The Model Prayer pt. 4

We have been looking at a very familiar passage of Scripture, known commonly as the Lord’s prayer, but better understood to be the Lord’s model for praying. In Matthew 6:9-13 we see some very practical tips on how we are to pray, we are to offer

Recognition - a proper understanding of to Whom we are praying is first.

Resignation - prayer is not a time to tell God what we want done, but to be resolved to have His will done on earth.

Requests - prayer is a time to ask God for our daily needs, with the understanding that He will meet those needs.

The last two points we will deal with this evening are:

4. Requirement - how can our prayers be answered?

5. Reverence - Understanding God’s power

Let’s begin with looking at prayer’s

Requirement v. 12-13a, 14-15

What is required of you in prayer if your prayers are to have ANY power? Forgiveness!

Matthew 6:12–13 KJV 1900

12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

To forgive is to “send away”. This is two step process here:

You must be forgiven

“Forgive us our debts”

The word debt has the meaning of something owed

This is the meaning behind Romans 6:23 “23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

A wage is something that is owed you for the time you have put in

In the case of this verse, and because of our sinful nature, we are owed death - eternal separation from God.

The first step in having power in prayer is having your sins forgiven!

This is connected with verse 9, and deals with the necessary relationship with God the Father

An unbeliever cannot pray to God, though they often do in times of distress

There was a man who served as a deacon for me at GBC, he was a Vietnam vet, and served in the Special Forces

One day we were discussing atheists and he just laughed, saying, “Pastor, there’s no such thing. I knew men in the jungles who boasted about there being no God, but when the VC were shooting, the mortars were falling, they would be the first to start praying to a God they didn’t even believe existed!”

I hold that the only prayer from an unbeliever that God will listen to is the prayer of repentance in asking forgiveness.

If you have trusted in Jesus for forgiveness, then you are saved.

However, if you have been saved for any period of time, then you understand the struggle of living on this sin cursed earth in these sin cursed bodies!

Just because you are forgiven, that does not mean you are unable to sin.

Christian, 1 John 1:9 is an amazing verse...

You cannot expect to have power in your prayers if you have unconfessed sin in your life, Psalm 66:18 “18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear me:”

Step one: you must be forgiven, step two if you are to have power in your prayer life is...

You must forgive others.

“And forgive us our debts (that’s you to God), as we forgive our debtors (that is you to others).”

That little word “as” found in between “forgive us AS we forgive”, that little word is important

It means, “after the manner of”

We could translate it thus: “God, forgive us of our sins against you in the same way we forgive others their sins toward us”

Church, let me ask you to be honest with yourself, if this is the prerequisite to having your sins forgiven by God, the way that you forgive others, how many of your sins would be forgiven?

Consider the impact of unforgiveness towards others in your prayer life...

Matthew 6:14-15 “14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Very plainly Jesus says to us here that if we refuse to forgive those who have wronged us, then God will refuse to forgive us!

Listen to me:

Harboring an unforgiving attitude is not worth it!

Unforgiveness will destroy you, it will destroy those around you, and you will be miserable

Unforgiveness leads to anger, anger leads to resentment, and resentment leads to bitterness.

If that is not the way you wish to live your life, then you need to work on forgiving others!

Consider the danger of not forgiving others...

Matthew 6:13 “13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil...”

The word “evil” in this verse means “The evil one” - Satan.

Satan loves it when you are unwilling to forgive someone, when you want to hold onto a grudge.

Why? Becasue it gives him power over you!

Make no mistake, just as much as God wants you to forgive those who have wronged you, Satan wants you to hold onto that anger.

You cannot have power in your prayer life if you are not willing to forgive others as God has forgiven you, unconditionally, totally, and freely. The requirement for a powerful prayer life is forgiveness, lastly let us look at the importance of...

Reverence v. 13b

Matthew 6:13 KJV 1900

13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

I love how this is tacked onto the end of verse 13…Satan wants us under his control, more than that, he wants to sit in God’s place on the throne. Jesus reminds us that, while we may struggle down here, we will not struggle up there! God is on the throne, God is all-powerful (dunamis - dynamite), God deserves all the glory, and God is eternal!

Why is it important to show God reverence in prayer? For all the reasons listed above, and because Jesus understood our nature, that we are quick to replace God on the throne of our lives.

I’ll leave with one searching question and we will be dismissed: Search your heart and ask, “Is there something, anything, I placed on the throne of my life besides God? While close in prayer, you search your heart for the answer to these questions: 1. Is there someone I need to forgive?

2. Is there something in this life more important to me than God?

If the answer to either of those questions is yes, then you will not have power in your prayer life until you have dealt with them. Let’s pray.