dsw@gbcc07-17-2011
Pray Great Prayers
Matthew 6:9-13
Prayer is an activity that most Christians struggle with. Our challenge is to pray great prayers but admittedly most would be challenged to simply pray period.
Thankfully There's an app for that! (show "Thy Phone" video from bluefish.tv)
But really pray is a real challenge.
For some it comes easy. I have been at awe to see seasoned deeply spiritual people pray.
Their words flow smoothly and passionately to a God they really love. They humbly and powerfully make requests to God and when they have finished you wouldn't be surprised if a host of angels appeared and sang the halleluiah chorus.
I want my prayers to be that way don't you?
* I want to pray to see a change.
* I want to pray and experience the true presence of our Living God.
* I want to pray with the confidence knowing that what I have requested in the name of Jesus will be done.
* I want to pray powerful selfless and deep prayers
* I want to pray like the new testament church prayed in Acts 4:31. When this group of believers had finished praying the place where they were meeting was literally shaken.
I think if we are going to learn to pray it would be best to learn from the very best.
If we are going to pray Great prayers then we are going to learn from Jesus.
This is not a new struggle the disciples struggled with this practice too. That's why we see the disciples coming to Jesus in Luke:11:1 and ask him "Lord, teach us to pray" Jesus right there launches What is commonly known as the Lords prayer. We see this prayer more detailed in Matthew 6:9-13.
It is interesting that before Jesus teaches his disciples tow to pray in Matthew he teaches them how not to pray. Notice what he says in Matthew 6:5-8
5 "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 men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6 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. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
* He tells them not to follow the examples of the outwardly righteous and inwardly rotten. Their motivation is to give only a show of holiness. They show off in public when they were praying. They dramatically show their false devotion. They show off using many words. This "show" of righteousness. Quite literally makes God sick
Is 1:15-18
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood; wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, 17 learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.
God is honored by heart felt, honest humble prayer
To pray Great prayers lets start right.
After Jesus gives us an example of what does not honor God He models what prayer should be in the Words of The Lords Prayer in Matthew 6:9-11
It would be good to point out a couple of things about this "Lord's Prayer"
1. it is not a prayer that applies to the Lord at all so it is better titled the model prayer or the disciple's prayer.
2. It is not intended to be prayed verbatim as a mindless chant. It is a beautiful pattern for prayer that we are intended to learn and fashion our prayers to follow.
This morning as we learn to Pray Great Prayers Id like to break down this prayer and bring out the areas that will help us develop great prayers as we learn form the master.
9 "This, then, is how you should pray:
"'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'
(and the NASB as well as the KJV include. This is not included in some earlier manuscripts ) [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.']
1. If we are going to Pray Great Prayers then when we pray we are going to take a Personal Approach
Jesus starts with the address of who is praying to and he call God "Father" this is not all to uncommon for Jesus' prayers he often called God, "Father" what is uncommon is that is not what most rabbis or teachers of the law or the patriarchs called God. Jesus is showing a personal relationship that we should approach God on a personal level.
The fact that he calls God "Father" shows a unique relationship that those in the family are privileged to call him.
* I have friends who call me Mutumbo.
* Associates in a professional arena who have a professional relationship call me Mr. Whitten.
* Folks in the church call me Dave, Mr. Dave, Big Daddy Dave, while others introduce me as their minister, preacher, some have called me pastor. Others in the church have even called me reverend , (I don't particularly like that term, but I have been called that).
* My parents call me son.
* My wife calls me Dave I call her honey or babe or sweet heart.
* My children call me dad or daddy.
There is a sense of priority I give to those in my family over those in the church, friends or those I have a professional relationship with. When my children come to me with sincerity. They have my attention. There is very little that I would not do for them if they had a need and asked my for help. I want to Give them what they want. It makes me happy to see their needs fulfilled.
This is the confidence we have in approaching God as our father. He is able to give beyond our greatest imagination.
Eph 3:20-21 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Jesus starts with "Our Father" because he will meet the needs of his children. And that is what we are. His children and heirs of his kingdom
Ro 8:16-17 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
2. Next to pray great prayers we have to recognize his high place
Jesus said "our Father in Heaven
Jesus recognizes his high exalted place. Not just to identify our heavenly father opposed to our earthly father but to place God in his rightful position. He is high and lifted up. He is the one and only God and Father in Heaven. In him alone do we trust.
3. To Pray Great Prayers we need to honor God's Holiness.
Jesus said "Hallowed be your name". It is important to recognize that God is perfectly holy. God in all parts of his triune existence holds the unique distinction to be holy.
