews of Jesus’ time SO HONORED God’s Name that they chose not even to speak His Name aloud.

Yet some of us refer to God or Jesus flippantly. Could we PLEASE stop saying, “Oh My God!” or using Jesus’ name as a cuss word. How about substituting “Oh my Budha!” or “Muhammed!”

I taught my kids, “Don’t use “GOD”, “JESUS”, or “LORD” unless you are taking TO HIM or ABOUT HIM.”

Martin Luther asked a great question we should ask ourselves: “How is it [God’s name] hallowed amongst us?” [3]

We might ask it this way, “How is God’s Name honored among us?”

How do our lips & lives communicate that honoring & trusting our Father above all others?

God’s Will Above All

Matthew 6:10 (NET)

may Your kingdom come, may Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

What’s THAT mean? I tell you what it DOESN’T mean. It doesn’t mean we are to huddle up and and hide from the evil world while we wait for Jesus to take us out of here.

We pray may your kingdom come, that His KINGDOM authority expand all over the earth! We are praying for a kingdom is both PRESENT & FUTURE, to EXPAND the Kingdom ON Earth and EXPECT the Kingdom FROM Heaven.

We pray for the EXPANSE of the Kingdom ON Earth while we EXPECT God’s Kingdom to come FROM Heaven at the return of Jesus.

_________________________

Think about this prayer so far.

This PRAYER is a PARTNERSHIP: “Father…through OUR LIVES…may Your Name be honored and Your Kingdom come!

Does that sound a little more meaningful than your pre-game or pre-meal ‘pray-it-as-fast-as-you-can’ prayer?

Now, let’s get honest. Does that sound like how most of OUR prayers begin?

Does your prayer time begin with something like this: “Father…Bless YOU, bless YOU, bless YOU! - BRING YOUR Kingdom.” OR do your prayers start with, “Bless me, bless me, bless me - build MY kingdom.”

The prayer Jesus models, just like the Ten Commandments, focuses FIRST on God’s glory and THEN...on mankind’s well-being.

So the Lord Jesus taught His disciples first to…

BIG TRUTH: Honor the Father & [then] Ask in Faith

for the needs in your life.

Daily Provision

Matthew 6:11 (NET)

Give us today our daily bread,

We are to ask God to provide for our physical needs, which daily bread represents. Those who have a week’s worth of groceries, a refrigerator, & a full freezer, we often forget that God provides the basics we need to survive. We often forget to ASK God & THANK God for His daily provision.

Charles Spurgeon, the great British preacher who died in 1892 told the story of his grandfather James and his faith in God.

“He had a large family and a very small income, but he loved his Lord, and he would not have given up his preaching of the gospel for anything.” One day the cow on which the family relied for milk for the children suddenly died. James Spurgeon’s wife was greatly concerned, but he said, “God said He would provide, and I believe He could send us fifty cows if He pleased.”

On that same day, a group met in London—a group James Spurgeon did not know—that wanted to help meet the needs of poor pastors. They raised a large sum of money, and began sending it to different pastors in need to help their families. When they reached the end of the list, there were still five pounds left. One man suggested sending it to James Spurgeon. Another said, “No, let’s not send just five pounds. Let me add five more to go with it.” Others joined in, and the day after his cow died, James Spurgeon received 20 pounds in the mail! (that would be over $2700 today).

God KNOWS your physical needs. ASK HIM to provide! This is what Jesus taught His followers to do...

Honor the Father & Ask in Faith

Jesus encourages us to ask for PHYSICAL needs as well as SPIRITUAL needs.

Livin’ Forgiven

Matthew 6:12 (NET)

and forgive us our debts, as we ourselves have forgiven our debtors.

Matthew 6:14–15 (NET)

For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins.

2 Important principles from this ONE verse:

First, we can confidently ask God to Forgive us for our sin. YES we have wronged Him. NO, we can’t pay Him back for the debts we owe…THAT’S WHY He freely forgives us!!!

Terry ADT GUY

Quit wondering if God can forgive you. Is anything TOO great for God to forgive? If you could see Jesus crucified by His own creation say…”Father, forgive them.” - you would have your answer.

Second, we understand that we too are to forgive others who owe us. YES they have wronged us. NO, they might not be able pay us back for the debts they owe…THAT’S WHY we…like our Father has done for us…freely forgive them!!!

