Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread (Part 2) Series

Give Us Our Daily Bread (Part 2)

Luke 11:1-3

Intro. – The Lord’s Prayer teaches us many things. But when we consider this part of the prayer there are two lessons that we cannot afford to overlook:

1. Luke 18:1-8 records the parable of The Importunate Widow which teaches us prayer is a necessity. Prayer is an absolute imperative in the Christian experience for it is the only channel man has to the power of God. James reflects this when in his blunt way he says "… Ye have not because ye ask not," {James 4:2b RSV}. If we do not ask we will never receive, so the first and most important lesson is that prayer is essential.

2. Luke 18:10-14 records The Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican which teaches us that prayer is an awareness of need.

This section of the prayer teaches us many important truths. However, the most important is the need for you to begin to claim the promises of God for your daily needs. It actually raises the question – "How does God give us our daily bread?"

I believe in a God who is personal. I believe in a God who speaks to me as a man would speak face to face with his friend.

God has given us many resources to draw strength from. Two of the most important are: 1) His Word, and 2) Prayer. These are the steps to placing yourself in a position where God can begin to bless you.

Let’s consider each of those separately for a few minutes.

I. The Word of God (Hebrews 4:12)

Hebrews 4:12 – "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."

A. What is interesting about that passage is the context in which it is written. The subject of Hebrew 4 is the importance of entering into the rest that God has provided for us and that there are many who will fail to enter because of unbelief.

1. Verse 11 admonishes us to labour to enter into that rest, lest any man fall into the same unbelief that has kept others from experiencing the rest that God has provided for his people.

B. The opposite of unbelief is faith.

1. Romans 10:17 tells us how to obtain faith – "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

2. Hebrews 11:6 says – "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

3. So if my daily needs are going to be met I must begin to read and study the Word of God for myself so that I can know what the promises of God are and then begin to claim them for my needs.

C. We must understand that the bible is God’s Word.

1. The Bible describes God’s complete revelation of Himself to humanity. It is a record of God’s dealings with humanity and His words to them. A great truth is that God is still speaking through the Bible.

2. I cannot know spiritual truth unless the Spirit of God reveals it to me. When you come to understand the spiritual meaning and application of a Scripture passage, it is because God’s Spirit has been at work. When God speaks to you through the Bible, He is relating to you in a personal and real way.

D. How do I claim the promises of God’s Word for my daily needs? The sequence is this:

1. You must read the Word of God—the Bible.

2. The Spirit of truth takes the Word of God and reveals a promise to you.

3. Look for two things in that promise:

a. The promise itself.

b. The stipulation of the promise – This is what I must do if I am going to experience the blessing from God.

4. Begin to walk in obedience – Begin to meet the requirement of the promise. As you begin to meet the requirement of the promise it is the same as claiming that promise for your daily needs. As we begin to obey his Word:

5. God honors his Word by fulfilling his promise to us.

E. The Spirit uses the Word of God to instruct us in the ways of God.

1. Isaiah 55:8-9 says – "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."