We talk about the holy land, but it really isn't holy. It is shattered and divided and corrupted. The pope and preachers are called holy men. But they are really aren't holy people because they are people who are sinners who have fallen woefully short of Gods divine example.
Only God is holy. He alone deserves that title. In fact, we are told that in heaven this very declaration is announced over and over again.
Rev 4:8 Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come."
You cannot speak about holiness with our recognizing the utter goodness it reflects and the complete righteousness of God. Holiness brings with it a total purity that is God's alone. Holiness is a term of exaltation that is uniquely God's.
There is quite literally no higher praise we can give Him that would reflect who he is in his essence.
Truly Holy is his name.
So in praying great prayers we must pause and adore him in his hallowed name.
4. To pray great prayers we must approach God with our mind and heart set on His Kingdom.
Jesus' next phrase is "Your kingdom come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven"
We often pray with our agenda and ignore Gods plan and will. We tend to treat God like he is some holy genie. We rub the lamp and ask him to grant our wishes.
Larry Bryant sang a song about this back in the late 80's it reflects this genie in the lamp view of God -- Never ending shopping list
(CHORUs)
GIVE ME THIS, I WANT THAT
BLESS ME LORD I PRAY
GRANT ME WHAT I THINK I NEED TO MAKE IT THROUGH THE DAY
MAKE ME WEALTHY, KEEP ME HEALTHY
FILL IN WHAT I MISSED
ON MY NEVER-ENDING SHOPPING LIST
If we are going to prayer great prayers then we are going to keep focus on Gods will and kingdom. Jesus said if we want our needs met then we must seek his kingdom first Mat 6:33 "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
Pride, selfishness, arrogance and self righteousness are attitudes that God abhors. It is best to a line our lives with the will of God. This will take some transformation and changing of our minds. But when we do we can know his perfect and pleasing plan and purposes.
Ro 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Lets' seek him on his terms and we will find ourselves praying great and powerful prayers.
5. Praying Great Prayers means we Ask God for the things we need.
Jesus says next Give us our Daily bread.
From this we learn to trust God for the provisions.
Later in his sermon the mount Jesus teaches us not to worry about our needs because God provides for us. Listen to his wisdom
Matt 6: 25-27 "do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[b]?
We often spend much time worrying about things that God has already planned for and yet we wring our hands over the things that God had promised to take care of for us.
If we are going to Pray Great Prayers then we are going to trust in God's provision
6. Next if we are going to Pray Great Prayers then we will need to seek to forgive others as much as we desire to be forgiven
Jesus says "Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors"
From Jesus teachings it is indicated that our relationships with others need to be in order before we can come to God with our pleadings.
Jesus taught earlier in this sermon on the mount that if you are standing in line with your offerings and you have an unsolved issue with another person then (as Jesus instructed) "First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift." Mat 5:28
God clearly expects us to reflect the grace we expect from him on the others we interact with. Matt 7:1-2 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Jesus teaches us to come to our heavenly father pleading forgiveness and he expects us to follow up that plea with a show of mercy to our offenders
7. Lastly, if we are going to Pray Great Prayers then we need to pursue righteousness and holiness
Jesus words here are "lead us not in to temptation but deliver us from evil".
These first words of this phrase are more properly stated help us avoid temptation. It is not God who brings temptation James tells that God is not tempted be evil nor does he temptation any one. James further explains that each of us are dragged away by the sinful desires that live in us.
Paul teaches us in 1 cor. 10:13 that No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. 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 stand up under it.
The promise is here that when we are faced with a choice to do evil there is always a way out and the further promise that we will face nothing that we can't handle.
Praying Great prayers will be addressed that God will help us in our time of need. We know that we are not alone when faced spiritual struggles.
It is one of Gods greatest desires for us to walk in righteousness. He will aid in the one who's heart is set on following in obedience.
If we are going to Pray Great Prayers then we are going to pursue righteousness and holiness
In order to crank up our good to great meter in our prayer life means that while we pray we are going to seek to address some or all of these qualities in our prayers.
Why not this is the pattern that the master of prayers has set for an example for us to follow.
1. Take a Personal Approach
2. Recognize his High Place
3. Honor God's Holiness.
4. Approach God with our mind and heart set on His Kingdom.
5. Ask God for the Things We Need.
6. Seek to Forgive Others as Much as we Desire to be forgiven
7. We need to Pursue righteousness and Holiness