How does GOD respond when you ask for forgiveness? Those who have experienced God’s forgiveness should extend God’s forgiveness to others! Quit wallowing in how others have wronged you.

Question: How is holding that grudge HONORING God & HELPING you? Your unwillingness to forgive is like YOU drinking the poison, and expecting your enemies to die.

So you’ve been wronged. So others owe you. Forgive as you’ve been forgiven. [funny song] and “Let it go…let it go!”

Protected from Temptation

Matthew 6:13 (NET)

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

This should cause us to pause and ask, DOES God lead us into temptation? James 1:13-14 makes clear that God does NOT tempt us to sin, but our own desires and the devil can.

The second part of the sentence helps give us more clarity to help us see that we are commanded to ask our Father to protect us from/through temptation and from the evil one.

Remember when Jesus has the apostles pray this type of prayer ‘pray that you may not enter temptation’ in Gethsemane (Luke 22:40, 46)?

When’s the last time you prayed THAT for YOU or another brother/sister? ‘God, please protect him/her from temptation this week.’ BTW…I would LOVE for you to pray that way for me!!!

Is THIS what we think of when we rush through ‘The Lord’s Prayer’? I doubt it.

NOTE: “The doxological ending that many Christians are accustomed to pray—“For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen” —did not originally conclude the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew’s Gospel. The best and oldest manuscripts do not have it, and the earliest commentaries on the Lord’s Prayer do not mention it. Neither does it appear in Luke’s parallel prayer (Luke 11:2–4). This doxology does occur in a variety of forms in many later manuscripts.” [2]

But this is how disciples of Jesus are to Pray…

Honor the Father & Ask in Faith

QUESTION: Do you view prayer as WORTHY of your time or a WASTE of your time?

Jesus didn’t think it was a WASTE, but a necessity…and if YOU follow Him, you will view prayer the way HE DOES.

Last, let’s put our

FEET2FAITH:

Make Time to Pray

PRAY ALONE. Make some time to pray as Jesus taught us, and use your own words.

PRAY WITH OTHERS. Ask about Physical/Spiritual Needs to pray for then do it! You don’t have to pray long, just be sincere.

And that’s how we will close today…praying TO God & FOR one another. Gather with your family…or friends. Don’t let anyone be alone. Look for others to pray with and quickly ask how you can pray for them.

If you need to talk with me, another staff member, our deacons/wives…come talk to us today or make the phone call. If you have spiritual questions, let’s talk!

Now, let’s take a few minutes to pray together as we...

Honor the Father & Ask in Faith

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Michael J. Wilkins, Matthew, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2004), 280.

Robert H. Stein, Luke, vol. 24, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992), 324.

R. Kent Hughes, The Sermon on the Mount: The Message of the Kingdom, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2001), 164.

The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Volume 21, Charles Spurgeon

discussionquestions

Take some time to discuss these questions with your family, friends, or group.

What challenged or encouraged you most from today’s teaching? (Look back in your notes to help explain your answer.) Are you satisfied with your prayer life? Explain your answer. What are some practices that help you to stay focused while you pray and/or what are some ways that you are distracted from praying? Read Matthew 6:9-10. Why does it matter that we remember WHO we’re talking to when we pray? What is the significance of being able to refer to the Creator of the universe as “our Father”? What are some practical ways the WE can expand the kingdom influence, that God’s will be done on the earth? Read Matthew 6:11. Why do you think it’s so easy for us to take food and other necessities for granted rather than being grateful for God’s daily provision in our lives? What are some practical ways that we can appreciate God’s provision for our physical needs? Read Matthew 6:12, 14-15. Take a moment to consider and share some of the things you are grateful God has forgiven you for. Why is it vital for us to forgive others who have harmed us? What do you think of this statement, “Unforgiveness is like YOU drinking poison and expecting your enemies to die.”? Read Matthew 6:13 and James 1:13-14. Explain how we know that GOD never tempts us to sin. What/who DOES tempt us to sin? Have you ever prayed for God to protect you or another from/through temptation? That would be a great way for us to pray for one another this week! Share some practical ideas on how you can consistently pray alone & pray with others this week. Share prayer needs and pray for one another.