Teach us to Pray: pt 3 - Praying our Needs

SLIDE 1 - As I go up

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread; 12 And forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors; 13 And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.

Were in our third week examining The Lord’s Prayer. and we’re 2 verses in. Last week we looked at the three prayer request Jesus makes that relate to God,

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

and

Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

This week we will turn our attention to the last section of this prayer; SLIDE 2 three requests Jesus teaches us to pray for ourselves.

Give us this day our daily bread

Forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors;

And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.

We will only tackle the first two today, and finish the prayer next week. But before we get started let me tell you a story. This story takes place sometime in the late 1800s, just over 200 years ago at an orphanage in London. Where 300 children are getting ready for their day.

The orphanages housemother, approaches the man who runs the orphanage, a look of worry plastered on her face.

“The children are dressed and ready for school. But there is no food for them to eat,”

The director looks at her and nods, he is aware of their situation, but isn’t concerned in the same way the housemother is.

(He) asked her to take the 300 children into the dining room and have them sit at the tables. He thanked God for the food and waited. George knew God would provide food for the children as he always did.

Within minutes a knock comes at the door, the director goes to open it and finds a baker standing their before him, a cart in the road behind.

“Mr. Mueller,” (the baker) said, “last night I could not sleep. Somehow I knew that you would need bread this morning. I got up and baked three batches for you. I will bring it in.”

The director smiles, thanking God for the bread, a prompt answer to his prayers.  

Soon, there was another knock at the door. It was the milkman. His cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. The milk would spoil by the time the wheel was fixed. He asked George if he could use some free milk. George smiled as the milkman brought in ten large cans of milk. It was just enough for the 300 thirsty children." SLIDE 3

The man this story is George Mueller. Muleer was a german missionary to England, over 200 years ago. George growing up had no plans on being a missionary, he’d even had a bit of a criminal hot streak going on, his father was a tax collector, and young Mueller on occasion would steal from his dad’s tax collection for drinking and gambling money. He was reported to stay in hotels and leaving early before paying, and he was often found going to parties and hanging out with the wrong crowds. But a classmate invited Meuller to a gathering of Christians, a Bible Study and prayer group. Despite Mueller’s growing criminal record he would have called himself a christian and even went to a so called Bible college, but later reflecting on that night Mueller said never before in his life had someone ever explained to him the Gospel clearly or even more so no one had ever told him Christians were expected, by God, to live up the words in the Bible. At that gathering, however, everything changed. Mueller learned what it meant to be a Christian, he turned his life around, his old friends wanted nothing to do with him, and he eventually felt called to be a missionary.

Telling his father of his new calling, his father was not happy. His father had been paying for Mueller’s education with the expectation that his son would become a wealthy contributor to society, not a poor missionary. So he told George he would no longer pay for his son’s studies if he planned on wasting his education. Mueller, however, knew he had to follow God’s will and God’s call on his life, rather than pursuing the easier, more comfortable option. George returned to school where he wasn’t sure how he would pay, but upon returning to his dorm room he prayed God would provide - While praying, so the story goes, a knock came on his door and a professor was offering him a paid tutoring job.

Mueller had his answer before he even said Amen. That started him on a lifetime of prayer and trust in God. While on mission to England Mueller led a church for a while but eventually was most well known for his orphanage ministries. Mueller was not a wealthy man by worldly standards - but during his life he housed over 10 thousand orphans during his ministry and he helped establish 117 schools which helped educate over 120 thousand students in Christian education.

The greatest lesson Mueller can teach us today, is that of prayer and trusting in God for our basic needs. SLIDE 4

Give us this day our daily bread.

That morning Mueller trusted God would answer that request. Mueller believed God could and would feed those 300 orphans. And God did just that! God gave them their daily bread. God did not fill the pantry, God didn’t give them a cow for future milk production - but God met their daily needs, and God continued to do so day after day after day. And These orphans weren’t the first people God provided for daily, and they won’t be the last!

In Exodus 16 we learn about God providing for the people of Israel as they wander about the dessert for 40 years. I’m an Iowa kid born and raised, I don’t know much about deserts, but I think it is common knowledge that they aren’t known for their abundance of food. So naturally the Israelites got a bit hungry… they got a bit angry… they got hangry! And in their hanger they declared SLIDE 5

3b “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by pots of meat and ate all the bread we wanted. Instead, you brought us into this wilderness to make this whole assembly die of hunger!” Ex 16:3b

They were so hungry they wished they were dead! Now (pause) I don’t think they seriously wished they were dead - they’re like a moody teenager complaining about whatever it is moody teenagers complain about now days… But there is some truth buried in this angst - they are questioning Moses’ leadership, they are questioning God’s provision, and they are thinking, maybe we should have remained slaves in Egypt, better to live an Egyptian slave than die in the sands of the desert.

God, however, provides for His people, verse 4. SLIDE 6

“4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. This way I will test them to see whether or not they will follow my instructions. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on other days.” Ex 16:4-5

And God does what he promises the people find this white stuff on the ground the next morning, and no it isn’t snow, it it tastes like honey wafers - and they call it Manna. They do as commanded and collect some manna to eat, they can boil it cook it, do whatever it is you make with Manna - but some people didn’t listen to the part where God said

enough for that day

and they gathered extra - and what did they find the following morning… SLIDE 7 verse 20

20 But they didn’t listen to Moses; some people left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and stank. Therefore Moses was angry with them.

And I love how then it adds,

Therefore moses was angry with them.

I know he was angry because they didn’t listen to what he said and they disobeyed God, but my human brain that applies things to the immediate context goes - well yeah I’d be angry that there are smelly worms in my camp too! Again, I know he wasn’t angry about the smell and the worms… well… maybe he was… but it was mostly because they disobeyed and didn’t trust God.

But eventually they learned and collected only enough bread, manna, for the day - with the exception being the day before the sabbath when they could collect double and it didn’t spoil enabling them to eat on the sabbath without working for it. And this lasted for 40 years! 40 years! I get tired of the same meal after like 2 nights of left overs. 40 years!

Give us this day our daily bread.

When we began this series we looked at both the Matthew and Luke accounts and both times Jesus was teaching others how to pray, these are not the prayers He would have shared with the Father, but a model, a template, for the prayers we are to pray. So why did Jesus model this request? Why ask for our daily bread?

This is a prayer of trust, not greed, we are to pray it with the expectation of George Mueller, God will give us our daily bread! God will give us what we need to make it through another day. It is a prayer of relying on God’s provision not my own powers or prowess. So, am I trusting God? Do I rely on Him? Or do I keep Him in my back pocket for when times get rough?

We also live in a very different world in 2023 than the disciples did two thousand years ago, or even more so when the Israelites wandered the desert almost 3500 years ago. Living hand to mouth is less common, but not uncommon. So what does

Give us this day our daily bread

mean for modern Christians? Do we need to sell anything of value we have, liquidate our assets and trust God will provide the money we need for rent? No! The Lord’s prayer is not teaching us that we need to avoid wealth, but rather that we need to trust God to provide - those are two VERY different things, there is a teaching called the poverty gospel, which replaces the cross and the empty tomb with an empty wallet. It teaches that to be filled with the spirit we need to be empty of wealth - and that is not true, that is not in the Bible. On the other end of the spectrum we see famous pastors going around the world with their fancy jets and million dollar smiles; saying send me a check for $1000 and I’ll pray God returns it to you ten fold… that’s a real thing some televangelists do - it saddens me. And the prosperity Gospel is attractive, but VERY false! The Lord’s prayer is saying ask and trust God to provide our needs. That’s where it’s narrative ends. But I’l add one small piece on the the other end - for those of us who may not need that financial trust as much.

First Timothy 6 is often misquoted, so let me read it for you. SLIDE 8

17 Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant or to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God, who richly provides us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do what is good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and willing to share, 19 storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of what is truly life.

I don’t want to turn this into a sermon on First Timothy… trust me someday First and second Timothy will be a series in and of themselves - not anytime soon, but someday! So let me just hit ________ points.

First - Instruct those who are rich - that implies there will be rich people in the church; so don’t scare or chase them off if they come - they are welcome here - some of you may even consider yourselves in that group - you are welcome here - it is OK to be rich and be a Christian!

Second - what are we to instruct them? Set their hoe on God not on wealth. It is ok to have wealth it is not OK to set our hope, our faith, on that wealth. Wealth won’t buy us heaven. God will give us heaven free. So put your hope, your faith, on what seals and controls eternity.

Third - what else are we to instruct them and the rest of us? Be rich in good works! Be Generous. Be willing to share. So if you have been blessed with wealth - steward that wisely - not as a resource to be hoarded, not as candy to be handed out like it’s Halloween, but wisely - in a way that it best blesses God and others.

And be aware - a few verses before this is where most people misquote the passage. SLIDE 9 Verses 9 and 10.

9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

The Bible does not say money is the root of all evil. The Bible says, the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. The love for wealth, the desire for it is a trap, that will lead us into temptation. Temptation to lie on our taxes, skim a little off the top, barter ruthlessly hurting the little guy. It is OK to be a Christian and have wealth - so long as that wealth doesn’t become a trap, a pit, or a vice keeping us from Loving God and loving others as God leads us to.

And as Jesus countered satan while being tempted in the desert, literally the chapter before Jesus starts the sermon where this prayer is found

Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Even the wealthy need our daily bread in the form of every word that comes from the mouth of God. So this line

Give us this day our daily bread

This is a prayer that we may trust God to provide all we need, but also a reminder we need more than bread, we need more than money can buy, we need to live on every word that comes from the mouth of God - every word written in this book.

Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. SLIDE 10 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

Some translations use the word trespasses, some use the words sins. SLIDE 11 The word Jesus uses here, O-fi-la-ma, which typically means repayment of that which is owed, justice dealt. Jesus is saying Father, forgive us what we are owed - the Pastor Brian paraphrase would be - God, please, don’t give us what we deserve! Give me anything other than what I deserve! When we look at the other instance where Jesus teaches this prayer to His disciples, in Luke 11, SLIDE 12 Jesus switches from the word opheiléma to the word hamartia which is almost exclusively translated as sins; but then again what are forgiving others of; their opheilo, what they owe us.

Now a reminder - it is believed Jesus taught this prayer multiple times; this is not a discrepancy in translation, this is a minor alteration Jesus made on a template he gave us for how to pray.

What is fascinating, to me at least, is the slight shift on the transitional part of the sentence - in both we are asking God to forgive us; one to forgive us of our sins, Luke, and one to forgive us of the justice God owes us for the sins we have committed. One is saying God forgive me for lying, the other is saying, God forgive me the penalty I owe for lying. Now the forgiveness in these cases is the same - God removes the offense from our record - we are no longer guilty, we no longer are indebted to God for our sin. We are off the hook, we are cleansed of the wrongdoing, spiritually, physically, emotionally, legally, the repercussions of the sin remain. If I stole a car, and pray for forgiveness and God forgives me; I still am indebted to the owner of the car, the county, the state - I’d do some jail time - don’t worry this isn’t a confession, your pastor isn’t a car thief, I’m just making an example. The emotional pain, the impact that would then have on my family, remains. God forgives us, God purifies us, but that doesn’t mean we don’t still face consequences. Can God remove some of those consequences? Yes. Will he? Sometimes. Is He obligated to? No.

God forgives us for our offenses against Him. But we still must face our offenses against others. And that is the second part of this request.

12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors;

We are not asking God to do something we wouldn’t do ourselves. If I am saying God forgive me of my sins, and in the next breath I’m saying - ugh that person drives me crazy, I could never forgive them! We’re missing the point! God forgive us AS we forgive others. God just as I am forgiving others, you too forgive me. God as you forgive me, help me forgive others!

Now, we all have that problem person who questions everything we say right. It may have been a sibling, a child, a friend. That person who always asks why and questions your decisions. Jesus had a guy like that too… Peter… yeah that Peter, the apostle, the early church leader, I feel that Peter could be a thorn in Jesus side sometimes, well, if Jesus wasn’t God and perfectly patient atleast! In Matthew 18 we get a glimpe of one of Peter’s moments - Jesus was just teaching on this very concept of forgiving others, and lays out how we in the church should handle conflict - note it involves forgiveness - but Peter is like… well… yeah I’ve forgiven them once right - and fool me once shame on me, fool me twice shame on you… fool me three times… now things are getting out of hand! y words not Peters - but Peter asks a question, this is Matthew 18:21-35.

21 Then Peter approached him and asked, “Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? As many as seven times?”

22 “I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven.

For those like me who struggle with math, that’s 490; yes I checked it with a calculator… And no this isn’t a rule saying - keep a running list and after offense 490 cut them out of your life, this is a way of saying KEEP FORGIVING THEM! But like, be sensible, if they are a terribly influence, maybe spend less time with them, or maybe no time with them. But then Jesus gives them a parable, a story, to explain further.

23 “For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle accounts, one who owed ten thousand talents was brought before him. 25 Since he did not have the money to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. 26 “At this, the servant fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 Then the master of that servant had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan.

Like the king went from - I’m going to sell you, your wife, and your kids into slavery to your debt is repaid - quite the flip right! That is unreasonable in the BEST way! But Jesus goes on.

28 “That servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’ “29 “At this, his fellow servant fell down and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ 30 But he wasn’t willing. Instead, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. 31 When the other servants saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened. 32 Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And because he was angry, his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed.

Wow! This guy just had a massive debt forgiven and rather than pay it forward he has a guy thrown in jail until he could repay his debt - so the king, who had just forgiven the man, unforgiving him and has him tossed in jail to be tortured. That seems extreme, but I mean, its better than having your family all sold right. But what is the moral Jesus is driving home? The last verse tells us. SLIDE 13

35 So also my heavenly Father will do to you unless every one of you forgives his brother or sister from your heart.

God takes forgiveness seriously - God wants us to forgive those who have wronged us. That doesn’t mean we let them walk all over us, that doesn’t mean we don’t let them face the legal, physical, or emotional repercussions of their wrongs. But we forgive them.

So let me ask you. Is there someone you need to forgive? Or is there someone you need to apologize or confess to, giving them the opportunity to forgive you? God takes the business of forgiveness seriously, and we should to.

9b Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread;

12 And forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors;

I could have spent 8 sermons to get here and still had more to cover - but next week we will wrap it up with the final section of the Lord’s prayer.

13 And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.

But before then, take some time this week and dwell over these two questions.

1) Am I trusting God for my needs, for my daily bread, and am I greatful, am I thankful, that God has given me that when He does?

2) Who do I need to forgive? Who do I need to invite to forgive me, by way of confession or appology? And what sins may I need to confess and lay before God for the sake of forgiveness?

Let me pray for us today.